Rhode Island Question 1, School Buildings Bond Measure (2018)
- General election: Nov. 6
- Voter registration deadline: Oct. 7
- Early voting: N/A
- Absentee voting deadline: Nov. 6
- Online registration: Yes
- Same-day registration: No
- Voter ID: Photo ID required
- Poll times: 7:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.
| Rhode Island Question 1 | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Election date November 6, 2018 | |
| Topic Bond issues | |
Status Approved | |
| Type Bond issue | Origin State Legislature |
Rhode Island Question 1, the School Buildings Bond Measure, was on the ballot in Rhode Island as a legislatively referred bond question on November 6, 2018.[1][2] The measure was approved.
| A "yes" vote supported this measure to authorize $250 million in bonds over five years—with no more than $100 million issued in any one year—in order to fund school housing aid and the school building authority capital fund. |
| A "no" vote opposed this measure to authorize $250 million in bonds over five years—with no more than $100 million issued in any one year—in order to fund school housing aid and the school building authority capital fund. |
Election results
|
Rhode Island Question 1 |
||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Result | Votes | Percentage | ||
|
|
271,259 | 76.68% | ||
| No | 82,517 | 23.32% | ||
Text of measure
Ballot title
The ballot title was:
| “ |
Rhode Island School Buildings - $250,000,000 [3] |
” |
Ballot summary
The ballot summary was as follows:
| “ |
To provide state assistance to cities and towns for the construction of new public schools and renovation of existing public schools.[3] |
” |
Full text
The full text of the bond proposal is available in Article 5 of House Bill 7200.
Readability score
- See also: Ballot measure readability scores, 2018
| Using the Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level (FKGL and Flesch Reading Ease (FRE) formulas, Ballotpedia scored the readability of the ballot title and summary for this measure. Readability scores are designed to indicate the reading difficulty of text. The Flesch-Kincaid formulas account for the number of words, syllables, and sentences in a text; they do not account for the difficulty of the ideas in the text. The state legislature wrote the ballot language for this measure.
In 2018, for the 167 statewide measures on the ballot, the average ballot title or question was written at a level appropriate for those with between 19 and 20 years of U.S. formal education (graduate school-level of education), according to the FKGL formula. Read Ballotpedia's entire 2018 ballot language readability report here. |
Campaign finance
| Total campaign contributions: | |
| Support: | $0.00 |
| Opposition: | $0.00 |
Zero ballot measure committees were registered to support or oppose Question 3.[4]
Background
Bond issues on the ballot in Rhode Island
Between 2008 and 2020, voters in Rhode Island had decided 22 bond measures, totaling $1,310,915,000 in principal value. Voters approved 100 percent of the bond measures, with support ranging from 55.23 percent (Question 2 of 2010) to 83.89 percent (Question 3 of 2016). As of 2021, voters had not rejected a bond measure since 2006, when 50.56 percent of electors rejected a $4.0 million bond for improvements in Fort Adams State Park.
The following table contains information on the 22 bond issues that appeared on the ballot in Rhode Island between 2008 and 2020:
| Year | Measure | Primary purpose | Amount | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | Question 1 | Transportation projects | $87,215,000 |
|
| 2008 | Question 2 | Environment and recreation | $2,500,000 |
|
| 2010 | Question 2 | Higher education | $78,000,000 |
|
| 2010 | Question 3 | Transportation projects | $84,700,000 |
|
| 2010 | Question 4 | Environment and recreation | $14,700,000 |
|
| 2012 | Question 3 | Higher education | $50,000,000 |
|
| 2012 | Question 4 | Housing | $94,000,000 |
|
| 2012 | Question 5 | Water infrastructure | $12,000,000 |
|
| 2012 | Question 6 | Environment and recreation | $20,000,000 |
|
| 2012 | Question 7 | Housing | $25,000,000 |
|
| 2014 | Question 4 | Higher education | $125,000,000 |
|
| 2014 | Question 5 | Museums | $35,000,000 |
|
| 2014 | Question 6 | Transportation projects | $35,000,000 |
|
| 2014 | Question 7 | Environment and recreation | $53,000,000 |
|
| 2016 | Question 3 | Housing | $27,000,000 |
|
| 2016 | Question 4 | Higher education | $45,500,000 |
|
| 2016 | Question 5 | Transportation projects | $70,000,000 |
|
| 2016 | Question 6 | Environment and recreation | $35,000,000 |
|
| 2016 | Question 7 | Environment and recreation | $50,000,000 |
|
| 2018 | Question 1 | School buildings | $250,000,000 |
|
| 2018 | Question 2 | Higher education facilities | $70,000,000 |
|
| 2018 | Question 3 | Environment and recreation | $47,300,000 |
|
GO bond debt in Rhode Island
As of the fiscal year 2019, the Rhode Island state debt from general obligation (GO) bonds was $1.22 billion, a $61.2 million increase from the prior fiscal year.[5]
Path to the ballot
To put a legislatively referred bond question before voters, a simple majority vote is required in both the Rhode Island State Senate and the Rhode Island House of Representatives. In Rhode Island, the state General Assembly must ask voters to issue general obligation bonds over $50,000, except in the case of war, insurrection, or invasion.
