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« May 8, 2008 | Today | May 12, 2008 » May 9, 2008Update: R.I. budget gap, largest in decades, grows againPROVIDENCE -- Ten days after the General Assembly cut local community aid and some health-care benefits to balance this year's state budget, it has an even more ominous task: balancing a larger fiscal 2009 budget deficit that's grown by $50 million to $55 million, according to figures released today. The deficit for the year beginning July 1, which the governor previously put at $384 million, is projected to have grown, though it's not as simple as adding the projected growth to the previous figure, according to officials at a revenue-estimating conference at the State House today. The primary cause was said to be lagging income and sales tax collection because of the weakened state economy. The increase is not surprising given that The Journal reported Tuesday those revenue sources --the state's largest -- are down sharply through the first 10 months of the fiscal year, as lawmakers grapple with closing the largest deficit in nearly two decades. “I was pleased when the General Assembly largely accepted my spending reduction proposals for the current fiscal year,” Governor Carcieri said in a statement late today. “Unfortunately, these new projections leave us with much more work to do. In the coming weeks, I will be meeting with the legislative leadership to jointly develop plans that will resolve the expanded deficit.” Carcieri said that "whatever course we take, we must avoid raising taxes to solve this problem. Rhode Islanders already bear one of the highest total tax burdens of any state in the nation." -- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney, with reports from Steve Peoples of the Journal State House Bureau Economists reported last week that the state is one of nine around the country and the only in New England going through an economic recession. The state's tax administrator said earlier this week that sales tax collections were down $23 million, or 3.1 percent, compared with the same period last year, while income tax revenue is down $9 million, or 1 percent. Should the trend continue through the end of the fiscal year in June, as expected, it would be the first time that the state’s largest two revenue sources collectively fell since the early 1990s. Today's conference included the governor's budget officer and the fiscal advisers for the House and Senate. To close a mere $168 million deficit in this year's budget, lawmakers made cuts to aid to cities and towns, reduced health-care benefits for retired state workers and eliminated subsidized health care for more than 2,800 immigrant children. The plan doesn’t increase any state taxes, but the cuts drew rancorous debate as lawmakers finallly approved the plan. Another debate awaits them. Posted by Mike McKinney at 6:00 PM | Comment Derderians to be questioned in federal civil casesPROVIDENCE -- U.S. Magistrate Judge David L. Martin today entered an order which clears the way for Jeffrey and Michael Derderian to be questioned under oath by lawyers representing the victims of The Station nightclub fire in the civil cases currently pending in federal court here. Martin noted in his order that the Derderian brothers, who owned The Station the night of the deadly fire there on Feb. 20, 2003, have said in court filings that they “look forward to appearing for their depositions” and that he assumes they will not invoke their right to refuse to answer all questions posed to them based on self-incrimination grounds. However, he also pointed out that there might be a “conceivable question” that they might refuse to answer based on their 5th Amendment privilege. Jeffrey and Michael Derderian both pleaded no-contest to 100 counts of involuntary manslaughter -- one for each person who died as a result of the fire at their nightclub. Jeffrey was spared a prison sentence. Michael Derderian was sentenced to a four-year term at the Adult Correctional Institutions in Cranston, but the Parole Board decided to shave a year off of that term and he is scheduled to be released in October 2009. Because of the state criminal charges that were lodged against the Derderians, the federal court had entered a stay barring the victims’ lawyers from trying to question them. The victims’ lawyers moved to lift the stay late last month and Martin did so today. Read the Journal's full coverage of the Station fire and its aftermath. Posted by Mike McKinney at 5:30 PM | Comment Schoolmates play for Scrabble glory in Providence
She furiously figured out word combos with fellow Park View Elementary School teammate Rebecca Rose. She sat at table 20 at the Rhode Island Convention Center where 200 fifth through eighth graders from 23 states began the two-day National School Scrabble Championship. The competition over the popular crossword board game -- now sold by Pawtucket-based Hasbro -- will crown a winning team tomorrow. Darcy and Rebecca spoke Scrabblese -- whispers, nods and head shakes -- as they squared off against two Trinity Bend Christian School boys. Words such as C-R-E-A-T-I-N-G and S-I-E-G-E suddenly multiplied on the Scrabble board. In the end, this round went to the Texas team, which posted what a Park View coach said was a high score. Yes, they said they still play on a board, even when Scrabble or similar/knock-off games are on Facebook.com and other Internet locales. Other competitors said Internet versions only supplement the board game because competing means two players working together shoulder to shoulder. And the competition has gone high tech in one vital area. When a team challenges another's reputed word, the ruling no longer falls to a lady with granny glasses who flips open a dusty dictionary. Each team walked up to a laptop computer, one of several