Thomas Paolino

HB 5029 raises the Rhode Island minimum wage to $16 beginning in 2026 and $17 beginning in 2027. CPAC believes that these increases will stifle job creation and raise prices, so it opposes this bill. The Rhode Island Senate passed HB 5029 on June 18, 2025, in a 33-4 vote, and Governor Daniel McKee signed the measure into law.

HB 5674 prohibits landlords from requiring tenants to verify their immigration status or citizenship. CPAC believes that this is an infringement on the rights of property owners, and it opposes this bill. The Rhode Island Senate passed HB 5674 on June 21, 2025, in a 31-4 vote, and Governor Daniel McKee signed the measure into law.

SB 359 bans the sale of popular semiautomatic firearms like the AR-15 from being sold in Rhode Island. CPAC believes this is an attack on Rhode Islanders’ 2nd Amendment rights, and it opposes this bill. The Rhode Island Senate passed SB 359 on June 20, 2025, in a 25-11 vote, and Governor Daniel McKee signed the measure into law.

HB 5726 is nominally aimed at eliminating censorship at government-owned libraries. While CPAC believes that libraries should include many perspectives, it is concerned that this bill does not sufficiently differentiate between public libraries and school libraries, limiting parents’ ability to challenge objectionable content at schools. For that reason, CPAC opposes this bill. The Rhode Island Senate passed HB 5726 on June 20, 2025, in a 31-5 vote, and Governor Daniel McKee signed the measure into law.

SB 269 eliminates mandatory HIV testing of those convicted for commercial sex crimes. Instead, HIV testing would be made available on a voluntary basis. CPAC believes that this proposal endangers the health of both convicted criminals and the wider community, so it opposes this bill. The Rhode Island Senate passed SB 269 on May 15, 2025, in a 35-2 vote, and the measure became law without the Governor’s signature.

HB 5723 mandates that state agencies, state institutions of higher education, and quasi-public agencies must use government-owned facilities for large printing jobs. CPAC believes this proposal is anticompetitive and inefficient, so it opposes this bill. The Rhode Island Senate passed HB 5723 on June 18, 2025, in a 35-2 vote, and Governor Daniel McKee signed the measure into law.

HB 5709 allows the disabled and the elderly to apply to have an absentee ballot automatically mailed to them ahead of each election. CPAC is concerned about fraud and abuse that might stem from this measure and opposes this bill. The Rhode Island Senate passed HB 5709 on June 18, 2025, in a 29-5 vote, and Governor Daniel McKee signed the measure into law.HB 5709 allows the disabled and the elderly to apply to have an absentee ballot automatically mailed to them ahead of each election. CPAC is concerned about fraud and abuse that might stem from this measure and opposes this bill. The Rhode Island Senate passed HB 5709 on June 18, 2025, in a 29-5 vote, and Governor Daniel McKee signed the measure into law.

HB 5266 requires schools to regularly hand over employee demographic information, contact details, and addresses to the union representing them. CPAC believes that schools should receive individual consent before handing over information to unions and opposes this bill. The Rhode Island Senate passed HB 5266 on June 18, 2025, in a 32-4 vote, and it became law without the Governor’s signature.

SB 1047 eliminates restrictions on the investment portfolios of insurance companies, allowing them to make targeted investments to keep costs down. CPAC believes that insurance companies should have greater latitude to manage their portfolio of assets, so it supports this bill. The Rhode Island Senate passed SB 1047 on June 10, 2025, in a 36-0 vote, and Governor Daniel McKee signed the measure into law.

HB 5575 allows public utilities to procure nuclear power for energy customers. CPAC believes that nuclear energy is a crucial part of America’s energy infrastructure, and it supports this bill. The Rhode Island Senate passed HB 5575 on June 18, 2025, in a 23-14 vote, and Governor Daniel McKee signed the measure into law.

SB 974 increases the taxable wage base to $100,000 for contributions to the Temporary Disability Insurance program, allowing an expansion to Temporary Caregiver Insurance. CPAC believes that increasing payroll taxes on Rhode Islanders is shortsighted, and it opposes this bill. The Rhode Island Senate passed SB 974 on June 20, 2025, in a 34-1 vote, and Governor Daniel McKee signed the measure into law.

SB 124 aligns state law with current NLRB rulings that find graduate student workers are employees of universities, allowing them to form and join unions. CPAC believes graduate student unions disrupt the academic climate on campuses and opposes this bill. The Rhode Island Senate passed SB 124 on June 20, 2025, in a 31-4 vote, and Governor Daniel McKee signed the measure into law.

SB 311 instructs the Rhode Island Department of Administration to create a list of businesses owned by minorities and women for distribution to construction contractors. This is aimed at easing compliance with previously established quotas that mandate 15% of construction procurement cost should be directed toward businesses owned by minorities and women. CPAC believes that contractors should be chosen based on competence and merit, instead of immutable characteristics. Therefore, CPAC opposes this bill. The Rhode Island Senate passed SB 311 on June 10, 2025, in a 34-0 vote, and Governor Daniel McKee signed the measure into law.

SB 246 increases a fee on barrels of petroleum from 5 cents to 10 cents and uses funds nominally for oil spill cleanup to reduce carbon emissions. CPAC objects to this tax increase and government waste and opposes this bill. The Rhode Island Senate passed SB 246 on June 10, 2025, in a 31-5 vote, but the House did not act on the bill before the end of the legislative session.

SJR 327 adds a green amendment to the constitution of Rhode Island, including the right to “a life-supporting climate.” CPAC believes that this amendment will be used to justify laws and policies that stifle productivity and drive-up energy prices, so it opposes this joint resolution. The Rhode Island Senate passed SJR 327 on June 3, 2025, in a 32-4 vote, but the House did not act on the resolution before the end of the legislative session.

SB 622 eliminates a sunset provision on an increase in the total amount of earnings someone claiming partial unemployment benefits can receive, extending them indefinitely. CPAC believes that making these partial-unemployment benefits permanent is fiscally unsound and opposes this bill. The Rhode Island Senate passed SB 622 on June 20, 2025, in a 34-0 vote, and Governor Daniel McKee signed the measure into law.