Rep. David Bennett

Maddy summaryThis bill designates March 19, 2026, as "Rhode Island College Day" in the State of Rhode Island to honor the institution's contributions to the community. The resolution recognizes Rhode Island College as the state's oldest public college and highlights its academic programs, athletic teams, and recent investments in modernizing science and cybersecurity facilities. It directs the Secretary of State to send a certified copy of the resolution to the college's president as a formal acknowledgment of the institution's achievements.

Requires small employers with one to fifty (1-50) employees and large employers with fifty (50) or more employees to pay overtime wages to exempt workers if their salary exceeds varying multipliers of minimum wage for a forty (40) hour workweek.

Increases the minimum hourly wage commencing January 1, 2029, by an amount equal to the total percentage increase in the Consumer Price Index for all Urban Consumers (CPI-U) for the Northeast Region for the calendar year 2027.

Makes construction contractors civilly liable and/or jointly civilly liable for any claims of wage theft or nonpayment from an employee against the contractor, its subcontractors and any subcontractor.

Amends the definition of public works so that it would include any public works projects performed for any city or town or quasi-municipal entity and the state and any quasi-state entity.

Establishes provisions for student and teacher classroom safety and provides the authority to remove students from classrooms. This act provides for student and educator protections from said removals.

Provides that original equipment manufacturers, implemented by/with surrogate distributors, of agricultural equipment, provide to independent service providers repair information and tools to maintain and repair electronics-enabled agricultural equipment.

Requires that court sentencing a person for first degree sexual assault of first degree child molestation, have the approval of the victim before imposing any negotiated sentence upon the offender.

Raises the age of eligibility for mobile response and stabilization services from eighteen (18) to twenty-one (21) and establishes a minimum rate for commercial health insurance reimbursement for such services.

Maddy summaryHB 8078 allows county grand juries to formally issue reports about their investigations and creates a process for superior courts to review and approve these reports before they are shared publicly. This bill directly affects county grand juries, which would now have the authority to produce reports, and superior courts, which would handle the review and approval. The key mechanism requires courts to evaluate the reports for completeness and appropriateness before authorizing public dissemination. If passed, this would standardize how grand jury findings are made available to the public, though the bill is currently in the early introduction stage (referred to House Judiciary on 2/27/2026).