Rhode Island HB 6101: AN ACT RELATING TO STATE AFFAIRS AND GOVERNMENT - SUNSET ADVISORY COMMISSION (Establishes the Sunset Advisory Review Commission.)

Bill Text

2021 -- H 6101
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LC001361
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S T A T E O F R H O D E I S L A N D
IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY
JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2021
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A N A C T
RELATING TO STATE AFFAIRS AND GOVERNMENT - SUNSET ADVISORY
COMMISSION
Introduced By: Representatives Morgan, and Nardone
Date Introduced: March 03, 2021
Referred To: House State Government & Elections

It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:
SECTION 1. Title 42 of the General Laws entitled "State Affairs and Government" is 1
hereby amended by adding thereto the following chapter: 2
CHAPTER 42-6.3 3
SUNSET ADVISORY COMMISSION 4
42-6.3-1. Le gis lative findings and purpos e . 5
The general assembly hereby finds and declares that: 6
(1) The sunset advisory review commission act creates an independent commission 7
charged with rooting out waste, fraud, abuse, and inefficiency in state government. The commission 8
will make recommendations that will save taxpayers money, send more dollars into customer 9
service and less into bureaucracy, streamline government operations. It will determine: 10
(i) If each agency or program is still needed; and 11
(ii) Identify and eliminate waste, duplication, and inefficiency in state government. If 12
successfully implemented, the commission would save government money in the short and long 13
term and help to avert a future state fiscal crisis. 14
(2) It is the intent of the general assembly to authorize the creation of an independent 15
commission to annually examine the operations of state government, with the purpose of making 16
recommendations to the legislature on various manners by which state government can operate 17
more efficiently. The commission will challenge and question the basic assumptions underlying all 18

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state agencies and the programs and services offered by the state. 1
42-6.3-2. De finitions. 2
(a) "Commission" means the sunset advisory review commission. 3
(b) "Operations of state government" means the activities of state government that are 4
authorized by law. 5
(c) "Reasonable request for information" means a request for information that is readily 6
available or could be available through a modicum of effort. 7
(d) "State agency" means: 8
(1) A board, commission, department, institution, office, or other agency in the executive 9
branch of state government that is created by the constitution or by a statute of this state; or 10
(2) The supreme court of Rhode Island, or other court or agency in the judicial branch of 11
state government. 12
(e) "State budget shortfall" means a rate of growth in tax revenues that will not be sufficient 13
to allow the state to spend one hundred (100%) percent of the funds authorized to be spent in the 14
state's general fund. 15
42-6.3-3. Es tablis hme nt of Commis s ion. 16
(a) There is hereby created the sunset advisory review commission. 17
The executive director of the commission shall be initially selected by the joint committee 18
on legislatives services (JCLS). The executive director's term shall be four (4) years. After four (4) 19
years, the JCLS shall re-appoint the executive director to another four (4) year term or appoint a 20
new executive director. There shall be no term limit to the number of terms a person may serve as 21
executive director of the commission. 22
(b) The executive director shall be paid an annual salary commensurate with other agency 23
executives, and be given the standard benefits package for state employees, and shall be given a 24
budget of one million ($1,000,000) to hire additional staff and procure operational equipment. 25
42-6.3-4. Dutie s of the commis s ion. 26
(a) The commission will have the general mission of examining the operations of state 27
government, with the purpose of making recommendations to the general assembly on various 28
manners by which state government can operate more efficiently. The commission will challenge 29
and question the basic assumptions underlying all state agencies, and the programs, grants and 30
services offered by the state. 31
(1) Specifically, the commission must deliver an annual report to the general assembly, no 32
later than January of each calendar year. This report will include appearance and testimony before 33
the oversight committee's of each house. The first report made to the general assembly will include 34

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an assessment of previous comprehensive efforts by the state to review government operations and 1
indicate their level of success or failure. The report shall thereafter include a review of previous 2
recommendations made by the commission and adopted by the general assembly, and an estimate 3
of how much money the recommendations were estimated and actually saved. The report must also 4
indicate how the state can better allocate resources, such as: 5
(i) Streamlining, reorganizing, consolidating, contracting out, or eliminating functions 6
performed by each agency; 7
(ii) Reducing duplicative staffing; 8
(iii) Imp