stationed around the convention center ball room, typed in the disputed word, and braced for the news. A message in green letters appeared on screen when a word was OK. A message in red meant the word was bogus. While the event is closed to the public, you can, too, can see the play, round by round, and move by move. Click here for the entry page to the rounds, then continuing clicking to see each team's move -- displayed on an online version of a Scrabble board. You can also take a look at who the teams are, and connect to their standings. -- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney Posted by Mike McKinney at 4:39 PM | Comment Alert: R.I.'s 2009 deficit now pegged at $430M-plusPROVIDENCE -- The state's fiscal 2009 budget deficit has grown to more than $430 million, based on information released today. The deficit for the year beginning July 1, previously put at $384 million, is estimated to have grown by between $50 million and $55 million. Officials, at a revenue-estimating conference at the State House today, said the primary cause was lagging income and sales tax collection because of the weakened state economy. The conference included the governor's budget officer and the fiscal advisers for the House and Senate. -- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney, with reports from Steve Peoples of the Journal State House Bureau Posted by Mike McKinney at 4:37 PM | Comment Photos: Chicks banding together
Zybrowski said last month: "They’re like babies," he said. "They eat, and they poop and they grow. "And they become aware of their environment. They become attuned to the voice of the parents. Then they’ll begin to visually look for the parents to bring food. Then they’ll start to notice each other and things in and around the nest box. They’ll start looking at insects in the box, and then they’ll start looking out of the box, taking in their environment. "Eventually, they get closer and closer to the edge of the nest box. Then they’ll perch on the edge of the box. It’s situated so they can go out to a platform or a ledge where they’ll exercise: It’s jump and flap the wings, jump and flap the wings." Read more of Journal staff writer Tom Meade's earlier report on the falcons, and come back to projo.com for his story of today's banding and more photos. Posted by Andrea Panciera at 3:50 PM | Comment Twin River sets stage for 24-hour weekend gamingEnergy drinks, coffee, Bloody Marys, breakfast … it's the perfect recipe for an all-nighter. But these goodies, and more, aren’t being offered to late-night study groups. Instead, they're among the offerings from Twin River to gamblers to help usher in the era of 24-hour gaming. Representatives of the second gaming facility affected by the change, Newport Grand, said that its only plan was to “meet with the city” to determine what to do next. Twin River will offer free food and drink samples, valet parking and, more to the point, all areas of gaming –– including video lottery terminals and virtual black jack tables –– will be open through the weekend. According to a statement from the facility, overnight security will be provided by its own security team, as well as the Lincoln police and fire departments. Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 2:47 PM | Comment Photo: The governor stumps for physical fitness
Posted by Jack Perry at 2:35 PM | Comment MLK Day of Service for Providence students tomorrowTomorrow could be just another Saturday, but for dozens of students at a Providence school, it will be a day of cleaning, learning and service to the community. Saturday marks the first Martin Luther King Day of Service, organized by Mayor David Cicilline and MLK Hall of Fame committee Lisa Niebels. Students from the MET School will clean up along Broad Street, and there will be a screening of The Children’s March, a documentary about youths who were arrested and sent to jail in Birmingham, Ala., in the 1960s. “This is about helping our children understand the power they have to change the world,” Cicilline said in a statement. “It’s my hope that the annual MLK Day of Service will help inspire our youth to become catalysts for social change in our community.” The group will meet tomorrow at 10:15 a.m. near the United Methodist Church on Broad Street. Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 2:12 PM | Comment Traffic Alert: 7-car accident on Route 95 downtownA seven-car accident has the highway partially closed downtown this afternoon. The Transportation Management Center is reporting the left and right center lanes are blocked on Route 95 northbound at Exit22A/Downtown. Traffic is backed up north of Kinsley Avenue. The Center's Web cameras are intermittent, but you can still get an idea of the traffic situation. Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 1:46 PM | Comment URI East Farm fest aims to get you gardeningPick a plant. Get gardening. The East Farm Spring Festival offers the opportunity. Tomorrow, rain or shine, the University of Rhode Island’s College of Environment and Life Sciences and its Master Gardeners program present horticultural activities and exhibits, and an array of plants for sale at URI's East Farm. The event runs from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Strolling musicians and a tent for children's activities are among the offerings, as well as the following workshops: 10:45 a.m.—“Composting in Your Gardening Life” by Nan Quinlan, Master Gardener and Master Composter/Recycler URI East Farm is on Route 108 in Kingston. For more information, call (401) 874-2900 or see the press release from URI. Posted by Andrea Panciera at 1:11 PM | Comment Not quite as bad as gas, but stamp price going up, tooThere are two reasons to mail your Mothers’ Day card on time: 1) It will make you look good 2) If you wait until Monday, you’ll have to pay more. 
