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Rhode Island Bills

Track legislation and stay informed about the bills that matter to you.

State Legislature US Congress

All 25,118 Active 7,678 In committee 7,673 Passed 5,630 Signed 4,797 Failed 6,972

died · Rhode Island · House Mar 18, 2025

HB 5383: AN ACT RELATING TO ELECTIONS --PRIMARY ELECTION DATES

Changes primary election to Wednesday if after Labor Day and does not mandate local boards of election to have voter registration drive at high school.

died · Rhode Island · House Mar 18, 2025

HB 5713: AN ACT RELATING TO ELECTIONS -- LOCAL CANVASSING AUTHORITY

Prohibits members of elected city/town political party committees as well as representative/senate district committees from serving on local canvassing authorities.

died · Rhode Island · House Mar 18, 2025

HR 5515: JOINT RESOLUTION TO APPROVE AND PUBLISH AND SUBMIT TO THE ELECTORS A PROPOSITION OF AMENDMENT TO THE CONSTITUTION -- OF SUFFRAGE

HR 5515 proposes a constitutional amendment to change voting eligibility in Rhode Island. It would remove the 30-day state and local residency requirement for voters, allowing individuals to register or vote on election day. The amendment maintains a 30-day residency requirement for candidates seeking office. If approved by voters, this change would take effect January 1, 2026, and would replace the current voting eligibility rules in the state constitution. The amendment must be submitted to voters at the next statewide general election.

died · Rhode Island · Senate Mar 18, 2025

SB 207: AN ACT RELATING TO CRIMINAL OFFENSES -- CHILDREN

SB 207 updates the legal terminology in a state law prohibiting child sexual abuse material by replacing "child pornography" with "child sexual abuse material" throughout the statute. The bill does not change the legal definitions, penalties, or prohibited activities - such as producing, distributing, or possessing such material - or the affirmative defenses available to defendants. It specifically clarifies that the law covers visual depictions of minors in sexually explicit conduct, with penalties remaining unchanged (up to 15 years in prison for production/distribution, up to 5 years for possession). The bill focuses solely on terminology to align with current legal and advocacy standards, without altering any policy or enforcement mechanisms.

died · Rhode Island · Senate Mar 18, 2025

SB 810: AN ACT RELATING TO CRIMINAL OFFENSES -- COMMERCIAL SEXUAL ACTIVITY

Decriminalizes certain commercial sexual activity. It would also include human trafficking as a racketeering activity and would allow expungements of certain convictions in § 11-34.1 after one year.

Topics ✓ Criminal Justice

died · Rhode Island · Senate Mar 18, 2025

SB 291: AN ACT RELATING TO CRIMINAL PROCEDURE -- ARREST

Prohibits the civil arrest of any person who is attending court either on behalf of themselves or a family or household member. Any person who violates this act shall be subject to civil suit, and for contempt of court.

Topics ✓ Criminal Justice

died · Rhode Island · Senate Mar 18, 2025

SB 315: AN ACT RELATING TO INSURANCE -- PRODUCER LICENSING ACT

SB 315 clarifies that any change in an insurance producer's compensation is considered a "contract modification," requiring insurers to provide 180 days' written notice before implementing such changes. It directly affects insurance producers who work with multiple insurers, protecting them from sudden payment adjustments without advance notice. The bill mandates that insurers must give this 180-day notice for compensation changes, aligning with existing 14-month notice requirements for contract cancellations. This defines a specific procedural safeguard for producers' compensation terms within the Producer Licensing Act. The bill takes effect upon passage and has been referred to the Senate Commerce Committee.

died · Rhode Island · Senate Mar 18, 2025

SB 281: AN ACT RELATING TO CRIMINAL PROCEDURE -- EXPUNGEMENT OF CRIMINAL RECORDS

SB 281 would allow individuals with multiple non-violent felony convictions to petition courts to clear their criminal records after completing their sentences. Specifically, it permits expungement 10 years post-sentence for those convicted of multiple non-violent felonies (excluding violent crimes or certain drug offenses), provided they have paid all fees/fines, have no new arrests/convictions in the prior decade, and demonstrate good moral character. The bill directly affects people with multiple non-violent felony records who meet these criteria, streamlining the process for record clearance. It modifies existing expungement rules by extending the waiting period to 10 years for multiple non-violent felonies and adding specific eligibility requirements.

Topics ✓ Criminal Justice

died · Rhode Island · Senate Mar 18, 2025

SB 55: AN ACT RELATING TO STATE AFFAIRS AND GOVERNMENT -- THE RHODE ISLAND HEALTH CARE REFORM ACT OF 2004 -- HEALTH INSURANCE OVERSIGHT

Includes the definition of "primary care services" and requires that all biennial reports shall include a review and recommendation of rates for primary care services on and after September 1, 2025.

died · Rhode Island · Senate Mar 18, 2025

SB 293: AN ACT RELATING TO CRIMINAL PROCEDURE -- BAIL AND RECOGNIZANCE

SB 293 would require courts to release most people arrested for misdemeanor offenses without requiring money bail. It directly affects misdemeanor arrestees, except in cases involving domestic violence or when a court finds a risk of the person failing to appear in court or obstructing justice (e.g., threatening witnesses). The bill mandates that the Department of Corrections collect background information on pretrial detainees - including employment, community ties, and criminal history - before court decisions. Courts may then impose non-monetary conditions like supervision or community confinement instead of money bail, but cannot require financial conditions for standard misdemeanors.

Topics ✓ Criminal Justice

died · Rhode Island · Senate Mar 18, 2025

SB 358: AN ACT RELATING TO COURTS AND CIVIL PROCEDURE -- PROCEDURE GENERALLY -- CAUSES OF ACTION

SB 358 creates a new legal right for people injured by artificial intelligence systems developed by companies that trained or fine-tuned very high-cost AI models (costing over $100 million for initial training or $10 million for significant modifications). It holds developers strictly liable for injuries to non-users (like bystanders) caused by AI systems that behave in ways a human would consider negligent or intentionally harmful, without requiring proof of developer negligence. The bill excludes defamation claims and establishes a rebuttable presumption that AI systems meet the mental state required for certain torts if a human in similar circumstances would have acted that way. Developers can avoid liability by proving the AI met human standards of care or the harm resulted from a "capabilities failure" (where the AI underperformed but didn't act negligently).

Topics ✓ Technology

died · Rhode Island · Senate Mar 18, 2025

SR 348: SENATE RESOLUTION URGING THE RHODE ISLAND FEDERAL DELEGATION TO DEMAND REVERSAL OF ACTIONS HARMING CRITICAL HEALTH AND SAFETY PROGRAMS

This Senate resolution urges Rhode Island's federal delegation (Senators Reed and Whitehouse, and Representatives Magaziner and Amo) to demand reversal of policies harming health programs. It specifically calls for restoring U.S. foreign aid (including PEPFAR for HIV care), ending the Mexico City Policy, unfreezing Medicaid funding, and resuming CDC's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. The resolution has no legal force but aims to influence federal policy by advocating for reinstating global health cooperation and domestic health protections. It directly targets the federal delegation's role in addressing these specific policy changes.

Topics ✓ Healthcare