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3/26/2024
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Media Advisory: Committee to hear bills from Speaker’s housing package Thursday
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STATE HOUSE – The House Committee on Municipal Government and Housing will meet Thursday to hear six bills from House Speaker K. Joseph Shekarchi’s housing package, alongside seven other bills. It is also scheduled to vote on one bill that would allow the Department of Environmental Management to work with local municipalities to rectify a septic overflow.
The committee is scheduled to meet on Thursday, March 28, at the rise of the House sometime after 4:30 p.m. in the House Lounge on the second floor of the State House. The committee is scheduled to vote on one bill:
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2024-H 7654A —This bill, introduced by Rep. Evan P. Shanley (D-Dist. 24, Warwick, East Greenwich), would allow the Department of Environmental Management and local municipalities to drain, remove, and replace an overflowing septic tank or system.
The committee will also hear 13 bills, including six from the Speaker’s housing package, including:
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2024-H 7979 —This bill, introduced by Speaker Shekarchi (D-Dist. 23, Warwick), would create a pilot program giving municipalities the authority to combine zoning and planning boards into one combined review board. This would allow a more expedited process or allow municipalities who cannot get members to fill their boards to utilize one board for both. It does not impact local appointment of members.
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2024-H 7981 — This bill, introduced by Rep. Joshua J. Giraldo (D-Dist. 56, Central Falls), would allow residential uses in commercial zones by right. Existing law allows “households” in all zoning districts by right, yet residential is prohibited by some municipalities in commercial zones. This legislation makes clear that residential use is allowed in commercial zones and it is allowed in industrial zones unless public health or safety would prohibit that usage. It does not alter other municipal zoning requirements for residential uses in these zones.
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2024-H 7984 — This bill, introduced by Rep. Carol Hagan McEntee (D-Dist. 33, South Kingstown, Narragansett), would allow municipalities to count mobile home units as affordable housing, if they meet certain requirements, including that units are permanent housing. Mobile homes could be applied toward the goal of 10% of a municipality’s housing stock to be low- and moderate-income housing, with one half credit per qualifying mobile home.
Written testimony must be submitted to HouseMunicipalGovernmentandHousing@rilegislature.gov. Testimony must include your name, the bill number, and your viewpoint, whether for, against, or neither. Sign-up sheets for in-person testimony will be available in the hearing room.
The meeting will be televised live by Capitol Television, which can be seen on Cox channel 61, on i3Broadband channel 15 and on Verizon channel 34. It will be live streamed at capitoltvri.cablecast.tv.
For more information, contact:
Tristan Grau, Publicist
State House Room B20
Providence, RI 02903
401.222.4935
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