About two-dozen Democratic state representatives rallied Tuesday behind what they call the Working Families Agenda – which includes proposals to lower prescription drug costs, build more affordable housing, and expand free meals for students – and they want to pay for it by hiking taxes on affluent Rhode Islanders.
The agenda has the backing of the Working Families Party, which operates in a number of states and has propelled a series of wins for legislative candidates in Rhode Island since 2016.
During a Statehouse news conference, lawmakers said the agenda, which also includes bolstering police accountability, expanding tenant rights, and increasing funding for public transportation, would benefit most Rhode Islanders.
“We believe our state can do more for working families and we are looking to do that this legislative session,” said Rep. Megan Cotter of Exeter. “For too long, our economic rules have favored the rich at the expense of the rest of us. Corporations have held wages down while housing prices soar. Communities and businesses are flooding, our infrastructure is crumbling, and our main public transportation system is at the brink of collapse.”
Rep. Karen Alzate of Pawtucket outlined the plan to pay for the agenda.
A three-percentage point hike in the 5.9% tax on the 2,134 Rhode Islanders who earn more than a million dollars a year, she said, would generate $126 million to pay for other needs.
“This is a matter of social justice,” Alzate said. “Disparities in wealth have reached staging levels. It is our responsibility to ensure that those who have benefited the most from our society pay their fair share.”
But legislative leaders have frowned for years on proposals to increase taxes on affluent Rhode Islanders, so the legislative package faces an uncertain future.
Rep. Leonela Felix of Pawtucket said backers will work to build support, and she said the proposals may have support beyond the lawmakers attending the news conference.
Rep. June Speakman of Warren outlined a proposed $50 million revolving fund to finance the development of mixed-income public housing.
Rep. David Morales of Providence was also among those speaking during the news conference. He called RIPTA a lifeline for working Rhode Islanders and criticized Gov. Dan McKee for not including more money for the transit agency in his budget.
Morales said RIPTA is considering eliminating 30 service lines, “such as the 76 line, on Saturdays, which runs through Central Falls and Pawtucket,” and that the cuts could grow worse.
Ian Donnis can be reached at idonnis@thepublicsradio.org
