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6/28/2023
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Rep. Bennett celebrates big steps forward for Rhode Island in this year’s General Assembly session
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 STATE HOUSE – Rep. David A. Bennett is celebrating big steps forward at the General Assembly this year. He is also taking stock of what work he will continue next year.
“One of my biggest priorities this year was improving health care staffing. I’m a nurse, so I know what it’s like to do your best but still come up short because you’re short-staffed. I’m also an avid outdoorsman and believe strongly in protecting our environment. In addition, we worked hard to address the housing crisis, support small businesses and strengthen public schools. On all of these fronts, we took big steps forward this year,” said Representative Bennett (D-Dist. 20, Warwick, Cranston).
On the subject of health care, Representative Bennett lead the charge on fixing the short-staffing crisis. He helped secure funding in the state budget (2023-H 5200Aaa) to raise wages for caregivers in nursing homes and group homes taking care of adults with developmental disabilities. He led passage of a law (2023-H 5870A) to incentivize full time nurses over travel nurses, a law (2023-H 5013) to allow physical therapists to order some diagnostic tests so patients don’t need to schedule additional appointments, and a law (2023-H 5819Aaa) that expands the scope of licensed advanced practice registered nurses certified in psychiatric/mental health to better enable them to care for mental health patients.
Representative Bennett, an avid fisherman and outdoorsman, also serves as chairman of the House Committee on Environment and Natural Resources, where he led passage of many significant environmental bills. He was lead sponsor of a law (2023-H 5090A) that bans food service establishments from using polystyrene foam (commonly called Styrofoam). He cosponsored the creation of a new commission (2023-H 5502A), introduced by Rep. Carol Hagan McEntee (D-Dist. 33, South Kingstown, Narragansett), that will take a close look at bottle deposits and extended producer responsibility, two key tools in reducing plastic waste. He cosponsored a law (2023-H 5550A), introduced by Rep. Arthur Handy (D-Dist. 18, Cranston), to reduce mercury pollution and electricity use by banning compact fluorescent bulbs. And, as chairman, helped pass a bill (2023-H 5853A) by Rep. June Speakman (D-Dist. 68, Warren, Bristol) to promote solar development while protecting forests from being cut down for solar farms and protecting ratepayers. His work earned him the 2023 Clean Water Legislator of the Year Award from the Rhode Island Clean Water Association.
“Every time I walk my dog or go fishing, I see foam and plastic in our natural environment. I know some people might not like to hear it, they might think this is inconvenient, but we need to stop being such a throwaway society. We took big steps forward this year, and I’m committed to continuing the work to protect our environment.”
A top focus of the House of Representatives this year was tackling the cost of housing. Representative Bennett strongly supported a package of bills by Speaker of the House K. Joseph Shekarchi (D-Dist. 23, Warwick) to tackle housing costs and cosponsored a new law (2023-H 6086A) by Rep. Arthur J. Corvese (D-Dist. 55, North Providence) to standardize the type of notice and advertisements required for all land use permitting. He also supported the inclusion in the state budget of an additional $39 million to support housing development, up to $30 million each year for Low Income Housing Tax Credit and $32.5 million to help individuals dealing with homelessness.
Representative Bennett is also proud of the progress made this year in supporting small businesses. He was a strong supporter of a law (2023-H 6333) sponsored by Rep. Brandon T. Voas (D-Dist. 57 Cumberland, Central Falls) to cut taxes for small businesses by exempting the first $50,000 of tangible property from the tangible tax. That law completely wipes out the tangible tax for 75% of Rhode Island businesses. He also cosponsored a law (2023-H 5840A) by Rep. Brian Patrick Kennedy (D-Dist. 38, Hopkinton, Westerly) that makes it easier for businesses to apply for tax incentives through the Rhode Island Commerce Corporation and a law (2023-H 6292A) introduced by Rep. Joseph M. McNamara (D-Dist. 19, Warwick, Cranston) to allow for lower property taxes for Warwick residents.
Warwick schools will also benefit tremendously under this year’s state budget. Representative Bennett pushed to extend deadlines for school construction projects which will help Warwick, and other municipalities with pending projects, secure crucial state funding. He also supported provisions of the budget which increase funding to Warwick public schools by $4 million, with help for special education students, multilanguage learners and students from low-income families.
“While there’s always more work to do, I’m proud of all we got done. I’m grateful to all my colleagues in the General Assembly, Speaker Shekarchi and most of all to my constituents for entrusting me to do this work on behalf of all of us.”
For more information, contact:
Fil Eden, Publicist
State House Room 20
Providence, RI 02903
401.222.1886
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