The Providence City Council is on the brink of a massive shift, with nearly half of its members leaving office at the end of the year. But ahead of the changeover, tensions are rising, with critics accusing those leaving office of ramming through controversial policies in their final weeks.
It’s a unique situation for a city where some of the same elected officials have remained in office for decades. This is the first time term limits are in effect since being added to the city charter in 2006. Of the seven council members leaving office, five are term-limited.
Among them is Council President John J. Igliozzi, who has served on the council for 25 years. He’s been president since 2021. Igliozzi disagreed with criticism that the outgoing council members should not be using their remaining time in office to make major policy changes, such as tax discounts for developers.
He said the critics were being “disingenuous” and that the council members are obligated to serve until the final days of their final terms.
Others see it differently.
“When it comes to major tax agreements that are financially costly, that should be the responsibility of the incoming City Council,” said Wendy Schiller, a political science professor at Brown University. “You want to have people in office making the decisions so voters hold the right people accountable.”
Dozens of community members shared Schiller’s sentiment when calling on the council to postpone its decision to tack on 30 years to tax exemption and lease agreements with ProvPort Inc. during a November public hearing. A panel of council members recommended the agreements anyway, and after delaying the vote for two weeks, the full council voted unanimously on Dec. 15 to approve the agreement.
A second vote is required but won't take place until the new council members are sworn in.
The ProvPort debate is just one example of what John Marion calls a “super lame duck” situation, with the five term-limited members essentially having four years – rather than the seven weeks post-election – to pass policies without worrying about reelection.
“They knew they weren’t going to have to face the voters on any potential decision, so they didn’t have to worry about backlash,” said Marion, executive director of Common Cause Rhode Island.
Common Cause opposes term limits because research suggests the constant turnover they create gives more power to lobbyists and staff over elected representatives. However, this research focuses on state legislatures, where term limits are usually shorter than the 12-year maximum in Providence.
Another danger: losing institutional knowledge and expertise of longstanding members, which can “interrupt the flow of policy,” Schiller said.
On the other hand, the crop of fresh faces presents an opportunity to reconsider the way the council operates, both in policy and culture.
Councilwoman-elect Susan R. Anderbois is particularly excited about changing policy. She ran for office partly because of the lack of true public access the existing council provided.
“How we do business is just as important as the policies we pass,” Anderbois said. “You can follow the letter of the law, follow the Open Meetings Act, without really following the spirit of it.”
Marion also criticizes the outgoing council for offering the appearance of transparency without substance. The city Finance Committee’s preliminary approval of the ProvPort deals, for example, created whispers of backroom deals because of how swiftly officials voted without opportunity for discussion even among its members.
Marion blames Igliozzi for perpetuating a culture of secrecy.
Igliozzi’s election as council president in 2021 – taking over from Sabina Matos who resigned from the council when she became lieutenant governor – created a dramatic shift in the council dynamics, Schiller says.
Losing Igliozzi and Mayor Jorge O. Elorza, who are both term-limited, could also upend the council-mayor dynamic, according to Schiller. Igliozzi wielded a powerful, and at times combative, hand in the city that at times overshadowed Elorza. Mayor-elect Brett Smiley’s more hands-on approach combined with a new, less-senior council president will shift the balance of power to the mayoral post, Schiller says.
“I think in terms of the council picking big fights with the mayor, that’s going to be tougher to do with Smiley, at least in the first year,” she said.
Councilwoman Rachel Miller, favored to become the next council president, is looking at her role to revisit or advance policies the council has been unable to enact in the past. Among them: policies governing affordable housing, the city school system and more protections and enforcement of requirements tied to tax discounts for development projects.
“Overwhelmingly, Providence has not seen this kind of opportunity to take a new look at issues with a new set of people in decades,” Miller said. “I think that’s overwhelmingly positive."
