Constitutional convention’s benefits outweigh cost
Many have correctly said that Donald Trump has weird obsessions with crowd sizes and other matters. Well, Rhode Island government has a weird obsession with constitutional convention costs, albeit one that merely mimics the talking points of convention opponents who...Legislature is subverting state’s ConCon process
Rhode Island’s Constitution mandates that decennially, next on Nov. 5, 2024, the people of Rhode Island can call a state constitutional convention via a popular referendum. It also mandates that prior to that referendum the state legislature must convene an...It’s past time for RI to prep for Nov. 5 constitutional convention
J.H. Snider is the editor of The Rhode Island State Constitutional Convention Clearinghouse. Gary Sasse served as the Rhode Island director of the departments of Administration and Revenue, and executive director of the Rhode Island Public Expenditure Council. Once a...Post-Mortem: Rhode Island’s Nov. 4, 2014 Referendum to Convene a State Constitutional Convention
On November 4, 2014, the referendum to convene a Rhode Island state constitutional convention lost by 55.1% to 44.9%. On October 23, Brown University’s Taubman Center published a poll, the results of which were reported in the Providence Journal and Governing...Yes Coalition Files Complaint with Board of Elections; BOE Rules on Complaint (Updated Oct. 31)
On Monday, October 27, RenewRI, the coalition leading the yes campaign on the constitutional convention referendum in Rhode Island, filed a complaint with the Rhode Island Board of Elections concerning the campaign finance disclosures of The Coalition for Responsible...Unwarranted Attacks on R.I.’s Constitutional Convention History
In seemingly every daily newspaper in Rhode Island (e.g., see Providence Journal, GoLocalProv, Valley Breeze, IndependentRI.com, and Warwick Beacon; for links, go to Rhode Island’ConCon.info’s op-ed page), the Rhode Island ACLU’s Steve Brown has...The Master Puppeteers Behind R.I.’s 2014 Voter Information Handbook
In early October, Rhode Island’s Secretary of State mailed at taxpayer expense to hundreds of thousands of registered voters a printed copy of the 2014 Voter Information Handbook. The Handbook includes what is supposed to be an impartial explanation of all the...Citizens for Responsible Government vs. RenewRI
On November 4, 2014, Rhode Islanders will vote on a referendum for or against convening a state constitutional convention. On April 30, 2014, Citizens For Responsible Government was publicly launched to support a no vote. On August 20, 2014, RenewRI was publicly...The Bi-Partisan Preparatory Commission’s Fifth and Final Meeting
On August 26, 2014, the Commission met for the fifth and last time. The purpose of the meeting was to approve the Commission’s Report, which it did (well, sort of). The Commission Report was publicly released on September 3—eight days after the wording had...Bi-Partisan Preparatory Commission’s Third & Fourth Meetings
On August 19 and August 21 the Bi-Partisan Preparatory Commission wrapped up its public testimony with its 2nd and 3rd public hearings. The Commission has scheduled a meeting next Tuesday at 3:30 pm to discuss its draft report. No public comment will be allowed. A...Bi-Partisan Preparatory Commission’s Second Meeting
The Bi-Partisan Preparatory Commission met on August 7. It made two important announcements before beginning with public testimony. The first was that the Commission’s report would be published by August 25. This date was premised on the need to get the...The Report by the Rhode Island Center for Freedom & Prosperity
At today’s hearing of the Bi-partisan Preparatory Commission, the Rhode Island Center for Freedom & Prosperity released a report, The Path to a Constitutional Convention, which provides a well packaged addition to the discussion of why and how to convene a...The Bi-Partisan Preparatory Commission’s First Meeting
On July 29, 2014, one day before its report was due, the General Assembly’s legislative leaders appointed the final two members of the Bi-Partisan Preparatory Commission to Assemble Information on Constitutional Convention Questions. Two-thirds of the Commission...RhodeIslandConCon.info launches FAQ to address questions about state constitutional conventions
RhodeIslandConCon.info has launched an FAQ to address questions about both Rhode Island’s upcoming state constitutional convention referendum and state constitutional conventions more generally. State constitutional conventions are a subject on which popular...Patrick Conley Joins RhodeIslandConCon.info’s Advisory Committee
Patrick Conley has joined RhodeIslandConCon.info’s Advisory Committee. Dr. Conley was a delegate to Rhode Island’s 1973 Constitutional Convention, where he drafted and championed Article XIV, Section 2, providing for a periodic, self-executing constitutional...Reflections on “A Constitutional Convention for Rhode Island?”
J.H. Snider’s reflections on the March 29, 2014 conference at Bryant University, “A Constitutional Convention for Rhode Island?”