THE RECORD
This week, members of the Rhode Island Senate were privileged to join our House colleagues, and many distinguished guests, for Governor Dan McKee’s 2024 State of the State Address. The Governor outlined numerous accomplishments from the past year, recognized several worthy Rhode Islanders, and set the stage for his Fiscal Year 2025 budget proposal, which was presented to the General Assembly on Thursday.
We are grateful that both through his remarks and within his budget plan, Governor McKee expressed support for a number of the Senate’s top priorities. That starts with a continued emphasis on fiscal responsibility and securing Rhode Island’s financial future, while allocating one-time resources toward one-time investments that will yield long-term benefits.
Early childhood care and education has been a top priority for the Senate under the leadership of President Pro Tempore Hanna Gallo, Education Committee Chairwoman Sandra Cano, and Environment & Agriculture Committee Chairwoman Alana DiMario. We are very pleased with the considerable progress proposed in the Governor’s budget submission towards meeting the Senate’s goal of adding 5,000 new, public pre-kindergarten seats by 2028. The proposed budget would fund 3,000 new pre-k seats. This major investment in prekindergarten expansion recognizes that fostering children’s development in their earliest years sets them up for success later on in school and life.
Senate Finance Chairman Lou DiPalma has been a leading voice on Rhode Island’s need to address its lagging Medicaid reimbursement rates for a wide range of critical services. The budget proposal seeks to invest tens of millions of dollars to increase these rates, which will make an important difference for Rhode Island and its future. The budget plan would fully fund recommended reimbursement rate increases for Early Intervention providers, which is incredibly important to ensure all children and families have timely access to life-changing resources.
More broadly, the Governor’s focus on stabilizing and improving our state’s health care system is extremely important, and we will continue our efforts to secure access to quality, affordable care for all Rhode Islanders.
There are many other aspects of the Governor’s budget plan worthy of celebration, including $16.6 million in additional funding of multilingual learners and expanded eligibility for no-cost meals for qualifying students throughout the year.
The Senate Finance Committee will now begin a rigorous public review of all aspects of the budget in the coming months, and we will continue working with all partners and stakeholders to adopt a budget that meets the needs of Rhode Island and its people.
Sincerely, Donny, Ryan, and Val