PROVIDENCE – As protesters gathered in the State House to decry government’s response to the homelessness crisis, Gov. Dan McKee took the stage Tuesday night to tout the “progress” made on his watch in multiple arenas, from the successful launch of a professional Rhode Island soccer team to a drop in school absences.
“As I stand here tonight, I can say with confidence that the ‘State of our State‘ is full of progress and promise,” he told lawmakers and other dignitaries packed into the House chamber to hear his annual address.
Among his bragging points: “After years of being told we couldn’t – Rhode Island is beginning to close the gap with Massachusetts when it comes education.” (Put another way: the gap has shrunk, but only 30.1% of the Rhode Island students who took RICAS tests last year met expectations in math, compared with 40.9% in Massachusetts on a similar test. The gap was roughly the same for reading.)
Among his promises: “As we return to a pre-pandemic fiscal environment, we must take steps to right-size government while preserving programs that improve educational outcomes, raise incomes, and make our residents healthier.” He said the proposed state budget he delivers to lawmakers on Thursday will do all three.
Among the takeaways from his fourth annual “State of the State” address:
On Hasbro: “After years of being the underdog, our state is now becoming a place of innovations and opportunity. And this is a point we are emphasizing in our ongoing talks with Hasbro.”
On the homelessness crisis: He promised to try again to convince legislators to create a dedicated funding stream for programs to help Rhode Island’s unhoused, with details to come. But last year’s proposal to tack an extra tax on “whole house” rentals, like Airbnbs, went nowhere.
On the replacement of the Washington Bridge: “There’s a lot of good news happening on that front.”
The goods news? Two big construction firms, with national reputations, are competing for the contract. The state has secured the promise of at least $220 million in federal dollars toward the unknown cost. The state has initiated a lawsuit to “pursue accountability” from companies who worked on the bridge.
On the RIBridges data breach: He echoed his own early promise in the Washington Bridge saga: “We are going to follow the facts and hold the right people accountable.”
Protesters organized by the Black Lives Matter RI PAC and other groups were planning to gather in the State House rotunda for a People’s State of the State event to call for greater help for the poor and vulnerable.
“People froze to death,” said John Sweeney, who said he was motivated to speak up after a friend of his died. “If that’s not public health, I don’t know what is.”
When they arrived an hour before the scheduled start of the speech, the McKee administration, in an unusual move for a State of the State, had closed off the rotunda to the public.
“He is preventing the residents of Rhode Island from assembling and using their voice,” Tuttle said. “This is completely unprecedented. A governor has never prevented individuals that are unhoused, that are currently speaking right now, to share their story.”
The rally went ahead in the Bell Room downstairs from the rotunda with protesters waving signs that said “stop rent hikes,” stop all evictions,” “house the homeless,” and stop utility shutoffs,” among other things.
“All of us deserve to live with dignity, with health and security, so the state and country can thrive,” rallygoer Susan Kelley told the crowd. “Tax the top brackets, now.”
After McKee began his speech, demonstrators from the People’s State of the State began marching through the building, chanting slogans like, “The more you try to silence us, the louder we will be” and “Hey, ho, Governor McKee has got to go.”
They were turned away when they attempted to climb the stairs to the House chambers, where McKee was delivering his State of the State address, but their chants could be heard from inside the room.
Doctor shortage: McKee promised a “strategic investment” in more student loan forgiveness for primary care physicians who commit to staying and working in Rhode Island.
Education: McKee promised that the proposed budget he unveils on Thursday will increase state aid to local school districts by $40 million and provide more money steered to his pet project, “out-of-school learning opportunities.”
Workforce development: He sketched the outline of a new “Ready to Build” program he intends to propose, and presumably to fund, to create a “pre-apprenticeship pathway to jobs in the building trades,” along with an investment in the creation of 1,000 “new work-based learning opportunities in Rhode Island.” (Political observers will note that McKee relied heavily on union support in his 2022 race and singled out LIUNA’s Dan Bianco for recognition as he spoke).
With reports from staff writer Antonia Farzan and Patrick Anderson.
This story has been updated with new information and additional photos.
