McKee Proposes $14.2B Rhode Island State Budget for 2025-26

An ongoing gap between expenditures and revenue spells more red ink

Office of Management and Budget Director Brian Daniels talks about the budget as state Administration Director Jonathan Womer listens.
Office of Management and Budget Director Brian Daniels talks about the budget as state Administration Director Jonathan Womer listens.
Ian Donnis / The Public’s Radio
1 min read
Share
Office of Management and Budget Director Brian Daniels talks about the budget as state Administration Director Jonathan Womer listens.
Office of Management and Budget Director Brian Daniels talks about the budget as state Administration Director Jonathan Womer listens.
Ian Donnis / The Public’s Radio
McKee Proposes $14.2B Rhode Island State Budget for 2025-26
Copy

Rhode Island Gov. Dan McKee’s latest $14.2 billion budget proposal adds about a quarter-billion dollars from the current spending plan, reflecting the challenge of fueling the government in a state where expenditures continue to outpace revenue.

McKee said his budget, which he unveiled Thursday, would close an approximately $250 million deficit without any broad-based tax increases.“It will not just protect Rhode Island’s progress, it will protect the taxpayers of our state,” McKee said.

The proposal banks on $10 million in revenue from the eventual restart of the RhodeWorks truck-tolling program, following a recent court decision, and predicts that amount will grow to $40 million in fiscal 2026-27.

The spending plan includes investments meant to spark economic growth, increases in education aid, and a proposed ban on new sales of semiautomatic rifles sometimes called assault weapons.

This story was reported by The Public’s Radio. You can read the entire story here.

From Brown’s student journalism on administrative bloat to RISD’s removal of anti-Zionist art, Rhode Island universities are grappling with the tensions between free expression and political sensitivity
Book lovers strengthen community through in-person events and activities
Frustration mounts as massive upgrade to software payroll, finance system runs over initial time and budget
States lost more than $11 billion under abrupt funding cuts
We highlight a few of the many events happening in April across the Community Libraries of Providence – from book sales to a group for artists to get feedback on their work. Plus: what they’re reading at one of the libraries’ several book clubs