As the legislative session opens, Shekarchi and Ruggerio maintain leadership roles

PROVIDENCE - Rhode Island's part-time, $17,626.63-a-year legislators re-elected their leaders on Tuesday on opening day of a 2023-24 session that began with pledges of bipartisan cooperation in the heavily Democrat-dominated House and Senate - and a renewed commitment to solving the state's "housing and homelessness crisis."

After trouncing Rep. Michael Chippendale, the leader of the small House GOP, on a 63-to-8 largely party-line vote, newly reelected House Speaker K. Joseph Shekarchi told colleagues, in the prepared text of his remarks:

"While Mike and I may not always agree on every issue, we have always shown mutual respect for each other … and we both share a deep respect for this House. Mike, I look forward to working with you and your caucus."

Similarly, Dominick Ruggerio - a state legislator since 1981 - easily won re-election as Senate president, a post he has held since the March 2017 mid-session resignation of his predecessor. Senate Republicans did not nominate an alternative to Ruggerio and the lone no vote was cast by Providence Democrat  Sen. Sam Bell.

"Today you get sworn in. Tomorrow you get sworn at," Ruggerio said, half-joking, in his opening day speech.

In a day filled with pomp and circumstance, Supreme Court Justice Maureen McKenna Goldberg - the wife of prominent lobbyist Bob Goldberg - swore Shekarchi into his second two-year term in what has been described as the state's most powerful political position.

Supreme Court Justice - and former state Sen. Erin Lynch Prata - administered the oath to Ruggerio after he won reelection as Senate president on a 36-to-1 vote.

In his own tone-setting speech, Shekarchi, a 60-year-old Warwick Democrat and land-use lawyer, recalled his pledge two years ago "to make this a member-driven body" and usher in "a new spirit of collaboration – not only within the House, but also with partners in government at all levels. "

Looking back, he credited that "strong spirit of collaboration" with "unprecedented investments in housing... passage of the historic Act on Climate" and what he described as "strategic tax relief that impacts virtually all Rhode Islanders, including the permanent elimination of the car tax."

Looking ahead, he said: "We have made progress in tackling Rhode Island’s housing crisis. However, we need to do much more...  There can be no doubt [Rhode Island has] a housing crisis and a homelessness crisis. As long as there are people without safe and permanent housing, our work isn’t done."

He said he awaits the recommendations of two legislative commissions - that got started in 2021 - "to look at many of the barriers to housing production in Rhode Island," with an eye towards the introduction of legislation "to aggressively and creatively tackle this critical issue. "

"As our commissions have already heard, some of the barriers to housing production must be addressed at the local level," he said, without giving any further clues as to how far the legislature might actually be willing to go to overcome local zoning restrictions - and NIMBY resistance.

Other Shekarchi goals may also sound familiar: "There is no reason why Rhode Island cannot be a leader in the bioscience field. Our world-class healthcare and higher education institutions, combined with our proximity to other metropolitan areas, uniquely positions Rhode Island to become a hub for life sciences. "

Only one of the nine Republicans in the House voted for Democrat Shekarchi: Rep. Barbara Ann Fenton-Fung, the wife of former Cranstom Mayor Allan Fung who ousted the former House Speaker, Nicholas Mattiello, in their Cranston home-district two years ago.

Ruggerio - the 74-year old retired administrator of a New England arm of the Laborers International Union of North America known to his colleagues as "Donny" - sounded similar themes:

"We have unfinished business...Ensuring every student, in every city and town, receives a quality education and a strong foundation for future success. Ensuring every Rhode Islander can access health care … especially the mental health resources that are needed now more than ever.

"Ensuring our children inherit a cleaner, more resilient environment...And ensuring our small businesses can create jobs and thrive." he said in an advance text of his remarks, that also placed housing high on his list.

Even more specifically, he renewed his earlier vow to try to convince his budget-writing colleagues in the House to consider an overhaul of R.I.'s education-financing formula and fund both "universal pre-kindergarten access" and the replacement of all lead pipes.

"These are some of the challenges we can … and will … address together in the session that lies ahead," he promised.

The House opened with 65 Democrats, nine Republicans and one independent (who has indicated he will caucus with the Democrats) and the Senate with 33 Democrats and five Republicans, which Senate spokesman Greg Paré has describes as the "most diverse Senate [class] in history" with a total of seven minority members, including the first two Asians in the Rhode Island legislature.

Three lawmakers abstained on the vote to elect the speaker who will preside over the House for the next two years: Reps. Brianna Henries, Jennifer Stewart and Enrique Sanchez.

While the legislature traditionally meets three days a week, once it gets rolling, the Senate only plans to meet on Tuesdays at the start, and the House on Tuesdays and Thursdays, though committees (yet to be appointed) will meet more often.

This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: RI House Leader Shekarchi, Senate President Ruggerio keep leadership roles