Legislation

The General Assembly added Rhode Island to the list of states that have joined the National Popular Vote compact.

The House adopted amendments proposed by the ACLU in addressing legislation that restricted the possession of the plants salvia divinorum and datura stramonium, or Gypsum Weed.

With table games legalized in Rhode Island, the General Assembly fast-tracked legislation overhauling the casino gaming statute and adding a number of new crimes, penalties, and regulations.

In May, the ACLU testified before the House Judiciary committee in opposition to a proposed state constitutional amendment responding to the U.S. Supreme Court’s controversial Citizens United decision.

In 2011, RI passed a law making seat belt violations a primary traffic offense, meaning that any individual could be pulled over by law enforcement solely for failing to wear a seat belt. The ACLU objected that this legislation would give law enforcement another tool to engage in racial profiling.

In response to the tragic events of Sandy Hook and Aurora, the General Assembly leadership introduced a package of gun control legislation covering a wide variety of issues.

In April, the ACLU testified before the House Judiciary committee on perennial legislation to mandate the carrying of guns by campus police officers.

Across Rhode Island, school districts are blocking from students vastly more information than was intended by the federal law requiring the use of filtering, leaving students unable to complete their assignments and teachers scrambling to change their lesson plans at the very last moment.