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2/6/2025
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Sen. Bell will hold community meeting on Feb. 8 concerning crisis in Providence city government
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STATE HOUSE – Sen. Samuel W. Bell (D-Dist. 5, Providence) will be holding a community meeting on Saturday, Feb. 8 at 2 p.m. at Bell Street Chapel, located at 5 Bell St. in Providence, to address the crisis in the Providence city government.
“Providence City Hall is in crisis, and I am very worried. The Superior Court struck down the illegal cuts to the Providence Public Schools that Mayor Brett Smiley and Council President Rachel Miller pushed through. Now, the mayor and council president say Providence is in a financial crisis. I say it's a crisis of leadership.
“They say the crisis leaves us no choice but tax increases and ‘harmful cuts’ to city services. The mayor is asking us in the General Assembly to allow him to raise taxes as high as he wants. But he also says that won't be enough, and he'll still make brutal cuts. In fact, he already cut affordable housing, and Council President Miller agreed to those cuts.
“I'll show exactly why this crisis narrative is wrong, and why I believe it's an excuse to implement unpopular policies that will hurt our city. I'll show exactly how we can avoid harmful cuts and raising taxes on people who are struggling. Yes, part of my solution will involve taxing the people who have money, including the luxury housing developers. I'll discuss the tax breaks for luxury housing Council President Miller and Mayor Smiley have made—and the law they passed to allow them to give the luxury housing developers even bigger tax cuts in this next budget.
“This meeting will also be an opportunity for me to publicly apologize. I, along with many other Providence politicians, bought part of the mayor’s argument on school funding. I even cosponsored one of his bills, but I was wrong. To those who have also bought into the mayor’s argument, I have compassion because I was there, too. I invite you to come to the meeting and consider what I have to say.
“When we defeat the mayor’s bill to legalize an illegally large tax increase, I don't want them to turn around and say, okay, we have to cut our libraries, trash cleanup, rec centers, PVD Fest, and so many more city services. The excuse for this maelstrom of budgetary pain is that there is no alternative. I’m holding this meeting to demolish that excuse. That’s why I’m going to show the numbers. That’s why I’m going to prove that our city government doesn’t have to hurt the people of Providence,” said Senator Bell.
For more information, contact:
Andrew Caruolo, Publicist
State House Room 20
Providence, RI 02903
(401)222-6124
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