Governor Chafee Comes To Town

It was an interesting Friday morning at . The Governor's Office had called us the other day to say that the governor wanted to stop by to listen to our concerns. The governor wants to listens to our concerns? Believe me, Rhode Island is really different than Massachusetts!

I have to say that throughout four administrations in Massachusetts, never did we get a call at Town Hall to say that the governor wanted to come to talk to us about anything. What usually happened was that when we were in need, we would try for months to get a meeting with a third-string gubernatorial staffer and then maybe, just maybe, we would get together.

But promptly at 9:30, the governor arrived and joined Council President Joe Robicheau, Vice President Judi Stavens, Councilor Liz Pedro and me in the Portsmouth room of Town Hall for an informal, but frank, conversation on a wide variety of issues. We talked about our beautiful town, his family and his many visits to our area, but mostly we talked about the financial realities presently facing the State of Rhode Island and all of our cities and towns.

Much to his credit, the governor is trying to help towns grapple with many financial challenges. He has submitted a municipal reform and relief legislative package that would provide communities the tools to make important structural reforms and develop a long-term path to fiscal stability. It also includes measures to relieve cities and towns of costly and burdensome state mandates. 

The Chafee package includes:

• Legislation authorizing “highly distressed communities” to eliminate mandates and affect collective bargaining agreements and
  binding arbitration;
• Legislation reducing disability pensions for people in
  the State Retirement system to 50% for those who can perform other employment;
• Legislation authorizing cities and towns to limit pension benefits for new and non-vested employees in locally administered pensions to the benefits paid to employees in the State system;
• Legislation authorizing municipalities with a locally administered pension to withhold cost of living adjustments if the pension is less than 60% funded and after certain findings are made;
• Legislation requiring all school districts to implement a school budget model approved by the commissioner of education; 
• Legislation providing that supplemental appropriations for the payment of past annual school department expenditures would not be included in a municipality’s maintenance of effort requirement; and
• Legislation changing the dates and percentages of
  payments for foundation level school support and approved expenditures and also for payments of distressed community aid.

The state legislature will be deciding on these important matters soon. What is your perspective on these reform measures?