Highlights of the Governor’s Proposed FY2021 Budget

The Governor’s proposed FY2021 budget (“the budget”) totals $10.2 billion, an increase of $224M over the enacted FY2020 budget. This includes $4.2 billion in general revenue ($170M more than 2020) and $3.3 billion in federal funds ($2.2M less than 2020), with the balance from restricted receipts ($349M, $38M more than 2020) and other sources such as lottery revenue ($2.3 billion, …

The Uneven Path 2020

Economic insecurity is at the root cause of many problems women and girls face in Rhode Island. Work support programs such as subsidized child care, when well-funded, provide vital support for families not earning adequate income. In the 2020 Uneven Path, we review the status of these programs and provide information about two professions in which women comprise the majority …

Rhode Island’s Workforce Development System for Adults An Overview

Workforce development is a necessity for both employees and businesses. For an individual, it means raising the income for their family. For a business, it means staying competitive. For the government, it grows or enhances economic development. The Economic Progress Institute’s latest report “Rhode Island’s Workforce Development System for Adults: An Overview,” explains the key players involved in developing policy …

Highlights of the 2019 General Assembly Session: 2020 Enacted Budget and Legislation

Overview The 2020 budget (“the budget”) for the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2019 totals $9.971 billion: General Revenues  $4,077,594,991 40.9% Federal Funds  $3,325,364,065 33.4% Other Funds  $2,256,279,162 22.6% Restricted Receipts  $311,382,120 3.1% Total  $9,970,620,338 100% General Revenues include personal income taxes, corporate income taxes, sales taxes, and use fees. Federal Funds include, among other things, matching funds for Medicaid …

Improving Access and Quality: Rhode Island’s Child Care Assistance Program

In March 2018, Congress approved legislation to almost double the amount of discretionary funds for the main federal-state program to assist low-income families with child care expenses. Rhode Island received $5.1 million of these funds and has used the money as a catalyst to improve access and quality. The state’s no waiting-list policy of accepting all those eligible has continued, …

Why Repealing/Cutting the Estate Tax Will Hurt Rhode Island

Rhode Island’s estate tax provides revenues for programs and services critical to a strong economic foundation for the Ocean State. In 2014, the General Assembly increased the estate tax exemption to $1.5 million (an amount which has increased, due to inflation adjustments, to $1,561,719). In the four years since this change, Rhode Island has foregone $103.2 million in revenues through …

Rhode Island Works – Is it Working

Rhode Island Works (RI Works) is the state’s safety net program that provides cash assistance and work readiness services to low-income families with children under age 18. RI Works was passed in 2008, replacing the Family Independence Program (FIP) which was enacted in 1996 after federal welfare reform implemented the Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) block grant. Approximately 4,100 …

Highlights of the Governor’s Proposed FY2020 Budget

The Governor’s proposed FY2020 budget (“the budget”) totals $9.9 billion, an increase of $358 million (M) over the enacted FY2019 budget. This includes $4.1 billion in general revenue ($167M more than 2019), $3.3 billion in federal funds ($110M more than 2019) with the balance from restricted receipts ($30M) and other sources such as lottery revenue ($2.3 billion). We have highlighted …

Rhode Island Women of Color 2018

On January 2, the Institute co-released its latest infographic Rhode Island Women of Color 2018: A Snapshot with the Women’s Fund of Rhode Island. Rhode Island women of color experience significant barriers to opportunity with respect to wages, education, and affordable housing. DOWNLOAD THE INFOGRAPHICENGLISH / SPANISH

Who Pays?, 6th editon

A new study recently released by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP) and The Economic Progress Institute finds that the lowest-income Rhode Islanders pay 53 percent more in taxes as a percent of their income compared to the state’s wealthiest residents. The study, Who Pays? A Distributional Analysis of the Tax Systems in All 50 States, analyzes tax …