H 8279Cities & Towns

Towns and Cities - Low and Moderate Income Housing

This bill lets Smithfield pause new affordable housing projects if there are already 250 or more units proposed.

Held for study

Population
Affected

Introduced Mar 11, 2026Committee House Municipal Government & Housing

Plain-English Summary

This legislation allows the town of Smithfield to place a temporary hold (moratorium) on accepting or processing new applications for low and moderate-income housing developments. This moratorium can be enacted if there are already proposals for 250 or more units pending in the town. Any applications submitted during this pause will not be considered or given legal status. The town may keep this hold in place until specific state laws regarding low and moderate-income housing are amended.

For younger readers

This bill makes a special rule for the town of Smithfield. If builders are already planning to build 250 or more homes for people who don't have a lot of money, the town can stop accepting any new plans. It is like a "time out" for new construction. The town can keep refusing to look at new building plans until the state changes the rules about how these types of homes are built. This means no new applications for these specific types of neighborhoods can be started during the time out.

Who & Where It Applies

Impacted groups

Real estate developersLow-income rentersSmithfield residentsSmithfield town officialsConstruction companies

Impacted communities

Smithfield

Constitutional & Fiscal Check

There is a potential risk regarding Due Process and Vested Rights. By explicitly stating that applications submitted during the moratorium have no "grandfathered status," the bill may infringe upon property rights if a developer has already made substantial expenditures in reliance on existing laws. Additionally, carving out a specific exemption for one town regarding a statewide housing mandate could face challenges related to Equal Protection or prohibitions against special legislation.

Estimated cost

None

Estimated revenue

None

Bill Analysis

Both viewpoints

For Progressives

Allows the local community to pause rapid development to ensure that essential public infrastructure, such as schools and water systems, is not overwhelmed by sudden population growth.
Provides a mechanism to prevent potential overcrowding, ensuring that current residents maintain their quality of life while the state reviews housing statutes.
Puts pressure on the state legislature to review and potentially improve the comprehensive permit laws (Section 45-53-4), which could lead to more thoughtful and sustainable housing policies in the long run.
Directly obstructs the creation of low and moderate-income housing, exacerbating the housing crisis and limiting options for working-class families who desperately need affordable homes.
Sets a negative precedent that allows individual towns to opt out of their fair share of housing responsibilities, potentially encouraging other municipalities to block affordable development.
Denies "grandfathered" status to applications, which unfairly penalizes non-profit developers and housing advocates who may be in the middle of preparing proposals to help the disadvantaged.

For Conservatives

Restores local control to Smithfield, allowing the town government to manage its own growth and zoning without being overridden by state-level mandates.
Protects the character of the community and the value of existing properties by preventing excessive high-density development that the town may not want.
Stops developers from using state loopholes to force large-scale projects into the town against the will of the local taxpayers and elected officials.
Interferes with the free market by placing an artificial government cap on development, preventing private landowners from utilizing their property as they see fit.
Creates regulatory uncertainty and business risk by removing vested rights (grandfathering) for projects, which discourages investment and economic activity in the region.
Empowers the government to arbitrarily halt legal business transactions and construction projects, violating the principles of limited government interference in commerce.

Votes

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Full Bill Text

Changes to existing Rhode Island law · 9 additions

SECTION 1. Chapter 45-53 of the General Laws entitled "Low and Moderate Income Housing" is hereby amended by adding thereto the following section: 45-53-17. Smithfield emergency moratorium.

(a) If the town of Smithfield, shall at any time have an aggregate of two hundred fifty (250) or more units proposed in a comprehensive permit project or projects, the town of Smithfield may enact an emergency moratorium and not accept or process further applications. No application proposed, offered, submitted or tendered during any moratorium imposed pursuant to the provisions of this section shall have any grandfathered status.

(b) The town of Smithfield, upon adoption of any moratorium in accordance with the provisions of subsection (a) of this section, may continue to impose the moratorium until such time as comprehensive permit requirements in § 45-53-4 are amended.

SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.