The "Forever" stamp
That’s because come May 12, the price of first-class mail stamps is going up –– again –– to 42 cents. It was just a year ago that prices skipped from 39 cents to their present-day 41-cent price. The “Forever” stamps, introduced last year for 41 cents, will still work for first-class mail. And the U.S. States Post Office says it has 5 billion of them in stock, available for 41 cents until Sunday, which will be good beyond the rate change. There are rate changes across the board; to see them all, visit the USPS Web site. Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 12:05 PM | Comment Bunnell trial: Child had bruises, slap marks, broken bonePROVIDENCE -- Thomas "T.J." Wright had bruises all over his body, slap marks on his face, large pockets of blood in his skull, and a broken bone in his upper left thigh when a medical examiner did an autopsy on the 3-year-old victim two days after the beating that left him dead. The autopsy results, illustrated with gruesome photographs, were laid out in testimony this morning by assistant medical examiner Peter A. Gillespie today in the trial of Katherine Bunnell, 24, who is charged with murder and conspiracy to commit murder. Bunnell, who is accused with her then-boyfriend Gilbert Delestre, 27, of inflicting the injuries, kept her face down and her head on her arms throughout the testimony in Providence County Superior Court. Two jurors broke into tears and T.J.'s mother, Karen Wright, and his grandmother, Mary Bunnell, burst into tears and left the courtroom. Bunnell and her boyfriend, who are being tried separately on the same charges, had custody of T.J. and his two brothers because Wright was in prison for a marijuana charge. A witness at Bunnell's murder trial -- the babysitter she and Delestre hired to watch their two daughers, T.J. and his brothers -- said T.J. was beaten by the couple when they returned to their Woonsocket apartment about 2:30 a.m. from a night out on Oct, 30, 2004, to find a mess on the living room floor. Read Journal coverage of yesterday's testimony, during which Bunnell broke down in court. -- With reports from Journal staff writer John Castellucci Posted by Mike McKinney at 12:00 PM | Comment Compromise bill sets guidelines for offshore wind farmsBOSTON — A compromise bill on Beacon Hill would allow offshore wind farms in ocean sanctuaries, but only if they are “appropriately scaled” and subject to a strict ocean management plan. A legislative conference committee agreed this week on the bill, which could go before the full House and Senate next week. Environmentalists and other critics of an earlier House version of the bill said it would have allowed for unlimited renewable energy development in ocean sanctuaries. State Sen. Robert O’Leary, of Barnstable, said the compromise bill recognizes the need to develop renewable energy, but puts the public interest ahead of the private interest. The measure could allow for development of a proposed wind farm in Buzzards Bay, which is one of five protected ocean sanctuaries off Massachusetts. -- The Associated Press Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 11:50 AM | Comment Senior sports competition coming to Rhode IslandThousands of athletes are coming to Rhode Island this summer to walk, run, swim –– even bowl –– in a sporting championship event that shows that youth is not a prerequisite for strength and endurance. The National Senior Games Festival and Hockey Championship includes 16 events for athletes 50 and older. Rhode Island competed against several cities, including Detroit and Ft. Lauderdale, to host the event, which is expected to bring more than 3,000 athletes to the state. "Proving that 60 really is the new 40," Mayor David Cicilline said in a statement, "the National Senior Games will bring thousands of senior athletes to the great City of Providence for exciting competition. The Games will be a great spectacle, great for the Providence economy and a great inspiration for all of us who want to stay healthy and active throughout our lives." Events, hosted by the National Senior Games Association, are scheduled for Sept. 4-7 in Providence, Warwick and East Providence. The Rhode Island Sports Councilheld a press conference today to announce the event, which the council hailed in a press release as an economic and tourism victory for the state. In addition to the hockey championship, games include billiards, ice hockey, pickleball, team bowling and weightlifting. Competitions will be at the Rhode Island Convention Center and Brown University’s Meehan Auditorium in Providence, East Providence Lanes in East Providence, and Thayer/Warburton Ice Arenas and Boston Billiards Club in Warwick. If you were 50 years old or older by Jan. 1, and want to take part, contact Ray Hoyt or Bethany Krogman at the National Senior Games Association, or Kerry Emmons at the RI Sports Council. Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 11:06 AM | Comment Former Brown grad, Watson fellow dies in AfghanistanA Brown University graduate and former visiting fellow at Brown University's Watson Institute for International Studies has died while working in Afghanistan, according to a spokeswoman at the Watson Institute. Michael Vinay Bhatia, who graduated in 1999, was working as a social scientist in Afghanistan in consultation with the U.S. Defense Department, according to the institute's Web site. The Web site didn't have any details on the cause of his death. Bhatia, of Medway, Mass., was a doctoral candidate at Oxford University, according to his biography on that school’s Web site. A magna cum laude graduate of Brown in international relations, he was a fellow at the Watson Institute from July 2006 to June 2007. Bhatia had done humanitarian work in areas of conflict across the world, including in East Timor, Kosovo, and Afghanistan, where he interviewed hundreds of combatants for his dissertation: “The Mujahideen: A study of Combatant Motives in Afghanistan, 1978 to 2005.” The author of several books, Bhatia was also a photographer and has published photos from his essay "Shooting Afghanistan -- Beyond the Conflict" on the Globalist Web site. Frederick Melo, a fellow Brown University alumnus and Bhatia’s former roommate, called Bhatia brilliant, but without the sharp edges. “He had heart. He was rarely not smiling, not laughing, not recognizing the beauty in people and in the world,” Melo said in an e-mail. “I love him and I miss him and I can’t stop crying. The world is such a colder place without him.”
Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 10:43 AM | Comment Update: Under a spell: Scrabblers battle here todayPROVIDENCE -- They're playing Round One of the National School Scrabble Championship , held today at the Rhode Island Convention Center. Students from around the country, including Rhode Island, are competing in the board game version of crosswords, trademarked in 1948 and now owned by Pawtucket-based Hasbro. How it works, according to the school Scrabble Web site: Students play in teams of two. Each team plays six games. The games are timed with digital clocks, which will be provided, and each team has a total of 22 minutes per game in which to make all of their plays before incurring an overtime penalty. While the event is closed to the public, you can watch the play online, move by move. Click here for the entry page to the rounds, then continuing clicking to see each team's move -- displayed on an online version of a Scrabble board. You can also take a look at who the teams are, and connect to their standings. The tournament hours are from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. today and tomorrow from 8:45 a.m. to 2:45 p.m. Posted by Mike McKinney at 8:38 AM | Comment N.E. grid operator lifts power watchBOSTON -- The operator of New England's power grid has lifted a power watch for Boston and northeastern Massachusetts. ISO-New England issued the advisory yesterday after unexpected outages to a transmission line and a power plant. A spokeswoman for the Holyoke-based company said the outages, combined with scheduled plant shutdowns for spring maintenance, left the grid with a tight electricity supply in the Boston area and the state's northeastern corner. The watch was lifted at 2:30 a.m. today, according to a notice posted on ISO's Web site. The power watch was a notch below a more urgent power warning and did not apply to other areas of New England. No customer outages were reported. -- The Associated Press Posted by Jack Perry at 7:02 AM | Comment Rain today and tomorrow, but Mother's Day looks betterDon't let the mild morning fool you -- it's about 50 degrees at 6:30 a.m., but the National Weather Service is forecasting a high of just 55. Depending where in the state you are, it may be raining already. We're in for nearly an inch today with winds from the northeast gusting up to 23 mph. The rain should continue into tonight, when the temperature drops about 10 degrees to 45 and winds from the north gust as high as 33 mph. We may get another full inch of rain overnight. But it doesn't stop there. More rain tomorrow morning, with clouds and breezy north winds gusting up to 33 mph. Saturday may clear up, with low temperatures near 45 degrees and mild north winds. Then -- maybe -- some relief Sunday, with sunny skies and a high temperature approaching 70 degrees. Back to iffy weather on Sunday night, with cloudy skies, rain possible and low temperatures in the low 40s. And we'll start the week the way we ended it: clouds, rain and a high temperature not even reaching 50. To keep tabs on weather through the weekend, visit projo.com's weather page. Posted by Brandie Jefferson at 7:01 AM | Comment Today's front pageToday's front page features a story about a Newport woman accused of bilking investors out of $7.3 million. There's also a story about which candidate Rhode Island's superdelegates back in the Democrat primary. |
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ProJo 9 to 5 News Blog
Oct 2005 - March 2006