Rhode Island – Manufacturing, Textiles, Jewelry

Constitutional framework

Roger Williams secured the first charter for Rhode Island in 1644, and John Clarke obtained the royal charter of 1663. The latter charter served as the frame of government until the Dorr Rebellion in 1842 (a crisis that occurred when advocates of expanded suffrage tried to overthrow the state government, resulting in the declaration of martial law) forced the writing of a constitution that year. That frequently amended document was finally replaced in 1986.

All of Rhode Island’s charters and constitutions have vested most of the governmental power in the legislature and have left the governor comparatively weak. The state legislature, the General Assembly, is bicameral; members of both houses are elected to two-year terms. The Senate has 38 members and the House of Representatives has 75 (reduced from 50 and 100, respectively, by a 1994 constitutional amendment; both houses are subject to further changes based on reapportionment after each national decennial census). The governor has a veto and the power to name department heads. Another amendment, in 1994, gave the governor the power to nominate justices of the courts (with the consent of the General Assembly); formerly, they had been selected by the legislature. This change was instituted after two consecutive chief justices of the state Supreme Court were accused of corruption and resigned under the threat of impeachment.

The governor’s position was strengthened by another amendment, adopted in 1992, that doubled term lengths for all the general officers—governor, lieutenant governor, secretary of state, general treasurer, and attorney general—to four years, although these officers may serve only two terms. In 2004 voters approved an amendment to require the separation of powers, which also ended the practice of allowing legislators to serve on executive-branch boards and commissions. Together with new, stricter campaign-contribution laws and ethics rules, the amendment enlarged the powers of the governor while reining in those of the General Assembly.

The state has a Supreme Court, which also can give advisory opinions if requested; superior courts; a district court system; and municipal and probate courts, the latter often identical with the town council in the smaller communities. There is also a family court, which handles both juvenile and domestic cases. Since the 1930s judges have had tenure.

Rhode Island has no government system at the county level, although five counties exist as geographic divisions. Instead, each of the state’s 39 municipalities has its own local government. Most cities in Rhode Island operate with a mayor-council form of government, but East Providence and Newport have city managers, with mayors chosen from among the councilmen to act as the ceremonial heads of the local government. Town councils govern most of the towns, but in some cases operations are conducted by a town manager.

Jails exist in cities and towns throughout the state, but most persons awaiting trial or sentenced to prison are sent to the state Adult Correctional Institutions (ACI) at Cranston. The ACI runs a work-release program and other services for the rehabilitation of prisoners. Rhode Island has a strong police force that operates throughout the state.

Education

A Board of Regents is responsible for all public education, from elementary schools through the state-operated colleges and the university. It is divided into the Board of Regents for Elementary and Secondary Education and the Board of Governors for Higher Education. A number of private preparatory schools, both sectarian and nonsectarian, send graduates to many of the major colleges and universities, especially in the East.

Rhode Island has a strong reputation in higher education. Brown University, founded in 1764 as the College of Rhode Island, is part of the Ivy League. It is noted for its library facilities, especially the John Carter Brown Library, an independent research facility of early Americana. The Rhode Island School of Design (founded 1877), in Providence, is widely known, primarily for its training in the visual and graphic arts. The University of Rhode Island, in Kingston, is a land-grant institution dating from 1888. Roman Catholic colleges include Providence College (1917) in Providence and Salve Regina University (1934) in Newport. Rhode Island College (1854) is a four-year public liberal arts college in Providence. Other institutions include Bryant University (Smithfield; 1863), Johnson and Wales University (Providence; 1914), the New England Institute of Technology (Warwick; 1940), Roger Williams University (Bristol; 1948), and the Community College of Rhode Island (1960), which has campuses throughout the state.