Legislation

The General Assembly considered, but took no action on, a pair of bills aimed at restricting the use of unmanned aerial vehicles, or drones, by law enforcement.

ACLU-drafted legislation sought to limit the use of suspensions by requiring them to be served in-school unless the student poses a physical risk or serious distraction to other students.

In February, the ACLU of RI testified before the House Corporations committee in favor of legislation barring health insurance companies from using gender as a factor in setting premiums.

On May 2, Governor Chafee signed long-overdue legislation establishing full marriage equality in Rhode Island.

An ACLU bill designed to protect privacy in the criminal justice system died this year.

The ACLU of RI testified in February before the House Labor committee in opposition to a bill making E-Verify use mandatory by Rhode Island employers, and in favor of a bill keeping the E-Verify program voluntary.

The ACLU testified in support of legislation barring law enforcement from searching the contents of a cell phone without first obtaining a warrant.

ACLU of RI-drafted legislation would have protected users’ private social media profiles from undue intrusion by barring schools and employers from requesting or requiring students’, employees’ or applicants’ social media passwords, or otherwise gaining access to their private social media accounts.

For the seventh year in a row, the ACLU of RI was part of a diverse coalition of organizations advocating for passage of the Comprehensive Racial Profiling Prevention Act.