S2124
State Affairs and Government -- Rhode Island Department of Transportation Efficiency and Performance Audit Act
This legislation mandates an independent efficiency audit of the Department of Transportation to benchmark its performance against similar states.
Introduced
01/16/2026
Transportation: Roads & Highways
Bill Sponsors
Zurier, McKenney, Gu, Acosta, Bissaillon, Lauria, DiMario, Kallman, Vargas, and Quezada
Committee
Senate Housing & Municipal Government
Summary
Select
This bill requires the Rhode Island Department of Administration (DOA) to hire an independent expert to conduct a detailed efficiency and performance audit of the Department of Transportation (RIDOT). The audit will evaluate RIDOT’s project management, financial handling, maintenance operations, and workforce structure. It mandates comparing RIDOT's performance against 5 to 10 similar states using specific metrics like cost per lane-mile, bridge conditions, and safety outcomes. The final report must be submitted to the Governor and state legislature and posted publicly online by January 1, 2027.
Sponsor
Analysis
Pros for Progressives
- Increases transparency and accountability within a major state agency, ensuring that tax dollars are being used effectively to serve the public interest rather than being lost to inefficiency.
- Scrutinizes the ratio of in-house staff to outside consultants, potentially identifying an over-reliance on privatization and supporting the strengthening of the public sector workforce.
- Focuses on safety outcomes and infrastructure quality metrics, which are essential for protecting the well-being of the community and ensuring safe travel for all residents.
Cons for Progressives
- Allocates public funds to pay for private external auditors rather than investing those resources directly into infrastructure repairs or social services.
- The focus on "efficiency" and benchmarking against other states could be utilized to justify austerity measures, budget cuts, or the reduction of public services in the future.
- Lacks specific mandates to evaluate environmental justice impacts or how transportation decisions affect marginalized communities, focusing primarily on financial and operational data.
Pros for Conservatives
- Promotes fiscal responsibility by rigorously investigating the Department of Transportation's spending to identify waste, financial mismanagement, and cost overruns.
- Implements performance benchmarking against other states to expose bureaucratic inefficiencies and encourage a more competitive, results-oriented approach to government.
- Increases oversight of government contracts and consultant utilization, ensuring that taxpayers are not being overcharged by vendors or funding unnecessary administrative overhead.
Cons for Conservatives
- Expands the size of government by mandating another expensive administrative study and bureaucratic process instead of taking immediate action to cut costs.
- Relies on one government agency (DOA) to oversee another (RIDOT), which may result in a lack of genuine independence and fail to hold entrenched bureaucrats truly accountable.
- Delays potential reforms until the audit is completed in 2027, allowing current inefficiencies and poor performance to continue unchecked for several more years.
Constitutional Concerns
None Likely
Impact Overview
Groups Affected
- Rhode Island Department of Transportation (RIDOT)
- Department of Administration (DOA)
- State Contractors and Consultants
- Taxpayers
- Commuters and Drivers
Towns Affected
All
Cost to Taxpayers
Amount unknown
Revenue Generated
None
BillBuddy Impact Ratings
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Freedom Impact
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Public Services
How much the bill is likely to impact one or more public services.
Regulatory
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Clarity of Bill Language
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Enforcement Provisions
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Environmental Impact
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Privacy Impact
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Bill Status
Current Status
Held
Comm Passed
Floor Passed
Law
History
• 01/16/2026 Introduced, referred to Senate Housing and Municipal Government
Bill Text
SECTION 1. Title 42 of the General Laws entitled "STATE AFFAIRS AND GOVERNMENT" is hereby amended by adding thereto the following chapter: CHAPTER 13.2 RHODE ISLAND DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION EFFICIENCY AND PERFORMANCE AUDIT ACT
42-13.2-1. Definitions.
As used in this chapter:
(1) “Department” means the Rhode Island department of transportation.
(2) “DOA” means the Rhode Island department of administration.
(3) “Audit” means an independent efficiency and performance audit conducted in accordance with this chapter.
(4) “Peer state” means a state transportation agency selected for benchmarking based on geography, climate, system size, and procurement framework.
(5) “Responsible charge” means the full-time employee of the department to be in responsible charge of the project pursuant to the provisions of 23 C.F.R §635.105.
42-13.2-2. Requirement to commission efficiency and performance audit.
(a) The DOA shall commission an independent efficiency and performance audit of the department.
(b) The audit shall be performed by an entity with demonstrated expertise in transportation systems, infrastructure finance, and public-sector performance benchmarking.
