News & Media
Legislative Updates: Advocacy in Action, General Assembly Updates, Action Alerts
In the News: Press Releases, Chamber in the News
Economic Development: Economic Indicator Reports, Economic Studies
Legislative Updates Last Week at the State House The Chamber provided testimony on four bills last week. Prohibiting Credit Card Surcharges – Opposed Passage H 7409 would make it a deceptive trade practice for any retail establishment to impose a surcharge fee on a customer for the use of a credit card. The…
Read MoreNews & Media NEWPORT THIS WEEK GUESTVIEW By Community Submission on February 05, 2026 The recent proposal to nearly triple Rhode Island’s state income tax rate on millionaires from 5.99 to 8.99 percent moves the state in the wrong direction at precisely the wrong time. For regions actively driving economic growth while already operating under significant…
Read MoreLegislative Updates Advocacy in Action February 2, 2026 What is in the Governor’s Budget? In the coming editions of Advocacy in Action, we will highlight and summarize key articles of interest to the business community. Article 2 – Relating to State Funds https://webserver.rilegislature.gov/BillText26/HouseText26/H7127.pdf Article 2 provides for changes to certain state funding accounts. Section 1…
Read MoreNews & Media The Greater Newport Chamber of Commerce is proud to announce a continued partnership with The Pell Center at Salve Regina University for the Politics & Pancakes quarterly series in 2026, sponsored by Bally’s Corporation. At the first event of the series, taking place on Thursday, February 12th, guests will hear from Governor Dan McKee…
Read MoreNews & Media By Michele Gallagher for Whatsup Newp For 2026, on the advice of a wise mentor, I’m expanding the scope of my WUN Voices column from exclusively spotlighting women-led organizations’ “Voices” to include the Voices of all Rhode Islanders doing ground-breaking work that is making an outsized impact in the smallest state.” Enter…
Read MoreLegislative Updates This Week at the State House Tuesday, January 27th Credit Card Fee Notification The House Corporations Committee has on its agenda for Tuesday at the Rise (approximately 4:30pm) in the Room 101, two bills of interest. H.7022 http://webserver.rilegislature.gov/BillText/BillText26/HouseText26/H7022.pdf requires any business that charges a fee to customers for the use…
Read MoreLegislative Updates Governor McKee’s “Affordability for All” Agenda In his 2026 State of the State Address last Tuesday, Governor Dan McKee laid out his vision for the year ahead, which was followed on Thursday by his Fiscal Year 2027 budget Proposal, comprised of H 7126 (FY26 Revisions), H 7127 (FY27 Appropriations). See also the…
Read MoreNews & Media Collaboration will bring ‘Visions of Newport County’ photography exhibit to coworking space by Ryan BelmoreJanuary 7, 2026 Innovate Newport is teaming up with the Photo Guild of Newport to present a curated photography exhibit aimed at blending art with the city’s entrepreneurial community. The exhibit, titled “Visions of Newport County,” will be…
Read MoreLegislative Updates 2026 Legislative Session Begins The 2026 legislative session kicked off January 6th, with the House Speaker and Senate President addressing their respective members. On the House side, the Speaker stated, “Let’s buckle up and buckle down. It’s going to be a very challenging year.” He referenced the significant changes made on the…
Read MoreNews & Media Newport School Committee Approves Workforce Development Subcommittee By Newport This Week Staff on December 18, 2025 By Philip Cozzolino FacebookTwitterEmailMessengerCopy LinkMessageShare The Newport School Committee unanimously approved the establishment of a Workforce Development Subcommittee on Dec. 9 that will serve as a “bridge between schools, local businesses and community organizations” to align career…
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