Bill Sponsors
Acosta, Mack, Vargas, Zurier, Quezada, Bell, Bissaillon, and Kallman
Committee
Senate Finance
Summary
Select
This legislation amends Rhode Island's state aid laws regarding payments in lieu of taxes (PILOT). Currently, the state reimburses municipalities for a portion of the property taxes lost due to certain tax-exempt properties, such as nonprofit hospitals and universities. This bill adds the Pokanoket Management Group, serving as trustee for the Pokanoket Tribe Land Trust, to the list of eligible tax-exempt entities. Consequently, the state will be required to pay the cities or towns where this trust holds property an amount equal to twenty-seven percent (27%) of the property taxes that would otherwise be collected.
Sponsor
Analysis
Pros for Progressives
- Supports indigenous sovereignty and land stewardship by financially facilitating the existence of the Pokanoket Tribe Land Trust without burdening the local community.
- Ensures that municipalities hosting tribal lands receive necessary funding to maintain public services like schools and infrastructure, preventing budget shortfalls.
- Promotes equity by treating this specific indigenous land trust similarly to large nonprofit universities and hospitals regarding state aid reimbursements.
Cons for Progressives
- The reimbursement rate is capped at 27%, meaning the municipality still loses out on the majority of potential tax revenue needed for social services.
- Allocates state funds to a specific private entity's land holdings rather than investing that money directly into statewide social safety net programs.
- Adopts a piecemeal approach to indigenous land rights rather than creating a comprehensive statewide policy for all tribal lands and land trusts.
Pros for Conservatives
- Protects the property rights of a private nonprofit corporation, allowing them to operate without the burden of full local property taxation.
- Assists municipalities in balancing their budgets without necessarily requiring them to raise property taxes on other local homeowners and businesses.
- Utilizes an existing statutory framework for reimbursement rather than creating a new, complex government agency or program.
Cons for Conservatives
- Increases state government spending and the burden on taxpayers to subsidize the land holdings of a specific private group.
- Creates a legislative "carve-out" for a specific entity, which may be viewed as the government picking winners and losers rather than applying laws equally.
- Expands the scope of the state's financial obligations and welfare to municipalities, reducing the pressure for local fiscal discipline.
Constitutional Concerns
None Likely
Impact Overview
Groups Affected
- Pokanoket Tribe Land Trust
- Municipalities
- State Taxpayers
- Pokanoket Management Group
- Local Property Owners
Towns Affected
All
Cost to Taxpayers
Amount unknown
Revenue Generated
None
BillBuddy Impact Ratings
Importance
Measures population affected and overall level of impact.
Freedom Impact
Level of individual freedom impacted by the bill.
Public Services
How much the bill is likely to impact one or more public services.
Regulatory
Estimated regulatory burden imposed on the subject(s) of the bill.
Clarity of Bill Language
How clear the language of the bill is. Higher ambiguity equals a lower score.
Enforcement Provisions
Measures enforcement provisions and penalties for non-compliance (if applicable).
Environmental Impact
Impact the bill will have on the environment, positive or negative.
Privacy Impact
Impact the bill is likely to have on the privacy of individuals.
Bill Status
Current Status
Held
Comm Passed
Floor Passed
Law
History
• 01/16/2026 Introduced, referred to Senate Finance
Bill Text
SECTION 1. Section 45-13-5.1 of the General Laws in Chapter 45-13 entitled "State Aid" is hereby amended to read as follows:
45-13-5.1. General assembly appropriations in lieu of property tax from certain exempt private and state properties.
(a) In lieu of the amount of local real property tax on real property owned by any private nonprofit institution of higher education, the Pokanoket Management Group, a Rhode Island nonprofit corporation, trustee of the Pokanoket Tribe Land Trust, or any nonprofit hospital facility, or any municipal detention facility corporation created pursuant to § 45-54-1, or any state owned and operated hospital, veterans’ residential facility, or correctional facility occupied by more than one hundred (100) residents which may have been or will be exempted from taxation by applicable state law, exclusive of any facility operated by the federal government, the state of Rhode Island, or any of its subdivisions, the general assembly shall annually appropriate for payment to the several cities and towns in which the property lies a sum equal to twenty-seven percent (27%) of all tax that would have been collected had the real property been taxable; provided, however, said percentage shall be subject to adjustment pursuant to subsection (e) of this section.
(b) In no event shall any city or town record in a fiscal year both: (1) Taxes and/or payments under a stabilization agreement with a for-profit hospital facility; and (2) Distributions of appropriations under this section attributable to the prior nonprofit status of said for-profit hospital facility.
(c) As used in this section, “private nonprofit institution of higher education” means any institution engaged primarily in education beyond the high school level, the property of which is exempt from property tax under any of the subdivisions, and “nonprofit hospital facility” means any nonprofit hospital licensed by the state and which is used for the purpose of general medical, surgical, or psychiatric care and treatment.