(c) The audit shall be completed and delivered to the governor and the general assembly on or before January 1, 2027.
42-13.2-3. Scope of audit.
(a) The audit shall include, but not be limited to, the following areas:
(1) Project delivery efficiency, including schedule adherence, cost escalation trends, change orders, procurement cycle time, and delivery outcomes;
(2) Asset management, including pavement, bridges, culverts, intelligent transportation systems assets, backlog replacement needs, and lifecycle cost analysis;
(3) Workforce and organizational structure, including ratio of in-house staff to consultants, vacancy rates, engineering capacity, and impacts on project delivery and oversight;
(4) Maintenance efficiency, including cost per lane-mile, snow and ice operations productivity, maintenance productivity, and equipment utilization;
(5) Financial management, including forecasting accuracy, cash-flow controls, use and tracking of federal funds, and alignment with the state transportation improvement program (STIP) and transportation improvement program (TIP); and
(6) Governance and oversight, including internal controls, performance reporting, transparency practices, and compliance with responsible charge requirements.
(b) The audit pursuant to this section shall be separate and independent of any audit conducted by the auditor general pursuant to chapter 13 of title 22 (“auditor general”).
42-13.2-4. Peer state benchmarking.
(a) The audit shall identify not fewer than five (5), nor more than ten (10) peer states matched on geography, climate, system size, and procurement rules to evaluate and compare against the department’s performance.
(b) The audit shall benchmark the department’s performance using comparable metrics including, but not limited to, the following:
(1) Cost metrics;
(i) Cost per lane-mile (maintenance and capital separately);
(ii) Bridge cost per square foot (new construction and rehabilitation);
(iii) Administrative overhead ratio;
(iv) Consultant utilization rate; and
(v) Percentage of projects with cost overruns exceeding ten percent (10%).
(2) Performance metrics: LC003682 - Page 2 of 5
(i) Pavement condition metrics, including international roughness index or pavement condition rating;
(ii) Bridge condition metrics, including percentage structurally deficient or in poor condition;
(iii) Project delivery cycle time for design, procurement, and construction;
(iv) Snow and ice response metrics, including materials used per lane-mile and response times; and
(v) Safety outcomes, including fatalities per vehicle mile traveled.
42-13.2-5. Procurement and contracting practices.
The audit conducted pursuant to § 42-13.2-2 shall evaluate procurement and contracting practices including, but not limited to:
(1) Consultant procurement processes, including qualifications-based selection and cost negotiation;
(2) Oversight of consultant hours and costs;
(3) Compliance with federal responsible charge requirements;
(4) Use of alternative delivery methods, including design-build, construction manager/general contractor, and public-private partnerships; and
(5) Change order governance, approval thresholds, root-cause analysis, and systemic trends.
42-13.2-6. Workforce capacity and outsourcing strategy.
The audit conducted pursuant to § 42-13.2-2, shall assess workforce capacity and outsourcing strategy, including:
(1) Ratio of in-house engineering full-time equivalents to consultant engineering resources;
(2) Vacancy rates and operational impacts;
(3) Compliance with federal responsible charge staffing expectations; and
(4) Training programs, succession planning, and technical certification.
42-13.2-7. Maintenance and operations efficiency.
The audit conducted pursuant to § 42-13.2-2 shall assess maintenance and operations efficiency, including:
(1) Cost per lane-mile by district;
(2) Salt and chemical usage normalized by lane-mile and weather severity;
(3) Vehicle and equipment availability and downtime;
(4) Maintenance backlog tracking; and
(5) Overtime utilization and patterns. LC003682 - Page 3 of 5
42-13.2-8. Reporting and public availability.
(a) Upon completion, the audit shall be submitted to:
(1) The governor;
(2) The president of the senate;
(3) The speaker of the house of representatives; and
(4) The chairs of the house and senate finance committees.
(b) The final audit report shall be made publicly available on the DOA’s website.
42-13.2-9. Cooperation and access to records.
The department shall cooperate fully with the audit and provide access to all records, data, contracts, and personnel reasonably necessary to complete the audit.
SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.
42-13.2-1. Definitions.
As used in this chapter:
(1) “Department” means the Rhode Island department of transportation.
(2) “DOA” means the Rhode Island department of administration.
(3) “Audit” means an independent efficiency and performance audit conducted in accordance with this chapter.
(4) “Peer state” means a state transportation agency selected for benchmarking based on geography, climate, system size, and procurement framework.
