PROVIDENCE – The House on Thursday approved a $9.2 billion tax and spending plan for the fiscal year beginning July 1 that cuts car taxes and offers two free years of community college, making few changes to what was approved out of committee last week.
The House spent about six hours discussing the fiscal 2018 budget, which passed along party lines 64-11.
“In very difficult times, when our revenues did not meet expectations, our foundation is still strong,” said House Speaker Nicholas A. Mattiello, a Cranston Democrat.
A large part of the night was spent discussing budget items, including a minimum wage hike to $10.50 by Jan. 1, 2019, $3.3 million in new spending for college tuition at the Community College of Rhode Island and a handful of new amendments proposed by the minority Republican party that were each voted down.
“I can’t vote for this [budget] because it’s built on a hope and a prayer,” said Patricia L. Morgan, Republican minority leader.
The House, led by Democrats, is where the bulk of debate over the state budget happens. This year, lawmakers faced a $134 million deficit. Morgan criticized the Democrats’ tactic of balancing the budget by requesting Gov. Gina M. Raimondo find $25 million in unspecified cuts to departmental spending.
“We basically have an unbalanced budget in front of us,” she said.
Besides the Republican agenda, lawmakers debated at length the proposal to increase the minimum wage hike. Critics said it would hurt Rhode Island businesses, while proponents said it was necessary to better the livelihood of Rhode Islanders who are struggling to make ends meet.
The measure ultimately passed.
Robert B. Jacquard, D-Bristol, voted for the measure, but said it wasn’t easy for him, a self-described moderate.
“That was a very difficult vote for me, and I think it was difficult for a lot of my colleagues, but we recognize that the budget is something that everyone in the room has to compromise on,” he said.
Little discussion was given to the Mattiello-backed $26 million cut to the so-called car tax, a proposal that crossed party lines. It passed unanimously.
Raimondo’s Rhode Island Promise school scholarship initiative, costing about $3.3 million, received much more scrutiny, as critics said there should be a means test tied to qualifying applicants.
The measure ultimately passed.
Nearly $20 million was cut back from spending proposed for economic-development initiatives administered by R.I. Commerce Corp.
The only tax increase was to the cigarette tax, a 50 cent increase bringing the total tax to $4.25 from $3.75.
Besides curbed spending and broad-based cuts, House lawmakers also leaned on several transfers of millions of dollars to the state budget from quasi-public entities. The fiscal maneuvering is colloquially known as “scoops.”
The budget was approved before 9 p.m., making good on another promise Mattiello made this year not to spend all night deliberating on the spending plan.
Raimondo spokesman Michael Raia in a statement said the House-passed plan “protects our priorities that have cut Rhode Island’s unemployment rate from the highest in the nation to a rate that is lower than Massachusetts’, helped create 13,000 new jobs and given businesses a reason to take a fresh look at Rhode Island.”
The budget is now passed along to the Senate, which will take it up for consideration next week.
The current fiscal year ends June 30.
Eli Sherman is a PBN staff writer. Email him at Sherman@PBN.com, or follow him on Twitter @Eli_Sherman.
