PAWTUCKET – U.S. Congressman David N. Cicilline (RI-01) announced today that the Heroes Act, which the House will vote on Friday, provides more than $5.3 billion in new COVID-19 relief funding to protect the lives and livelihoods of Rhode Islanders. Cicilline will hold a virtual press conference on the bill with New England colleagues TOMORROW at 1:00 PM. Press can RSVP here.
The Heroes Act provides $1.9 billion to the State of Rhode Island, and another $1.117 billion to Rhode Island city and town governments, in its first year. It then provides $1.737 billion to the State, and $559 million to cities and towns, in its second year of implementation. A breakdown of the funding allocations for Rhode Island’s First District is embedded below.
Press Releases
2020/05/11
PAWTUCKET – U.S. Congressman David N. Cicilline (RI-01), who recently led 123 Republicans and Democrats in a letter urging support for local news in the next COVID-19 relief package, issued the following statement tonight:
“A thriving news industry is critical for any democracy. Local news outlets have been getting hammered for years, and this pandemic has made things even worse. That’s why I am pleased that the next COVID-19 relief package will make Rhode Island newspapers, radio, and television stations eligible for Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans. This is an important lifeline for trustworthy sources of local news that will help them continue to serve our communities.”
2020/05/08
Farm Fresh Rhode Island & RI Community Food Bank approved for USDA’s new Farmers to Families Food Box program
PROVIDENCE, RI – Due to the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, more Rhode Islanders than ever are in need of emergency and supplemental food. At the same time, Rhode Island farmers and food sector businesses are facing widespread market and supply chain disruption.
2020/05/07
PAWTUCKET – U.S. Congressman David N. Cicilline (RI-01), who serves on the House Judiciary Committee, issued the following statement today:
“This is an outrageous decision and a miscarriage of justice. Michael Flynn already pled guilty to a felony. Nothing that happened today can change that fact. The only thing that did change is that Attorney General Barr further corrupted the Department of Justice. The American people are justified in their anger that there is one set of rules for Donald Trump and his friends, and a completely different set of rules for everyone else.”
“This demands an immediate explanation from the Attorney General. He needs to answer for his actions before the House Judiciary Committee, and I am glad that Chairman Nadler is working to make that happen as soon as possible.”
2020/05/07
PAWTUCKET – With 55% of Americans saying they feel lonelier today than they did at the start of social distancing, U.S. Congressman David N. Cicilline will begin holding a weekly check in to connect with constituents and, if necessary, refer them to resources available to them.
Congressman Cicilline Checking In will begin TOMORROW, May 8th, at 7:00 PM on Instagram (@RepDavidCicilline). Rhode Islanders will be able to talk with Congressman Cicilline via text and video once Cicilline starts the Instagram Live.
2020/05/06
PAWTUCKET – U.S. Congressman David N. Cicilline (RI-01), who last night called on the Public Utilities Commission to extend their moratorium on utility terminations, issued the following statement tonight:
“Rhode Islanders shouldn’t have to worry about losing utility service in the middle of a pandemic. I am pleased that utility terminations are being suspended through the end of the month. This is the right thing to do.”
2020/05/06
Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senators Jack Reed and Sheldon Whitehouse, along with Congressmen Jim Langevin and David Cicilline, today announced that Thrive Behavioral Health, Inc. and Newport Mental Health have been awarded $8 million in federal grant funding from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s (SAMHSA) Center for Mental Health Services. All four members of Rhode Island’s Congressional Delegation advocated for this federal funding earlier this year in a joint letter to SAMHSA.
2020/05/05
Ocasio-Cortez, Jayapal, Raskin, Pocan, Neguse, Schakowsky co-leading effort to protect workers, consumers during global pandemic
PAWTUCKET – Antitrust Subcommittee Chairman David N. Cicilline (RI-01) is leading House lawmakers today in urging that the next COVID-19 relief package include language prohibiting corporate mergers that do not involve the purchase of a severely distressed company.
2020/05/05
PAWTUCKET – U.S. Congressman David N. Cicilline (RI-01) wrote to Rhode Island Public Utilities Commission (PUC) Chairperson Margaret Curran today asking that the PUC extend a moratorium on utility terminations that is slated to expire tomorrow.
2020/05/04
PAWTUCKET – House Antitrust Subcommittee Chairman David N. Cicilline (RI-01) issued the following statement after McGraw-Hill and Cengage decided not to move forward with their planned merger:
“As I warned two months ago, this merger would have created a single company that controlled more than 40% of the college textbook market. We’ve seen that movie before – such an entity would eliminate jobs and drive up costs for college kids who are already taking on enormous amounts of student loan debt. The merger made no sense, and I’m glad to learn that it has been abandoned.”