(5) “Responsible charge” means the full-time employee of the department to be in responsible charge of the project pursuant to the provisions of 23 C.F.R §635.105.
42-13.2-2. Requirement to commission efficiency and performance audit.
(a) The DOA shall commission an independent efficiency and performance audit of the department.
(b) The audit shall be performed by an entity with demonstrated expertise in transportation systems, infrastructure finance, and public-sector performance benchmarking.
(c) The audit shall be completed and delivered to the governor and the general assembly on or before January 1, 2027.
42-13.2-3. Scope of audit.
(a) The audit shall include, but not be limited to, the following areas:
(1) Project delivery efficiency, including schedule adherence, cost escalation trends, change orders, procurement cycle time, and delivery outcomes;
(2) Asset management, including pavement, bridges, culverts, intelligent transportation systems assets, backlog replacement needs, and lifecycle cost analysis;
(3) Workforce and organizational structure, including ratio of in-house staff to consultants, vacancy rates, engineering capacity, and impacts on project delivery and oversight;
(4) Maintenance efficiency, including cost per lane-mile, snow and ice operations productivity, maintenance productivity, and equipment utilization;
(5) Financial management, including forecasting accuracy, cash-flow controls, use and tracking of federal funds, and alignment with the state transportation improvement program (STIP) and transportation improvement program (TIP); and
(6) Governance and oversight, including internal controls, performance reporting, transparency practices, and compliance with responsible charge requirements.
(b) The audit pursuant to this section shall be separate and independent of any audit conducted by the auditor general pursuant to chapter 13 of title 22 (“auditor general”).
42-13.2-4. Peer state benchmarking.
(a) The audit shall identify not fewer than five (5), nor more than ten (10) peer states matched on geography, climate, system size, and procurement rules to evaluate and compare against the department’s performance.
(b) The audit shall benchmark the department’s performance using comparable metrics including, but not limited to, the following:
(1) Cost metrics;
(i) Cost per lane-mile (maintenance and capital separately);
(ii) Bridge cost per square foot (new construction and rehabilitation);
(iii) Administrative overhead ratio;
(iv) Consultant utilization rate; and
(v) Percentage of projects with cost overruns exceeding ten percent (10%).
(2) Performance metrics: LC003682 - Page 2 of 5
(i) Pavement condition metrics, including international roughness index or pavement condition rating;
(ii) Bridge condition metrics, including percentage structurally deficient or in poor condition;
(iii) Project delivery cycle time for design, procurement, and construction;
(iv) Snow and ice response metrics, including materials used per lane-mile and response times; and
(v) Safety outcomes, including fatalities per vehicle mile traveled.
42-13.2-5. Procurement and contracting practices.
The audit conducted pursuant to § 42-13.2-2 shall evaluate procurement and contracting practices including, but not limited to:
(1) Consultant procurement processes, including qualifications-based selection and cost negotiation;
(2) Oversight of consultant hours and costs;
(3) Compliance with federal responsible charge requirements;
(4) Use of alternative delivery methods, including design-build, construction manager/general contractor, and public-private partnerships; and
(5) Change order governance, approval thresholds, root-cause analysis, and systemic trends.
42-13.2-6. Workforce capacity and outsourcing strategy.
The audit conducted pursuant to § 42-13.2-2, shall assess workforce capacity and outsourcing strategy, including:
(1) Ratio of in-house engineering full-time equivalents to consultant engineering resources;
(2) Vacancy rates and operational impacts;
(3) Compliance with federal responsible charge staffing expectations; and
(4) Training programs, succession planning, and technical certification.
42-13.2-7. Maintenance and operations efficiency.
The audit conducted pursuant to § 42-13.2-2 shall assess maintenance and operations efficiency, including:
(1) Cost per lane-mile by district;
(2) Salt and chemical usage normalized by lane-mile and weather severity;
(3) Vehicle and equipment availability and downtime;
(4) Maintenance backlog tracking; and
(5) Overtime utilization and patterns. LC003682 - Page 3 of 5
42-13.2-8. Reporting and public availability.
(a) Upon completion, the audit shall be submitted to:
(1) The governor;
(2) The president of the senate;
(3) The speaker of the house of representatives; and
(4) The chairs of the house and senate finance committees.
(b) The final audit report shall be made publicly available on the DOA’s website.
42-13.2-9. Cooperation and access to records.
The department shall cooperate fully with the audit and provide access to all records, data, contracts, and personnel reasonably necessary to complete the audit.
SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.