There is no rest for the governing class. So in the interest of getting a head start on much-needed changes, here are some suggestions for the Assembly and the governor as he begins his second term. We recognize that a number of these issues have been addressed by proposals and/or legislation, but the reason that we are mentioning them all now is simple – the measures so far have not solved the problems. In the coming months, we will address each one of them, but for now, it is enough to set out that these issues demand serious attention.
Property tax reform sits atop the priority list. As the Rhode Island Public Expenditure Council argues convincingly, property tax is the state’s most unfair tax, but it also generates the revenue that most towns depend on to balance their municipal and school budgets. So reform must be approached with care.
Beyond Cash Donations: How New Forms of Giving Are Transforming Not-for-Profit Accounting
Evolving Funding Landscape for Not-for-Profits Not-for-profit organizations are being asked to do more with less,…
Learn More
A small step in the right direction already has been taken, by constraining municipal budget increases. And local budgets could be reined in further by combining public sector business operations across municipal borders to achieve greater economies of scale.
But no matter how efficient the operations, tax dollars still will have to be generated. It might require additional allocations from state tax coffers, or a shift in the mix of local taxes. One way or another, Rhode Islanders need a break on their property tax bills.
Talk to business leaders about problems they face, and health care costs come out on top nearly every time. Fundamental change is needed and because of the complex nature of the issue, public and private leaders must join the fight. Problems like the number of uninsured and spiraling health care inflation, for example, are intimately tied to one another. The uninsured still use the health care system, but usually when they are sicker and treatment is costlier.
Our education system is broken, especially for poor and minority children. And money alone is not the answer. A solution requires teachers, administrators, parents and children to commit to change and to one another. Schools like The Met School are models of what can happen when the intellectual life of the child is put at the center of the educational experience.
Small businesses are hampered by rules and regulations that impede their ability to grow and prosper. They need the same kind of cut-through-the-red-tape initiatives that the Smith Hill gang showers on big employers.
The Separation of Powers Act was a truly democratic, good government reform, and it’s time for the General Assembly to implement it all. Unleashing the full economic power of the state will happen only when we eliminate the culture of favors and insider dealing that the act goes a long way to counteract.
