2020 Legislation
I was the Lead Sponsor of the following bills:
BY Cortvriend, Amore, Lyle, Shekarchi, Carson
ENTITLED, AN ACT RELATING TO EDUCATION — SEIZURE SAFE SCHOOLS ACT (Requires elementary/secondary schools to have at least 1 school employee trained to administer/assist with the self-administering of seizure rescue medication prescribed to treat seizure disorder systems and the use of prescribed electrical stimulation.)
BY Cortvriend, Shekarchi, Craven, Bennett, Canario
ENTITLED, AN ACT RELATING TO STATE AFFAIRS AND GOVERNMENT – PRESERVATION OF FAMILIES WITH DISABLED PARENT ACT (Precludes a parent’s disability from serving as the sole basis for the state to institute an investigation of the disabled parent’s family.)
BY Cortvriend, Marszalkowski, Speakman, Shekarchi, Ranglin-Vassell
ENTITLED, AN ACT RELATING TO HEALTH AND SAFETY – PFAS IN FOOD PACKAGING (Prohibits PFAS, a class of fluorinated organic chemicals, from being used in food packaging.)
BY Cortvriend, Chippendale, Canario, Cassar, Ruggiero
ENTITLED, AN ACT RELATING TO TAXATION — LEVY AND ASSESSMENT OF LOCAL TAXES (Authorizes tax assessors in the cities and towns to use the last statutory update or revaluation as the assessed valuation upon which to levy taxes regarding their real property.)
BY Cortvriend, Donovan, Fogarty, Speakman, Knight
ENTITLED, AN ACT RELATING TO STATE AFFAIRS AND GOVERNMENT — STATE EMBLEMS (Designates “Northern Star Coral” as the official state coral.)
BY Cortvriend, Shekarchi, Amore, Carson, Nardone
ENTITLED, AN ACT RELATING TO TAXATION – STATE TAX OFFICIALS – SALES AND USE TAXES — ENFORCEMENT AND COLLECTION (Allows any tax payments to be paid by midnight of the date the tax is due and also provides for a twenty-four (24) hour extension of time to pay the tax.)
BY Cortvriend, Handy, Fogarty, Shekarchi, Carson
ENTITLED, AN ACT RELATING TO WATERS AND NAVIGATION — COASTAL RESOURCES MANAGEMENT COUNCIL (Provides that the authority of the CRMC shall include specific areas designated in “special area management plans” (SAMP).)
BY Cortvriend, Ruggiero, Carson, Tanzi, Cassar
ENTITLED, AN ACT RELATING TO FOOD AND DRUGS — THE UNIFORMED CONTROLLED SUBSTANCES ACT (Expands drug awareness programs to high schools, directs funding from certain civil fines and mandates establishment of criteria for funding.)
BY Cortvriend, Shekarchi, Serpa, Noret, Jacquard
ENTITLED, AN ACT RELATING TO STATE AFFAIRS AND GOVERNMENT – COMMISSION ON STANDARDS AND TRAINING (Requires training/instructions for police officers/trainees to identify persons with cognitive/communication disabilities and to develop law enforcement responses and training for police investigating such complaints.)
BY Cortvriend, Fogarty, Craven, McEntee, Filippi
ENTITLED, AN ACT RELATING TO CRIMINAL OFFENSES — TRESPASS AND VANDALISM (Provides that no person be prosecuted for fishing, gathering seaweed, swimming or passage along the sandy or rocky shoreline within ten feet (10′) of the most recent high tide line.)
BY Cortvriend, Amore, Knight, Ruggiero, Carson
ENTITLED, AN ACT RELATING TO EDUCATION — SUICIDE PREVENTION–THE NATHAN BRUNO AND JASON FLATT ACT (Creates the “Nathan Bruno and Jason Flatt Act” which would require training of teachers and school personnel regarding suicide awareness and prevention and establishment of a conflict resolution process between teachers or school personnel and students.)
BY Cortvriend, Shekarchi, Fogarty, Cassar, Ruggiero
ENTITLED, AN ACT RELATING TO SOLEMNIZATION OF MARRIAGES (Allows the Honorable Christopher Blazejewski to join the Honorable Lauren Carson and Guy E. Cummings in marriage on or about May 22, 2020, within the Town of Portsmouth, Rhode Island.)
Co-Sponsored
BY Donovan, Shekarchi, Canario, Cortvriend, and Edwards
ENTITLED, AN ACT RELATING TO TOWNS AND CITIES — GENERAL POWERS — PRUDENCE ISLAND SCHOOL FOUNDATION (Enables the town council of Portsmouth to transfer and/or convey parcels of land owned by the town on Prudence Island to the Prudence Island School Foundation to be used for educational purposes.)
