Woonsocket Radio News Room

STATE HOUSE – The House and the Senate expect to reconvene to consider several bills the week of July 13. Committee hearings are being scheduled in both chambers next week.

The House is expected to reconvene for session on Thursday, July 16, and hearings will be held by the House Judiciary Committee on Tuesday, July 7; the House Labor Committee on Wednesday, July 8; and the House Municipal Government Committee on Thursday, July 9. More details will be announced when agendas are posted for the committee hearings. A floor calendar will be posted ahead of the session.

Additionally, the House Finance Committee will resume its deliberations on the Fiscal Year 2021 budget and related legislation on Wednesday, July 8, at 4 p.m. in Room 35. The Finance Committee will hold budget hearings over the next several weeks in anticipation of budget consideration in August. Legislators are still awaiting guidance from Congress on the level of federal support to states for budget relief. 

The Senate is also expected to post committee hearings next week, in anticipation of returning to session sometime during the week of July 13. The Senate Finance Committee has posted hearings on 2021 budget articles Tuesday, July 7, and Thursday, July 9, both at 4 p.m. in the Senate Lounge. More hearings will be posted in the coming days.

The State House remains closed to the public as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The sessions and hearings will be televised on Capitol Television, which can be seen on Cox on Channels 15 and 61, in high definition on Cox Channel 1061, on Full Channel on Channel 15 and on Channel 34 by Verizon subscribers. They are also live-streamed at www.rilegislature.gov/CapTV.

An Arizona grand jury is indicting the 11 "fake electors" who were backing then-President Trump in 2020. A month after the election, the 11 people got together at the state's GOP headquarters to sign a certificate claiming to be Arizona's 11 electors to the Electoral College, although Biden had won by thousands of votes. His electors were also certified by state officials.        The Supreme Court will hear arguments Thursday on Donald Trump's claim he has absolute immunity on charges of attempting to overturn the 2020 election. The outcome could determine whether Trump faces a federal trial this year on four felony counts brought by special counsel Jack Smith, which include conspiracy to defraud the U.S. and obstruction of an official proceeding. Trump's legal team argues the former president should have absolute immunity from criminal prosecution for any official acts taken while in office.        House Speaker Mike Johnson is demanding the president of Columbia University resign unless she reigns in anti-semitic protests. Speaking on the campus steps of the New York school with other GOP lawmakers, Johnson said no Jewish student should have to live in fear. His comments come as pro-Palestinian protests continue against Israel's war with Hamas.        The Biden Administration says it aims to cut freight emissions in the U.S. to zero. On Wednesday, officials laid out their goal to cut down harmful emissions from freight shipping. The White House says they hope to reach net-zero emissions in the transportation sector, and the entire U.S. economy, by 2050.        A new report can tell you if you're still earning enough to be considered middle class. Finance site SmartAsset analyzed data from the U.S. Census Bureau and the Pew Research Center to determine the middle class salary range in all 50 states. The national middle class salary range is 49-thousand-271-dollars to 147-thousand-828-dollars.        The MTV Video Music Awards are returning to New York. For the first time since 2021, the show will be back in New York and this time it will take place on Long Island at the UBS Arena in Elmont. It's the first for the arena and the show is set for September 10th. UBS Arena is the sixth New York arena to host the awards show.       

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