As the 2015 legislative session wound down, a number of pro-civil liberties bills were primed for passage and many anti-civil liberties bills were failing to move at all. In any legislative year, however, a great deal can happen in the closing days, and this session was no exception. A sudden collapse in negotiations between the House and Senate over a series of seemingly minor bills meant that a number of other bills slated for passage suddenly died in the last moments of the session when legislative leaders abruptly adjourned.
Perhaps the most frustrating examples of this were the death of a few good bills that both chambers agreed were worthy of passage. Because the House has to approve a Senate bill and the Senate has to approve a House bill before it can become law, some bills already approved by their respective chamber were stopped on their way to approval by the other simply because the clock ran out.
Important bills on their way to approval when they died include an extension and expansion of the life-saving Good Samaritan Act and ACLU-drafted bills to curb school suspensions and establish clear policies for school use of Internet filters.
Unfortunately, a few pieces of troubling legislation did become law. Despite staunch opposition from the ACLU, Rhode Island passed its first anti-abortion legislation in 15 years. Ironically, the restriction was introduced by pro-choice Governor Gina Raimondo. The General Assembly also passed two bills that undermine the rehabilitation of offenders, and the ACLU was unsuccessful in persuading the Governor to veto either of them.
This is not to say there were no successes for civil liberties this year. Some important non-discrimination measures became law this session. They include legislation strengthening the laws against pregnancy discrimination and two anti-discrimination bills that protect children in DCYF custody and military veterans. After years-long efforts, a bill to address some aspects of racial profiling and protect juveniles from unnecessary police searches also became law. And the Affiliate also continued its work to establish important privacy protections for the 21st century, protect due process rights, and reform police practices.
These bills, detailed inside, are just a small sampling of the hundreds of bills the ACLU weighed in on this year. As for the positive measures that died in the closing minutes of the session, the Affiliate will be back in full force next year pushing for their passage. You can find additional information and testimony on these and other bills here.
