DOUSE THE FIREFIGHTER OVERTIME BILL PUT R.I. TAXPAYERS FIRST

Warwick, RI – Today, a House committee is scheduled to vote on legislation which will give overtime pay for firefighters if they work more than 42 hours in a week. Essentially, under federal law, firefighters do not receive overtime pay until after they work 53 hours in a week. This legislation attempts to undermine a 2015 Rhode Island Supreme Court decision which gave cities and towns a right to managing platoon structure or shift schedules in their fire departments. The legislation is opposed by the R.I. League of Cities and Towns because it will increase cost to taxpayers. According to a recent RIPEC study, Rhode Island has the highest fire protection costs per capita in the nation. The legislation was introduced by House Minority Whip John Edwards of Tiverton. Rep Edwards recently told the Tiverton Town Council that the bill he introduced was “coming down from the speaker.”

Chairwoman Sue M. Cienki commented:”This special interest legislation will cost taxpayers millions and make it harder for our cities and towns to keep taxes down. Rhode Island already has high property taxes in part because Rhode Island has the highest fire protection costs in the nation. Why would we want to go beyond a federal law or undermine a Rhode Island Supreme Court decision if it would harm taxpayers? Why would the General Assembly do this to the taxpayers?”

Chairwoman Cienki concluded: “This is just another sad lesson in Rhode Island democracy. Rep Edwards did not introduce this legislation at the request of the taxpayers of Tiverton. He did it because that is what Speaker Mattiello wanted. Edwards doesn’t represent the taxpayers of Tiverton, he just represents Mattiello in Tiverton, and Mattiello is just taking orders from the firefighters’ union. Isn’t it time we elected people to the State House who didn’t just do whatever the Speaker ordered them to do or what a special interest group told them to do. Let’s put the Rhode Island taxpayer first!”