RIPEC President and CEO Michael DiBiase argued in an op-ed published in The Boston Globe that Rhode Island policymakers should use a portion of the windfall of one-time federal relief and surplus funds to “insulate the state budget from hard cuts during a future recession or period of fiscal restraint.” DiBiase recommended bolstering the state’s rainy day fund and replenishing the unemployment insurance trust fund, which was depleted significantly as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.