Legislation

The ACLU testified in opposition to legislation amending the state’s medical marijuana act to allow municipalities to impose onerous restrictions on medical marijuana growers, permit landlords to discriminate against their growing tenants, and bar individuals from being a primary caregiver.

In February, the ACLU testified before the House Judiciary committee in opposition to a bill permitting landlords to refuse to rent to individuals based solely on their cultivation of medical marijuana.

In an attempt to combat illicit prescription drug use, Rhode Island maintains a prescription monitoring database. The ACLU testified in support of legislation that would impose privacy protections on the database’s use.

In response to last year’s controversy in Cranston over school-sponsored father-daughter dances, the General Assembly severely weakened the state’s sex discrimination laws by allowing schools to promote sex-segregated extracurricular activities.

The ACLU of RI continued its work with student and education groups to stop high-stakes testing from keeping otherwise qualified students from graduating.

The ACLU of RI testified in February before the House Health, Education and Welfare committee in opposition to legislation allowing school committees to charge fees to those students participating in extracurricular activities.

The General Assembly again weighed, but took no action on, Attorney General legislation drastically overhauling Rhode Island’s computer crimes laws, altering the definitions of old laws and creating a wide array of new offenses.

The General Assembly is again considering perennial legislation barring adults under the age of 21 from entering nightclubs where alcohol is served.

In March, the ACLU of RI testified before the House Health, Education and Welfare committee in opposition to legislation allowing for video and audio monitoring of nursing homes, including the bedrooms and bathrooms of residents.