Cicilline resigning from Congress, will lead Rhode Island Foundation. What we know.

In a surprise announcement, U.S. Rep. David Cicilline revealed on Tuesday that he will not complete his term in Congress and plans to resign in order to serve as president and CEO of the Rhode Island Foundation.

David Cicilline "will be leaving elected office effective June 1, 2023," his office announced.

The unexpected move will trigger a special election in Rhode Island’s First Congressional District, which covers the eastern portion of the state.

"Serving the people of Rhode Island’s First Congressional District has been the honor of my lifetime," Cicilline said in a statement. "As president and CEO of one of the largest and oldest community foundations in the nation, I look forward to expanding on the work I have led for nearly thirty years in helping to improve the lives of all Rhode Islanders."

David Cicilline's history in the U.S. House of Representatives

Cicilline, 61, has been in the House since 2011. He easily won reelection to a seventh term in November, defeating Republican Allan Waters with 64% of the vote.

The liberal Democrat's departure comes at a time when Republicans hold a majority in an increasingly polarized Congress that is characterized by gridlock and partisan infighting.

In the House, Cicilline has been a leading critic of the dominance of big technology companies and pushed for stronger antitrust regulation of tech giants like Amazon and Facebook. Under current House Republican leadership, however, those efforts face strong headwinds.

Cicilline has been a staunch advocate for gun control and was a prominent critic of President Donald Trump, serving as the manager of Trump's second impeachment trial. He has been a frequent guest on cable news and public-affairs shows.

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Currently, Cicilline serves as co-chair of the Congressional LGBTQ+ Equality Caucus. He previously chaired the House's Antitrust subcommittee and was selected on House Foreign Affairs Committee’s subcommittee on the Middle East, North Africa and Global Counterterrorism.

But he has also been stymied in his attempts to break into the highest echelons of House Democratic leadership.

In December, he launched an unsuccessful bid to replace U.S. Rep. Jim Clyburn as assistant minority leader, arguing that there should be LGBTQ representation in Democratic leadership. A colleague, Rep. Jimmy Gomez, D-Calif., later told Axios that people had been "sympathetic" but "at the same time, were probably taken a little bit back with him just floating his name."

David Cicilline's history in Rhode Island

Cicilline served as the first openly gay mayor of Providence from 2003 to 2011. Before that, he worked as a defense lawyer and served in the General Assembly.

Cicilline's management of city finances as mayor faced heavy criticism, so the announcement that he will preside over a foundation with $1.3 billion in assets has raised eyebrows.

Shortly after Cicilline left City Hall, his successor, Angel Taveras, described Providence’s finances as a “Category 5” hurricane. The city had a $180-million structural deficit and had nearly depleted its rainy-day fund, which Taveras described as “staggering.”

Cicilline was accused of draining the rainy day fund in order to present a balanced budget during his last year in office. At the time, he denied covering up the extent of the crisis. Throughout his time as mayor, he pinned the blame for Providence's dire financial straits on his predecessor, the late Vincent A. Cianci Jr.

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"Municipal finances and the finances of a community foundation are very different," Dr. G. Alan Kurose, chair of the Rhode Island Foundation’s board of directors, said in a statement. "The Rhode Island Foundation was built on an endowment model and has been stress-tested over nearly 110 years. There are no unfunded liabilities, there is no ebb and flow of tax dollars, and Representative Cicilline will have the resources among our staff, board, investment and finance committees, and our investment managers to rely on."

Last fall, Cicilline opened a cocktail bar named Clementine in downtown Providence, in the space that once housed the restaurant Birch.

What are the other members of RI's congressional delegation saying?

"David is an incredibly effective legislator who tackled big issues and got things done to improve people’s lives and help Rhode Island," U.S. Sen. Jack Reed said in a statement praising Cicilline's time in Congress. "He’s been a leading voice on human rights, civil rights, marriage equality, gun safety, anti-trust, bringing back manufacturing jobs, and so much more."

Cicilline's fellow Rhode Island Democrat in the House of Representatives, newcomer Seth Magaziner, said: "Many elected officials can only dream of achieving as much as Rep. Cicilline has during his time in Congress, and I thank him for his many years of dedicated public service to the people of Rhode Island."

On Twitter, U.S. Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse wrote that Cicilline "has been an able, hard-fighting colleague, and I’ll miss his spirit in our delegation, but he’ll be a fabulous leader for @RIFoundation so bravos everywhere."

What does the Rhode Island Foundation do?

In his new role, Cicilline will succeed Neil Steinberg, the longtime head of the Rhode Island Foundation, who is retiring. The organization is known as the largest philanthropic organization in the state and a key influence in shaping public policy.

The foundation awarded $76 million in grants to 2,300 nonprofit groups in 2021, according to Chris Barnett, a spokesman for the organization. It raised $98 million that year. Finalized numbers from 2022 are not yet available.

Steinberg was paid $939,442 in 2019, and earned an additional $161,816 in "other compensation," according to the foundation's IRS filings.

Asked how many other candidates were interviewed for the role, Barnett replied, "The hiring process was a confidential one and will remain so."

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In a statement, Cicilline said, "The chance to lead the Rhode Island Foundation was unexpected, but it is an extraordinary opportunity to have an even more direct and meaningful impact on the lives of residents of our state."

“It was a high priority for us, from the beginning of this search process, to attract a diverse pool of candidates. Congressman Cicilline’s career-long fight for equity and equality at the local, national and international level, and his deep relationships within Rhode Island’s communities of color are two of the many factors that led us to this decision,” Kurose said in a statement.

How much will David Cicilline make at the Rhode Island Foundation?

In his new role, Cicilline will be paid $650,000 a year – significantly more than his $174,000 annual salary in Congress. Barnett said the pay is "consistent with what CEOs of community foundations of similar size across America earn."

With reports from staff writer Katherine Gregg.

This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Rep. David Cicilline resigning to lead Rhode Island Foundation