PROVIDENCE – Universal preschool, meeting business and workforce needs, and how Rhode Island should respond to other pandemic and climate change challenges were highlighted at a legislative forum on Tuesday.
At the annual forum, held by the Greater Providence Chamber of Commerce, leaders from the state government and Rhode Island businesses discussed how American Rescue Plan Act funding can address these issues.
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The state budget remains the House of Representatives’ area of highest importance, said House Speaker K. Joseph Shekarchi, and “this year takes an added importance because we have the ARPA funds we’ll be expending.”
Shekarchi and other legislative leaders said they must allocate the funds with investment in mind, as the ARPA money is a one-time opportunity.
The state still has around a $1 billion to spend in ARPA dollars, and is fielding requests from the business community on how these dollars should be allocated. So far, the state has already received around $7 billion in requests.
In an opening address, Community College of Rhode Island President and Providence Chamber board Chair Meghan L. Hughes said that to attract the state’s needed workforce, the state needs to make itself more attractive to workers by improving affordability, housing and quality of education.
“The themes we’re hearing about what it takes for a business to thrive here relate to the concerns that are top of mind for so many Rhode Islanders,” Hughes said.
The state also needs to help businesses provide adult education and training programs to further bolster this workforce and increase diversity, said Chamber President Laurie White.
During the forum discussion, Senate Majority Leader Michael McCaffrey, D-Warwick, and Senate President Dominick J. Ruggerio, D-Providence, voiced strong support for universal preschool, with Ruggerio noting that such a program would give students a head-start on education and social development and also help working parents with child care needs.
Leaders also discussed Rhode Island’s role in addressing the ongoing climate crisis, which revealed a partisan split.
“We all have to do our part,” said House Majority Leader Christopher R. Blazejewski, D-Providence, “especially in Rhode Island, where we will be subjected to the consequences more than any other states and are already seeing consequences of climate change.”
To mitigate the impact of climate change, Blazejewski said, the state must set long-term goals and set metrics. As part of these plans, leaders must determine the role of legislation such as the Transportation and Climate Initiative, he added.
House Minority Leader Blake A. Filippi, R-Charlestown, disagreed with Rhode Island’s role in addressing climate change, saying that the onus for prevention and change must be placed on national and international actors.
Speaking on education, Filippi said the state is “failing generations of Rhode Islanders” and called for increased attention to English as a second language education and a school choice option.
“We want our struggling communities to have that choice. … We cannot expect them to wait 10 years for a school turnaround,” he said.
On cannabis legislation – a subject that came under the spotlight at last year’s event – legislative leaders said that if legalized, employers should retain the power to set their own workplace policies on cannabis use.
The state legislature will introduce legislation on legalized cannabis later Tuesday.
At the end of the forum, the Providence Chamber polled viewers on how they feel about Rhode Island’s current economic recovery prospects. About 68% said they felt at least somewhat optimistic.
(UPDATE: Adds paragraphs 6-9, 12, 14-18, with comments from Meghan L. Hughes, Laurie White, Michael McCaffery, Dominick J. Ruggerio, Christopher R. Blazejewski and Blake A. Filippi.)
Jacquelyn Voghel is a PBN staff writer. Contact her at Voghel@PBN.com.