(d) The grant payable to any municipality under the provision of this section shall be equal to twenty-seven percent (27%) of the property taxes that, except for any exemption to any institution of higher education or general hospital facility, would have been paid with respect to that exempt real property on the assessment list in the municipality for the assessment date of December 31, 1986, and with respect to such exempt real property appearing on an assessment list in the municipality on succeeding assessment dates. Provided, however, that the grant paid for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2008, shall be based upon the assessment list in the municipality as of December 31, 2004.
(e) The state budget offices shall include the amount of the annual appropriation in the state budget for the fiscal year commencing July 1, 1988, and each fiscal year thereafter. The amount of the annual distribution of appropriation payable to each eligible municipality in any year in accordance with this section shall be reduced proportionately in the event that the total of the annual appropriation in the state budget is insufficient to pay the eligible municipalities the amounts otherwise payable to said communities pursuant to subsection (a) of this section.
(f) Distribution of appropriations shall be made by the state on or before July 31 of 1988 and each July 31 thereafter or following verified receipt of a municipality’s assessment data for the following fiscal year’s payment, whichever is later, and the payments may be counted as a receivable by any city or town for a fiscal year ending the preceding June 30.
(g) Any act or omission by the state with respect to this chapter shall in no way diminish the duty of any town or municipality to provide public safety or other ordinary services to the properties or facilities of the type listed in subsection (a).
(h) Provided, that payments authorized pursuant to this section shall be reduced pro rata, for that period of time that the municipality suspends or reduces essential services to eligible facilities. For the purposes of this section “essential services” include, but are not to be limited to, police, fire and rescue.
SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.
45-13-5.1. General assembly appropriations in lieu of property tax from certain exempt private and state properties.
(a) In lieu of the amount of local real property tax on real property owned by any private nonprofit institution of higher education, the Pokanoket Management Group, a Rhode Island nonprofit corporation, trustee of the Pokanoket Tribe Land Trust, or any nonprofit hospital facility, or any municipal detention facility corporation created pursuant to § 45-54-1, or any state owned and operated hospital, veterans’ residential facility, or correctional facility occupied by more than one hundred (100) residents which may have been or will be exempted from taxation by applicable state law, exclusive of any facility operated by the federal government, the state of Rhode Island, or any of its subdivisions, the general assembly shall annually appropriate for payment to the several cities and towns in which the property lies a sum equal to twenty-seven percent (27%) of all tax that would have been collected had the real property been taxable; provided, however, said percentage shall be subject to adjustment pursuant to subsection (e) of this section.
(b) In no event shall any city or town record in a fiscal year both: (1) Taxes and/or payments under a stabilization agreement with a for-profit hospital facility; and (2) Distributions of appropriations under this section attributable to the prior nonprofit status of said for-profit hospital facility.
(c) As used in this section, “private nonprofit institution of higher education” means any institution engaged primarily in education beyond the high school level, the property of which is exempt from property tax under any of the subdivisions, and “nonprofit hospital facility” means any nonprofit hospital licensed by the state and which is used for the purpose of general medical, surgical, or psychiatric care and treatment.
(d) The grant payable to any municipality under the provision of this section shall be equal to twenty-seven percent (27%) of the property taxes that, except for any exemption to any institution of higher education or general hospital facility, would have been paid with respect to that exempt real property on the assessment list in the municipality for the assessment date of December 31, 1986, and with respect to such exempt real property appearing on an assessment list in the municipality on succeeding assessment dates. Provided, however, that the grant paid for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2008, shall be based upon the assessment list in the municipality as of December 31, 2004.
(e) The state budget offices shall include the amount of the annual appropriation in the state budget for the fiscal year commencing July 1, 1988, and each fiscal year thereafter. The amount of the annual distribution of appropriation payable to each eligible municipality in any year in accordance with this section shall be reduced proportionately in the event that the total of the annual appropriation in the state budget is insufficient to pay the eligible municipalities the amounts otherwise payable to said communities pursuant to subsection (a) of this section.
(f) Distribution of appropriations shall be made by the state on or before July 31 of 1988 and each July 31 thereafter or following verified receipt of a municipality’s assessment data for the following fiscal year’s payment, whichever is later, and the payments may be counted as a receivable by any city or town for a fiscal year ending the preceding June 30.
(g) Any act or omission by the state with respect to this chapter shall in no way diminish the duty of any town or municipality to provide public safety or other ordinary services to the properties or facilities of the type listed in subsection (a).
(h) Provided, that payments authorized pursuant to this section shall be reduced pro rata, for that period of time that the municipality suspends or reduces essential services to eligible facilities. For the purposes of this section “essential services” include, but are not to be limited to, police, fire and rescue.
SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.