BY Blazejewski, Carson, Knight, Cortvriend, and Caldwell
ENTITLED, AN ACT RELATING TO STATE AFFAIRS AND GOVERNMENT — LONG-TERM ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT (Adds climate change/sea-level rise/coastal resiliency to data analysis. Changes number of members of the economic development planning council from 17 to 19 by adding the directors of environmental management and coastal resources council.)
BY Speakman, Cortvriend, Carson, Cassar, and Donovan
ENTITLED, AN ACT RELATING TO WATERS AND NAVIGATION — PFAS IN DRINKING WATER, GROUNDWATER AND SURFACE WATERS (Department of health to establish maximum PFAS levels in water.)
BY Speakman, Knight, McEntee, Cortvriend, Ajello
ENTITLED, AN ACT RELATING TO TAXATION — SALES AND USE TAXES — LIABILITY AND COMPUTATION (Exempts reusable bags not including paper or plastic bags from the state sales tax.)
BY Bennett, McNamara, Jackson, Canario, Cortvriend
ENTITLED, AN ACT RELATING TO BUSINESSES AND PROFESSIONS — THE HEALING ART OF ACUPUNCTURE AND ORIENTAL MEDICINE (Changes the title of chapter 37.2 of title 5 and throughout, replacing “Oriental medicine” with “Chinese medicine” and allows certified individuals to practice acupuncture and Chinese medicine using Chinese medical diagnostic methods.)
BY Speakman, Cortvriend, Knight, Cassar, Bennett
ENTITLED, AN ACT RELATING TO STATE AFFAIRS AND GOVERNMENT – RHODE ISLAND ENERGY RESOURCES ACT (Provides for the establishment of comprehensive solar energy siting ordinances in each municipality of the state. The act would also allow the installation of master-meters in housing developments.)
BY Jacquard, Cortvriend, O’Brien, Ucci, Vella-Wilkinson
ENTITLED, AN ACT RELATING TO LIBRARIES — OFFICE OF LIBRARY AND INFORMATION SERVICES — STATE AID TO LIBRARIES (Amends various sections relating to libraries to delete outdated provisions, updates language to reflect current practices affecting library technology and increases from 2 years to 5 years the award of the statewide reference resource center contract.)
BY Canario, Edwards, Jackson, McLaughlin, Cortvriend
ENTITLED, AN ACT RELATING TO MOTOR AND OTHER VEHICLES – MOTOR VEHICLE OFFENSES (Imposes three hundred dollar substance abuse education assessment for any conviction of driving under the influence or refusal to submit to breathalyzer. Funds would be allocated to department of behavioral health and used for substance abuse programs.)
BY Canario, Jackson, McLaughlin, Edwards, Cortvriend
ENTITLED, AN ACT RELATING TO TOWNS AND CITIES – ORDINANCES (Authorizes municipalities to adopt ordinances restricting vaping in public places and areas near schools, day care and hospitals.)
BY Carson, Cortvriend, Amore
ENTITLED, AN ACT RELATING TO TAXATION — STATE TAX OFFICIALS — SALES AND USE TAXES — ENFORCEMENT AND COLLECTION (Provides that a tax payment shall be paid by midnight on the date in which the tax becomes due and payable, and reduces the amount of penalty for taxes unpaid from a maximum of twenty-one percent (21%) to ten percent (10%).)
BY Ruggiero, Bennett, Slater, Cortvriend, Chippendale
ENTITLED, AN ACT RELATING TO TOWNS AND CITIES — RHODE ISLAND COMMUNITY RESILIENCY AND PRESERVATION ACT (Establishes the Rhode Island Community Resiliency and Preservation Act to provide cities and towns with the authority to propose, for consideration and decision by their voters, a reliable source of capital funding for investing in their community.)
BY Craven, Cortvriend, Ruggiero, Amore
ENTITLED, AN ACT RELATING TO CRIMINAL OFFENSES – SEXUAL ASSAULT (Eliminates the marital sexual assault exception when a victim is incapacitated, disabled, or helpless.)
BY Tanzi, Cassar, Kazarian, Ranglin-Vassell, Cortvriend
ENTITLED, AN ACT RELATING TO CRIMINAL OFFENSES — TOBACCO AND NICOTINE PRODUCTS–CHILDREN (Provides certain restrictions on the sale of tobacco products, enhance the definition of “tobacco products”, and raises the minimum age to purchase tobacco products and nicotine-delivery systems from eighteen (18) to twenty-one (21) years of age.)
