On 15-4 Vote, House Finance Committee Approves $9.2B Budget

The House Finance Committee approved early Friday a $9.2 billion budget for the fiscal year starting July 1. The budget begins a phaseout of the car tax while also launching a new program to offer free college tuition to students at the Community College of Rhode Island.

The Finance Committee approved the spending plan on a 15-to-4 vote, with four Republicans voting in opposition, shortly before 1 a.m.

House Speaker Nicholas Mattiello, who unveiled his plan to eliminate the car tax in the face of a tough re-election challenge last year in his Cranston state rep district, praised the budget as a balanced plan that reflected compromise and a commitment to Rhode Islanders.

"We are going to take 150,000 vehicles off the car tax rolls in the first year alone," Mattiello told reporters during a briefing ahead of the Finance Committee vote. "It's a regressive tax, it's an oppressive tax, and we're taking a well-thought-out bite out of it in the very first year."

Read more: http://ripr.org/post/15-4-vote-house-finance-committee-approves-92b-budget