Maybe it’s a good thing that state legislators were able to ge
t away from the State House for a few days.
It has been a truly grueling legislative session, starting with the New Year’s Eve resignation of Senate President William V. Irons, followed by the resignation of Sen. John Celona, the debate over the casino question – and finally, an ugly budget battle sparked by lots of name-calling and finger-pointing.
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And to think, it’s not over yet.
Just days after the General Assembly approved a $5.9 billion spending plan, Gov. Don Carcieri vetoed it. Too many giveaways, he said, too many special deals for special interests.
Sen. Stephen D. Alves, a West Warwick Democrat and chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, released a blistering response to the governor’s veto via a July 2 press release.
In part, it read: “This veto is election-year antics … I have every confidence that the Senate will vote to do the responsible thing for the state and override this veto, which was clearly made not with the best interests of Rhode Islanders in mind, but for political reasons.”
And so legislators were expected to be back on Smith Hill, maybe as early as this past Friday or in the coming days.
Eventually, this 2004 legislative session will come to a merciless end.
But before it does, maybe this break in the action will give legislators the chance to get away from the wheeling and dealing that takes place on Smith Hill and ask folks back in the neighborhoods that they represent what they think of some of the things making the governor – and others – so uncomfortable.
For example, they could ask a neighbor, or perhaps a friend on the golf course, what they really think of giving Vincent Mesolella, a former state representative, a special deal to develop the site of the Fogarty Building across from the convention center into a hotel. Yes, the latest deal is less offensive than the original one and requires Mesolella to secure historic tax credits. But it’s a special deal nonetheless.
I have to think the average taxpayer would tell them that it doesn’t seem to make much sense. That if the site is such a great spot for a hotel, why doesn’t some developer – Mesolella included – go out and secure funding on their own from a private source?
And maybe they could ask an average taxpayer – maybe one who has children who might want to attend one of our state colleges someday – whether it makes sense to give the General Assembly more control over the Board of Governors for Higher Education?
The governor was right to veto this budget. A Republican, he was elected in this heavily Democratic state because he promised to run state government like a business, to invest in areas where a return is most likely and to control spending.
There are many questions out there to be asked. And if legislators checked,
they might find that their neighbors and friends are asking many of the same
questions the governor is asking.
Food bank needs your help
On another matter, the Rhode Island Community Food Bank is facing a food shortage.
Bernie Beaudreau, the food bank’s executive director, is calling for all places of worship, businesses and community and civic groups to organize collections of canned goods to help fill the shelves of local food pantries.
Need has increased of late due to the rising costs of fuel, food and housing – and the fact that many people are out of work or can get only part-time or low-wage employment, according to Beaudreau.
The food bank has seen a 21 percent increase in the number of people going to food pantries over the past year. In the past 12 months, the bank distributed a record 7.9 million pounds of food through its network of agencies. That’s 1 million pounds more than last year, an increase of 15 percent. Right now, the food bank’s member pantries, soup kitchens and shelters assist 51,000 per month.
“The need is clearly outstripping our supply of food and we’re facing a shortage,” said Beaudreau. “We need to receive another 450,000 pounds of food by the end of August in order to avert a food crisis.”
Who knows? A summer food drive might give your company a morale boost. It would certainly be a nice thing to do.
The food bank is looking for nonperishable canned or packaged goods, like meats, stews, tuna, vegetables, beans, peanut butter, pasta, sauce, rice and cereals.
For more information, call Beaudreau at 942-6325. A list of food pantries supported by the food bank can be found at www.rifoodbank.org.
