In Depth

Dave Kane: The Highly Dubious Assistance of Patrick Lynch

By Monique Chartier | February 19, 2013 |

In response to my e-mailed inquiry, the following was received from Dave Kane, the father of the youngest victim of the Station Night Club fire. I promised myself that after the release of the Station fire land to the victims and their families, I would stop writing press releases and go quietly into the night.…

Building It Doesn’t Make Them Come

By Justin Katz | February 18, 2013 |

Bruce Landis had an article in the Sunday Providence Journal with the telling title, “Few, but enthusiastic, riders.” The “few” are people actually taking advantage of the new length of commuter rail to Wickford. The train goes on from Providence to Boston. Data from the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority show monthly rider- ship increasing from…

RI #1 In Teacher Absenteeism

By Marc Comtois | February 17, 2013 |

Earlier this week, USA Today highlighted that Rhode Island was the state with the most teacher absenteeism in the country (GoLocalProv picked it up today), according to a study by the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights. New research suggests that teacher absenteeism is becoming problematic in U.S. public schools, as about one…

UPDATED – Providence: 8th Highest Residential Tax Burden in the Country (Commercial Taxes Even Worse)

By Monique Chartier | February 16, 2013 |

Funny that this should pop up now. (Major H/T Michael Graham. By the way, welcome back to the air, Michael. We missed you.) It’s the reason that I haven’t shared the enthusiasm [link added] for the … um, fiscal “achievements” of Mayor Taveras’ tenure, genuinely nice guy though he is. His pension reform, as tepid…

As Local Talk Radio Churns….

By Marc Comtois | February 15, 2013 |

First the “Big O”, now Ron St. Pierre. The talk radio landscape is a-changing and one wonders where it will lead. While we can appreciate what both Glenn Ordway and St. Pierre have done, it seems to me like it’s a pretty normal changing of the guard. In short, out with the old and in…

02/13/13 – Senate Finance Committee, Sakonnet River Bridge Tolls

By Justin Katz | February 13, 2013 |

Justin writes live from the Senate Finance hearing on repealing the Sakonnet River Bridge toll. Continue reading on the Ocean State Current…

Representing Places as Well as People

By Marc Comtois | February 13, 2013 |

In The Disenfranchisement of Rural America, James Huffman writes: The county by county map of the 2012 presidential election clearly portrays the irony and unfairness of a nation of predominantly red communities governed by a blue, urban, national majority. President Obama won 52 percent of the states and 51.4 percent of the popular vote, but…

Things We Read Today (48), Post-Blizzard

By Justin Katz | February 12, 2013 |

Economic freedom as the best approach to economic development; what Rhode Island chooses to penalize; the root cause of education decline. Continue reading on the Ocean State Current…

Keeping Taxpayers in the Dark

By Patrick Laverty | February 11, 2013 |

I hope everyone was able to keep safe and as warm as they could through the storm. The cleanup has begun, and even probably ended in many towns. However in some places, we hear about the plows’ inability to keep up and even still some people complaining that their road hasn’t seen a plow yet.…

Coming up in Committee: Nine Sets of Bills Scheduled to be Heard by the RI General Assembly, February 12 – February 14

By Carroll Andrew Morse | February 11, 2013 |

Local Impact: Central Falls 9. H5047: “Six hours of over-the-road driver’s training from a licensed driver’s training school” required for a first-time driver to obtain a license. (H Corporations; Tue, Feb 12) 8. Bud. Arts. 3 and 4: Changes to state employee benefits involving removal of divorced spouses from family health plans and establishment of…