The Catholic Diocese of Providence has paid out more than $21-million dollars in legal settlements and resolved more than 130 claims of sexual abuse by clergy. The disclosure was part of testimony the Diocese provided to lawmakers, as they seek to extend the statute of limitations for bringing civil suits against people for sexual abuse […]
John Bender
Reporter
John Bender was the general assignment reporter for The Public's Radio for several years. He is now a fill-in host when our regular hosts are out.
Posted inArticle
Committee Begins Work To Ensure Accurate 2020 Census Count
State leaders are worried Rhode Island will be undercounted in the 2020 Census. A group of volunteers, including elected officials, policy makers, activists, and members of the private sector are trying to change that. Nearly a quarter of the state’s residents are considered so-called ‘hard to count’ populations. Finding those people and getting them to […]
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RI Lawmakers Looking To Investigate State Energy Grid
Rhode Island lawmakers want to study and evaluate the state’s natural gas and energy infrastructure in the wake of last month’s gas shut off. The state’s energy grid is a vast network of pipelines and transmission stations owned and operated by a variety of private companies, and regulated by both state and federal agencies. The […]
Posted inArticle, Environment
NOAA Announces Large Cut To Atlantic Herring Fishery Quota
Lobster prices could go up in the coming months. Federal regulators have greatly reduced 2019 catch limits for lobster bait: Atlantic herring. Last year, herring fishermen across the region could catch more than 110 million pounds of fish. But they’re restricted to about 33 million pounds for the rest of this year. That’s a 70 percent reduction. […]
Posted inArticle, Business
300 Apply, So Far, For Unemployment After Newport Gas Shut Off
Bartenders and other restaurant employees in Rhode Island’s biggest tourist city were forced to apply for unemployment during last month’s gas shut-off. Some 300 people who work in Newport applied for emergency unemployment, as a direct result of the nearly week-long gas shut off. Hundreds of businesses were forced to close for the week, including […]
Posted inArticle, Health
Medical Marijuana To Stem Opioid Addiction, Subject Of Hearing
The Rhode Island Department of Health is considering adding opioid dependency to the list of qualifying conditions for medical marijuana. The DOH held the first and only public hearing on the controversial matter Wednesday. At issue is whether medical marijuana should be an option for people hoping to get off opioids, or avoid prescription usage. […]
Posted inArticle, Politics
The State Of The Union, On The Corner Of Mineral Spring And Smithfield Ave
President Donald Trump delivers his second State of Union address Tuesday from Washington D.C. The speech comes on the heels of a record-breaking government shutdown, a divided Congress, the emerging challenges of 2020.
Posted inArticle, Environment
National Grid Installs Back-Up Resources On Aquidneck Island
As temperatures plunge, National Grid has brought in back-up, to avoid another heat outage on Aquidneck Island. The utility has installed a portable liquefied gas station in Portsmouth. As of Thursday morning, when temperatures sank to single digits, the company had not needed to use it. According National Grid, the portable system is a precaution, […]
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New England Set To Get Hit With Brief, Intense Cold Snap
The cold front storming through the Midwest is projected to hit New England in time for Wednesday’s evening commute. After a stretch of moderately cold weather, temperatures are set to plummet into the single digits for the next two days, with wind chills sinking below zero. The National Weather Service has issued a wind chill […]
Posted inArticle, Business
RI Sports Betting Pulls In $1.03M In First Six Weeks
The first revenue numbers for legal sports betting in Rhode Island are just over a million dollars in the first six weeks. The state will get fifty-one percent of that, after operating expenses. Revenue estimates predicted the state making nearly 12 million dollars by this summer, so that’s a little low, if you’re looking at […]