The bond measure was introduced into the Rhode Island General Assembly as a provision of Article V of House Bill 7200 (HB 7200) on January 18, 2018. HB 7200 included a total of three bond measures—the School Buildings Bond, the Higher Education Facilities Bond, and the Environment, Recreation, and Water Infrastructure Bond. The legislature voted on each article of HB 7200 separately.
On June 15, 2018, Article V of HB 7200 received unanimous approval, with two members not voting, in the state House. On June 20, 2018, the state Senate voted 34 to two, with one member not voting, to approve HB 7200. Governor Gina Raimondo (D) signed HB 7200 on June 22, 2018, certifying the three bond issues for the ballot.[1][6][7]
|
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
How to cast a vote
- See also: Voting in Rhode Island
Poll times
Polls in Rhode Island open at 7 a.m. Eastern Time except in New Shoreham, where they open at 9 a.m. All polls statewide close at 8 p.m. Eastern Time. An individual who is in line at the time polls close must be allowed to vote.[8]
Registration requirements
- Check your voter registration status here.
To register to vote in Rhode Island, an applicant must be a citizen of the United States, a resident of Rhode Island, and at least 16 years old. To voter, one must be at least 18 years old by Election Day.[9] Applicants can register online, by mailing in a voter registration form, or in person at the local board of canvassers or other state agencies such as the Department of Motor Vehicles, Department of Human Services, or the Department of Mental Health.[9]
Automatic registration
- See also: Automatic voter registration
Rhode Island enacted automatic voter registration in 2017.[10]
Online registration
- See also: Online voter registration
Rhode Island has implemented an online voter registration system. Residents can register to vote by visiting this website.
Same-day registration
- See also: Same-day voter registration
| “ | Rhode Island allows for same day voter registration for the Presidential Election only. If you miss the voter registration deadline, you can register to vote on Election Day, but you will only be able to vote for President and Vice President. You will not be able to vote in any state, local, or other federal races. You can only register and vote on Election Day at the location designated by your local board of canvassers.[9][3] | ” |
Residency requirements
To register to vote in Rhode Island, you must be a resident of the state.
Verification of citizenship
Rhode Island does not require proof of citizenship for voter registration. An individual applying to register to vote must attest that they are a U.S. citizen under penalty of perjury.
All 49 states with voter registration systems require applicants to declare that they are U.S. citizens in order to register to vote in state and federal elections, under penalty of perjury or other punishment.[11] Seven states — Alabama, Arizona, Georgia, Kansas, Louisiana, New Hampshire, and Wyoming — have laws requiring verification of citizenship at the time of voter registration, whether in effect or not. In three states — California, Maryland, and Vermont — at least one local jurisdiction allows noncitizens to vote in some local elections. Noncitizens registering to vote in those elections must complete a voter registration application provided by the local jurisdiction and are not eligible to register as state or federal voters.
Verifying your registration
The Rhode Island Department of State allows residents to check their voter registration status online by visiting this website.
Voter ID requirements
Rhode Island requires voters to present photo identification (ID) while voting. Accepted forms of ID include a Rhode Island driver's license, Rhode Island voter ID card, and U.S. passport. For a list of all accepted forms of ID, see below.
The following list of accepted ID was current as of April 2023. Click here for the Rhode Island Secretary of State page on accepted ID to ensure you have the most current information.
| “ |
|
” |
- *The Rhode Island Secretary of State's office is issuing free voter photo ID cards to individuals who do not possess any of the valid Photo IDs listed above. For additional information, visit Rhode Island's online Voter Information Center, call 401-222-2340, or email elections@sos.ri.gov.
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Rhode Island General Assembly, "House Bill 7200 - Status," accessed June 19, 2018
- ↑ Rhode Island General Assembly, "House Bill 7200," accessed June 19, 2018
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Rhode Island Campaign Finance Electronic Reporting & Tracking System, "Campaign Finance Reports (Public Access)," accessed July 20 20, 2018
- ↑ Rhode Island Controller, "Financial Reports," accessed December 23, 2020
- ↑ Rhode Island General Assembly, "Rhode Island State Senate Vote on June 20, 2018," accessed June 21, 2018
- ↑ Rhode Island General Assembly, "Rhode Island House of Representatives Vote on June 15, 2018," accessed June 19, 2018
- ↑ Rhode Island Department of State, "Election Day Voting Hours," accessed September 24, 2024
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 Rhode Island Department of State, "Register to Vote," accessed April 18, 2023
- ↑ Providence Journal, “Raimondo signs automatic voter registration bill into law,” August 1, 2017
- ↑ Under federal law, the national mail voter registration application (a version of which is in use in all states with voter registration systems) requires applicants to indicate that they are U.S. citizens in order to complete an application to vote in state or federal elections, but does not require voters to provide documentary proof of citizenship. According to the U.S. Department of Justice, the application "may require only the minimum amount of information necessary to prevent duplicate voter registrations and permit State officials both to determine the eligibility of the applicant to vote and to administer the voting process."
 |
State of Rhode Island Providence (capital) |
|---|---|
| Elections |
What's on my ballot? | Elections in 2025 | How to vote | How to run for office | Ballot measures |
| Government |
Who represents me? | U.S. President | U.S. Congress | Federal courts | State executives | State legislature | State and local courts | Counties | Cities | School districts | Public policy |
