Rhode Island’s House Finance Committee plans to vote Thursday night on a new state budget for the fiscal year beginning July 1.
The budget revised by the House’s Democratic leadership is usually revealed shortly before a quick vote in the Finance Committee. While critics complain about a lack of time to digest billions of dollars in spending, the House leadership points to how different parts of the spending plan have been discussed during months of legislative hearings.
With a committee vote on Thursday, the budget is expected to move to the House floor one week later, June 24.
Progressive lawmakers want to hike the top rate in the state income tax, from 5.9 percent, to 9.9 percent, for people earning more than $475,000 a year. Activists this week canvassed Warwick, the home community of Democratic House Speaker Joe Shekarchi, to amplify their message. But Shekarchi is among the top state officials who oppose raising the income tax. A related proposal, to fund nutrition programs through a soda tax, is also considered dead on arrival.
But the revised budget in the House of Representatives is expected to steer some of the money from a real estate conveyance tax to a fund to create affordable housing. The question is whether the legislative budget will raise the threshold for that tax from the $700,000 level proposed by Governor Dan McKee in his budget.
A similar question applies to McKee’s proposal to tax forgiven PPP loans of more than $150,000 for companies that earned a profit. Business groups oppose the measure, and the House budget may raise the threshold.
McKee unveiled a $11.2 billion budget in March that avoided broad-based tax increases. The state’s budget outlook has brightened since then, with state revenue running more than $300 million ahead of earlier estimates.
The legislative budget is expected to continue the phaseout of the state car tax.
State officials on Wednesday are announcing funding through the budget of a statewide body-camera program for police.
One thing not likely to be included is a plan for legalizing recreational marijuana. WIth competing proposals yet to be hashed out, House Speaker Shekarchi has said cannabis may be taken up in a special summer or fall session.
The passage of the budget signals the approach of the end of the legislative session, with large numbers of bills getting votes after the spending plan is decided.
Ian Donnis can be reached at idonnis@ripr.org. Follow him on Twitter @IanDon. Sign up here for his weekly RI politics and media newsletter.
