Report: Lawmakers continuing negative public policy trend so far in 2016

PROVIDENCE – The Rhode Island Center for Freedom & Prosperity said General Assembly lawmakers are on track to continue a negative public policy trend in 2016.
The center published the 2016 General Assembly Freedom Index, an interactive tool that tracks bills being presented and rates them; it also rates legislators.
Presently, it features 85 bills, rating them on a scale of -3 to +3.
In a press release, Mike Stenhouse, the center’s CEO, said although not all bills have received final ratings, the few positive pieces of legislation will likely be outweighed by a much greater number of negative bills, “resulting in a net negative impact, as has occurred in prior years.”
So far, 58 bills are rated negatively, with 23 receiving a positive score. Four have yet to be rated.
The release said that the negative bills would total a -92 net score, if all were to be voted on, with the few positive bills producing a +34 score, resulting in a negative overall rating of -58.
RhodeWorks, Gov. Gina M. Raimondo’s truck toll plan that she signed into law last week, received a -3 rating.
Negative weights were assigned to bills that create or expand an agency, government program or function, or tax; create new regulatory burdens; are hostile to constitutional principles or conflicts with the center’s principles. Positive factors were assigned to those in line with the principles. A half-dozen Rhode Islanders, described as having similar principles, reviewed the bills to come up with the final weighting.

As for legislators, the index revealed that 12 of the 113 received a positive individual score; that consists of four Democrats and eight Republicans.
State Sens. Elaine J. Morgan, R-Hopkinton, and John A. Pagliarini Jr., R-Tiverton, as well as Sen. Leonidas P. Raptakis, D-Coventry, received the highest scores of 6.
By voting for a positively rated bill, a legislator earned positive points, while voting against a positive bill would earn them negative points.

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