2020/05/01
Washington, D.C. – Today, House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler (D-NY), Antitrust Subcommittee Chairman David N. Cicilline (D-RI), Subcommittee Ranking Member F. James Sensenbrenner (R-WI), Subcommittee Vice Chairman Joe Neguse (D-CO), Representative Pramila Jayapal (D-WA), Representative Ken Buck (R-CO), and Representative Matt Gaetz (R-FL) sent a letter to Jeff Bezos, the CEO and Founder of Amazon, calling on him to appear before the Committee to testify about competition concerns relating to Amazon's business practices.
2020/05/01
PAWTUCKET – Democratic Policy and Communications Committee (DPCC) Chair David N. Cicilline (RI-01) hosted a press call highlighting the ways that Democrats are fighting to provide much-needed help to frontline workers in the upcoming coronavirus relief bill. Cicilline was joined on today’s call by Democratic Caucus Vice Chair Katherine Clark (MA-05), Steering and Policy Committee Co-Chair Rosa DeLauro (CT-03), U.S. Rep. Ann McLane Kuster (NH-02), and U.S. Rep. Joe Kennedy III (MA-04).
2020/04/29
PAWTUCKET – U.S. Representatives David N. Cicilline (RI-01) and F. James Sensenbrenner (WI-05) are leading more than 100 members of both parties in pushing to protect local news publishers and broadcasters in the next COVID-19 relief package.
2020/04/21
Join me WEDNESDAY, April 22nd at 11am for my next Facebook Live Town Hall on the coronavirus pandemic. This time, we'll talk about housing resources available to Rhode Islanders and plans to address the housing crises in recovery efforts.
I'll be joined by Brenda Clement (Housing Works RI), Carol Ventura (RI Housing), Caitlin Frumerie (RI Coalition for the Homeless), and Melina Lodge (Housing Network of RI) to field your questions about housing resources available to Rhode Islanders, and I'll share what we have done in Congress to provide relief for Rhode Islanders.
2020/04/21
PAWTUCKET – Democratic Policy and Communications Committee (DPCC) Chair David N. Cicilline (RI-01) issued the following statement today:
“As all of us work to flatten the curve, our first priority must be ensuring that working men and women make it through this crisis. I’m proud that we’ve reached an agreement that will provide more relief for workers and small business owners, deliver critical resources for hospitals and health care workers, and lay the groundwork for a national strategic testing policy that is essential for reopening our economy.”
2020/04/21
PAWTUCKET – House Antitrust Subcommittee Chairman David N. Cicilline (RI-01) and House Oversight and Reform Committee Chairwoman Carolyn Maloney (NY-12) announced today that they have introduced legislation to prohibit banks from collecting overdraft fees during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“As we all do our parts to flatten the curve, it’s critical that Congress do whatever it takes to make sure working people get through this crisis with their finances intact,” said Cicilline. “Under President Trump, the big banks are doing just fine. They don’t need to be punishing their customers with overdraft fees right now. This is a commonsense bill that protects consumers. Members of both parties should get behind it today.”
2020/04/16
PROVIDENCE, RI – In an effort to provide employment and training services to Rhode Islanders who were laid off because of the impact of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) public health emergency, U.S. Representatives David Cicilline and Jim Langevin, and U.S. Senators Jack Reed and Sheldon Whitehouse, today announced $2,326,005 in federal funding for Rhode Island through Dislocated Worker Grants (DWG).
2020/04/09
WASHINGTON - Today, House Judiciary Subcommittee on Antitrust, Commercial and Administrative Law Chairman David N. Cicilline (D-RI), Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler (D-NY), Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ), and Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Consumer Protection and Commerce Chair Jan Schakowsky (D-IL), introduced the COVID-19 Price Gouging Prevention Act to protect American consumers from price gouging during the COVID-19 pandemic. The bill would prohibit the sale of consumer goods and services at an unconscionably excessive price during the public health emergency declared as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
2020/04/07
Cites leadership of Allstate and American Family Mutual, urges other providers to do the same
PAWTUCKET – As Americans under quarantine are staying home and driving less, U.S. Congressman David N. Cicilline (RI-01) is calling on America’s leading car insurance companies to rebate to customers a portion of their premiums so as to not unfairly profit off the COVID-19 pandemic.
2020/04/06
PAWTUCKET – In a letter to the U.S. Department of Justice Antitrust Division, House Antitrust Subcommittee Chairman David N. Cicilline (RI-01) raised serious concerns today about the proposed acquisition of Credit Karma by Intuit, TurboTax’s parent company.
“Intuit’s proposed acquisition of Credit Karma bears all the traditional signs of a dominant incumbent seeking to tame a maverick competitor,” Cicilline wrote. “Our antitrust laws require that TurboTax compete on the merits rather than be permitted to purchase its way out of competing. In light of this concern, I request that the Antitrust Division closely scrutinize this merger to protect the competitive process and the American people as they file their taxes.”