Sen. Hanna Gallo

Maddy summarySB 2401 authorizes the city of Cranston to create a housing division within its municipal court to handle specific housing-related violations. This division would directly affect Cranston residents and property owners facing violations of local housing codes, zoning ordinances, building regulations, or minimum housing standards. The housing division can impose fines up to $500 or 30 days in jail for these violations, and appeals from its decisions would go to the superior court within 20 days. The bill specifies the exact types of housing-related violations the division can address, including zoning, housing maintenance, and state building code violations.

Maddy summaryThis Senate resolution honors Thrive Behavioral Health, Inc. on its 50th anniversary and recognizes its long-standing contributions to mental health care in Rhode Island. The bill acknowledges the organization's growth from its founding as the Kent County Mental Health Center to its current role as a Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinic that provides comprehensive, affordable services. It highlights Thrive's holistic approach, which combines clinical treatment with support for housing and employment to help individuals achieve stability. The resolution expresses gratitude for the organization's work and directs the Secretary of State to send a certified copy of the document to the organization's president and CEO.

Repeals the older of the two existing chapters related to speech-language pathologists and audiologists and makes several amendments to reconcile the two statutes into one.

Maddy summaryThis bill allows dental hygienists to receive payment from insurance sources other than the dentist's own plan, including third-party payors like Medicare. It directly affects dental practices by expanding the types of insurance that can reimburse dental hygienists for their services. The key provision removes previous restrictions that limited reimbursement to specific insurance arrangements, enabling broader payment options for dental hygiene care. This change applies to all dental practices employing dental hygienists within the state where the bill is enacted.

Ends transaction fees for school lunches in all districts. This act requires at least one no-fee payment method for school lunches and a full disclosure whether fees will be charged by a payment platform.

Expands the requirement that all high schools and middle schools, whether they are publicly or privately run to maintain on site a functional AED while establishing and implementing a cardiac emergency response plan in these schools.

Requires an insurance company to directly pay the insured's chosen appraiser and the umpire appraiser, if applicable, upon receipt of a "direction to pay" executed by an insured or claimant.

Maddy summaryThis bill establishes rules for the governance of mayoral academies in Rhode Island, which are charter schools serving students from multiple cities and towns. It requires that only a mayor or town administrator from each participating community can serve as a voting member on the school's board of directors or trustees. The legislation also allows for nonvoting advisory members from each included town and mandates that student admission be determined by lottery when enrollment exceeds available spaces. Additionally, the bill ensures that no student or teacher is required to participate in these academies and that school districts must facilitate transfers for those who opt out.

Authorizes the appropriation of the sum of $1,167,100, to the Rhode Island Auditory Oral Program, to support the program’s mission to provide specialized auditory-oral programming for children with hearing loss.

Provides that no contract between a dental plan or other healthcare entity and a dentist requires the dentist to accept exclusively by virtual credit cards.