Legislation

The General Assembly continues to push for harsher penalties around drunk driving in general, but the ACLU was particularly troubled by the punitive nature of bills, part of a package from the City of Providence, addressing underage drinking.

The Affiliate successfully opposed a bill that sought to expand the definition of criminal “harassment” to include not just unwanted direct contact, but also the posting of information on Web sites about people.

The ACLU also successfully objected when a completely revised “welfare reform” provision in the proposed 2009 budget authorized the Department of Human Services to apply for federal funding for so-called “healthy marriage” programs.

Despite the state’s difficult fiscal times, the legislature approved a bill that will require public school districts to continue providing certain taxpayer-funded services to students with disabilities in parochial schools.

The APA, an important law requiring state agencies to provide public notice and seek input on proposed regulations, took a beating this year.

Designed to strengthen the franchise in Rhode Island, the legislation would overturn restrictive Board of Elections’ policies that substantially limit the counting of provisional ballots and restrict the rights of candidates to view disputed ballots during recounts of close elections.

For the first time in ten years, the General Assembly approved comprehensive legislation to strengthen the state’s Access to Public Records Act (APRA).

Despite persistent efforts, no action was ultimately taken on a comprehensive bill that would have strengthened the state’s racial profiling law.

On a more positive note, ACLU vigilance thwarted a last-minute effort by the State Police and the Department of Transportation to obtain passage of their bill making seat belt violations a primary offense.