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S 2044Water Resources

Waters and Navigation - Water Resources Management

This bill redirects 20% of rental fees collected by the Water Resources Board from Coventry Pines Golf Club to the town of Coventry and its fire district.

Held for study
Population
Affected
15
Email Legislator
Introduced Jan 9, 2026Committee Senate Housing & Municipal Government

Plain-English Summary

This bill changes how rental fees collected by the Rhode Island Water Resources Board are distributed. Specifically, it concerns fees collected from the Coventry Pines Golf Club or through agreements with the town of Coventry. Instead of the Water Resources Board keeping all the revenue, this legislation mandates that 20% of these fees be redirected. Of that portion, half (10% of the total) will be paid to the town of Coventry, and the other half (10% of the total) will be paid to the Central Coventry Fire District.

For younger readers

This law changes where some money goes in the town of Coventry. Right now, a state group called the Water Resources Board collects rent money from a local golf course called Coventry Pines. Before, they kept all the money. Now, this new law says they have to share. For every ten dollars they collect, they must give one dollar to the town of Coventry and one dollar to the local fire department. This helps the town and the firefighters get a little extra money to do their jobs.

Who & Where It Applies

Impacted groups
Town of CoventryCentral Coventry Fire DistrictWater Resources BoardCoventry Pines Golf ClubCoventry Taxpayers
Impacted communities
Coventry

Constitutional & Fiscal Check

None Likely

Estimated cost
None
Estimated revenue
None

Bill Analysis

Both viewpoints
For Progressives
  • Directs financial resources to the Central Coventry Fire District, supporting essential public safety services and first responders.
  • Provides additional revenue to the town of Coventry, which can be used to improve local infrastructure and social services for residents.
  • Ensures that revenue generated from local land use is reinvested directly into the community to offset local impacts.
  • Reduces the budget of the Water Resources Board, potentially limiting the state's ability to manage and protect vital water resources and the environment.
  • Prioritizes local municipal funding over statewide environmental conservation efforts by diverting agency revenue.
  • May set a precedent for stripping funding from state regulatory agencies to plug gaps in local municipal budgets.
For Conservatives
  • Supports the Central Coventry Fire District, upholding the traditional value of prioritizing police, fire, and emergency services.
  • Promotes local control by ensuring that revenue generated within a municipality stays there rather than being absorbed by a centralized state bureaucracy.
  • Reduces the financial holdings of an unelected state regulatory board, returning funds to local taxpayers' direct representatives.
  • Merely shuffles money between different government entities rather than reducing the overall size or cost of government.
  • Implicitly accepts and perpetuates government ownership of non-essential commercial assets (a golf course) instead of advocating for privatization.
  • Creates a rigid statutory mandate for revenue distribution that limits fiscal flexibility and complicates the state budget process.

Votes

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Full Bill Text

Changes to existing Rhode Island law · 6 additions

SECTION 1. Chapter 46-15 of the General Laws entitled "Water Resources Management" is hereby amended by adding thereto the following section: 46-15-25. Rental fees. Twenty percent (20%) of all rental fees collected by the water resources board pursuant to a lease agreement with the Coventry Pines Golf Club or a memorandum of understanding with the town of Coventry, shall be remitted as follows:

(1) Ten percent (10%) to the town of Coventry; and

(2) Ten percent (10%) to the Central Coventry Fire District.

SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.