Rhode Island Public Expenditure Council

• RIPEC released a policy brief on Rhode Island’s K-12 state education aid for multilingual learners. Among RIPEC’s findings were that, despite a large increase in state aid for multilingual learners in fiscal year 2024, Rhode Island remains one of the nation’s least generous states in terms of funding for this student population. “Rhode Island is behind the curve when it comes to funding for multilingual learners,” said RIPEC President and CEO Michael DiBiase. “Multilingual learners make up a substantial and rapidly growing portion of our students, the improvement of public education hinges on their success.”
  • Boston Globe, “R.I. Education Department seeks $20 million more for multilingual learners: The R.I. Public Expenditure Council argues state” funding has not matched the rapid growth of multilingual learners.”
  • Providence Business News, “RIPEC: State needs to boost educational funding for multilingual learners.”
  • GoLocalProv, “’RI Is Behind the Curve When It Comes to Funding for Multilingual Learners’, Says RIPEC.”
  • What’s Up Newp, “RIPEC reports on funding for multilingual learners in Rhode Island’s K-12 system.”

• Michael DiBiase provided testimony in support of the recent proposed payment in lieu of taxes (PILOT) agreement between the city of Providence and four institutions: Brown University, Johnson & Wales University, Providence College, and Rhode Island School of Design. Commenting on $223 million that the city would receive over the next 20 years under the agreement, DiBiase stated that “while the annual revenue from these PILOT agreements are not overly large in relation to the city’s budget, they are not insubstantial, and they will matter with respect to the ability to fund necessary public services.”

Inside Insights

• The National Association of Realtors (NAR) detailed in a new report that home sales decreased nationwide 0.7% in August, and are down 15.3% from one year ago. NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun ascribed the decline to high mortgage rates and low supply. For the same month, the Rhode Island Association of Realtors reported that single family home sales were up 8.3% month-over-month but were 25.2% lower than the previous year.

• The National Association of State Budget Officers (NASBO) detailed the progress states are making in spending their COVID State and Local Fiscal Relief Funds (SLFRF) in a new report. The report finds that the states and Washington D.C. have collectively adopted budgets for SLFRF projects totaling $159.3 billion or about 80% of the funds.

What to Look for in October

• Invitations have gone out for RIPEC’s 80^th Annual Meeting, being held on Thursday, November 2^nd at the Crowne Plaza in Warwick. Our keynote speaker will be popular on-air political analyst Amy Walter, Publisher and Editor-in-Chief of the Cook Political Report with Amy Walter. Tickets may be purchased here. We are excited to have you join us.