BY Kislak, Speakman, Cortvriend, Alzate, Cassar
ENTITLED, AN ACT RELATING TO MOTOR AND OTHER VEHICLES – HIGHWAY SAFETY ACT (Amend several chapters regarding the operation of bikes on state highways and interaction with motor vehicles, aggressive honking, regulation of E-bikes, reckless driver accountability program & speed limits in thickly settled areas/business districts.)
BY Blazejewski, Ruggiero, Shanley, Cortvriend, Bennett
ENTITLED, AN ACT RELATING TO PUBLIC UTILITIES AND CARRIERS — NET-METERING (Replaces term multi-municipal with multi-party and defines it as combination of 2 or more eligible parties that enter into agreement for purpose of co-owning one or more eligible net-metering resources or entering into financing arrangement(s).)
BY Fogarty, Walsh, Ajello, Tanzi, Cortvriend
ENTITLED, AN ACT RELATING TO BUSINESSES AND PROFESSIONS – BOARD OF MEDICAL LICENSURE AND DISCIPLINE (Includes in the definition of unprofessional conduct performance of a pelvic examination on an unconscious female patient without first obtaining informed consent.)
BY Fogarty, Shekarchi, Cortvriend, Carson, Filippi
ENTITLED, AN ACT RELATING TO TOWNS AND CITIES — SUBDIVISION OF LAND (Reduces time to certify minor development plans. Increases time to certify master/prelim plans. Reduces time to certify/resubmit final plan phase. Increases time for master plan decision. Restores preliminary plan decision to 120 days.)
BY Ruggiero, Cortvriend, Carson, Fogarty, Cassar
ENTITLED, AN ACT RELATING TO HEALTH AND SAFETY — REFUSE DISPOSAL (Requires certain businesses and educational facilities that produce at least 52 tons of organic-waste yearly and are located within 30 miles of an authorized composting facility to use authorized methods of recycling.)
BY Speakman, Bennett, McEntee, Kazarian, Cortvriend
ENTITLED, AN ACT RELATING TO WATERS AND NAVIGATION – STATE AFFAIRS AND GOVERNMENT – HEALTH AND SAFETY (Updates and modernize the Department of Environmental Management’s ability to enforce environmental laws.)
BY Speakman, Carson, Ajello, Cortvriend, Donovan
ENTITLED, AN ACT RELATING TO PUBLIC PROPERTY AND WORKS – LITTER CONTROL AND RECYCLING (Adds “cigarette butts” to the definition of “litter”.)
BY Tanzi, Alzate, Ranglin-Vassell, Handy, Cortvriend
ENTITLED, AN ACT RELATING TO LABOR AND LABOR RELATIONS — UNLAWFUL EMPLOYMENT PRACTICES (Prohibits employer/employment agency/labor organization/employer to directly/indirectly commit unlawful employment practice.)
Resolutions
Lead Sponsor
BY Cortvriend, Bennett, Donovan, Amore, Speakman
ENTITLED, HOUSE RESOLUTION RESPECTFULLY REQUESTING THAT THE RHODE ISLAND DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION DEVELOP A SET OF KEY ENVIRONMENTAL AND CLIMATE PRINCIPLES AND CONCEPTS TO BE INFUSED IN ALL SUBJECTS FOR K-12 PUBLIC SCHOOL STUDENTS
BY Cortvriend, Kislak, Speakman, Ajello, Alzate
ENTITLED, JOINT RESOLUTION TO APPROVE AND PUBLISH AND TO SUBMIT TO THE ELECTORS A PROPOSITION OF AMENDMENT TO THE CONSTITUTION (ELECTIONS) (Proposes an amendment to the constitution to modify the legal minimum age to vote from eighteen (18) years to sixteen (16) years.)
Co-Sponsored
BY Ruggiero, Shekarchi, Cortvriend, Chippendale, and Speakman
ENTITLED, HOUSE RESOLUTION RESPECTFULLY REQUESTING THE GOVERNOR TO DESIGNATE A STATE-WIDE BROADBAND COORDINATOR AND ESTABLISH A RHODE ISLAND BROADBAND ADVISORY COUNCIL
BY Fogarty, Cortvriend, Hull, Lombardi, Corvese
ENTITLED, HOUSE RESOLUTION PROCLAIMING THE WEEK OF JANUARY 26TH TO FEBRUARY 1ST OF 2020, TO BE “PHYSICIAN ANESTHESIOLOGISTS WEEK” IN THE STATE OF RHODE ISLAND
BY Kislak, Tobon, McNamara, Cortvriend, Ackerman
ENTITLED, HOUSE RESOLUTION RECOGNIZING FEBRUARY, 2020, AS “NATIONAL CHILDREN’S DENTAL HEALTH MONTH” IN RHODE ISLAND