TOMORROW: OSPRI Research on Binding Arbitration to Be Released
PROVIDENCE, RI - A survey of 16 communities conducted by the Ocean State Policy Research Institute has revealed that proposed legislation on binding arbitration could cause them to lose control over about $543 million in school spending.
"Using these averages," said William Felkner, the president of the Ocean State Policy Research Institute, "all municipalities combined will have a total of $1.8 billion under the potential control of an appointed arbitrator."
Mr. Felkner will present the results of this research tomorrow at the Welcome Back Tea Party for the start of a special two-day state legislative session.
The Welcome Back Tea Party starts at 3:30 p.m. at the main entrance to the Statehouse on Smith Street.
Felkner will be speaking about the loss of local control and increased costs that will result if the Legislature passes binding arbitration. He will be discussing research that shows $543,380,851 out of a combined $693,925,762 in school spending in 16 communities could potentially be controlled by an unelected, third-party arbitrator, if employee contracts are not settled during collective bargaining negotiations. Already, $194,959,583 in spending on police and fire contracts in these communities is subject to binding arbitration.
About OSPRI:
Created in 2007, our work is focused on crafting sound public policy based on the principles of free enterprise, limited government, and traditional American values. We offer timely research and analysis on important issues to be shared with elected officials, the media, business leaders, community organizations and individual citizens. In recent months, we have been responsible for such successful projects as the Transparency Train - A public financial and legislative information repository, as well as regular updates published and available on our website and companion blog.
About The Transparency Train:
The Transparency Train Web Portal (www.transparencytrain.org) provides access to a variety of websites designed to present public information in a Google-style searchable format. These sites include:
RI Data which contains every budget, payroll, public employee contract and monthly check register for all cities, towns and school districts in Rhode Island.
RI Votes which is an online database of legislation and voting records.
LRB Watch provides analysis and information on the State Labor Relations Board.
RI Stimulus Watch allows taxpayers to vote and comment on stimulus projects in Rhode Island.
RI Schools is an interactive website that allows viewers to create comparative graphs of school districts plotting various metrics such as cost per student, test scores and the number of employees (coming soon).
Take Action, a "how-to" manual that shows citizens how to file Freedom Of Information Act requests for public information and what to do if they don't comply.
About OSPRI:
Created in 2007, our work is focused on crafting sound public policy based on the principles of free enterprise, limited government, and traditional American values. We offer timely research and analysis on important issues to be shared with elected officials, the media, business leaders, community organizations and individual citizens. In recent months, we have been responsible for such successful projects as the Transparency Train - A public financial and legislative information repository, as well as regular updates published and available on our website and companion blog.
About The Transparency Train:
The Transparency Train Web Portal (www.transparencytrain.org) provides access to a variety of websites designed to present public information in a Google-style searchable format. These sites include:
RI Data which contains every budget, payroll, public employee contract and monthly check register for all cities, towns and school districts in Rhode Island.
RI Votes which is an online database of legislation and voting records.
LRB Watch provides analysis and information on the State Labor Relations Board.
RI Schools is an interactive website that allows viewers to create comparative graphs of school districts plotting various metrics such as cost per student, test scores and the number of employees (coming Spring 2009).
RI Donors will contain a "connect the dots" approach to viewing political and lobbying finances (coming Fall 2009).
Take Action, a "how-to" manual that shows citizens how to file Freedom Of Information Act requests for public information and what to do if they don't comply.
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