RIPEC President & CEO Michael DiBiase discussed RIPEC’s budget report findings in a feature on WPRI 12’s Newsmakers.  Describing the continued increase in spending as “concerning,” he urged policymakers to scrutinize the effectiveness of state-funded programs. “The budget … has been an additive exercise,” he said. “The hard choices have been, ‘Where do we add money, and who do we tax?’ And not so much, ‘Is this program working? Should we cut it back?’”