AG Neronha wants to give the 6-10 settlement money to the RI Foundation. The GOP says it's illegal.

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5 hours ago

Rhode Island House Republicans believe state law prohibits Attorney General Peter Neronha from channeling the proceeds of the Routes 6 and 10 interchange contaminated soil lawsuit to a nonprofit for children's health initiatives.
The House GOP caucus, although badly outnumbered in the General Assembly, plans to introduce an amendment to the state budget that would claw back $11 million from the settlement with Barletta Heavy Division and redirect it to a variety of other charitable causes.
The core of the Republican argument that Neronha has overstepped his authority rests on a section of state law dealing with the attorney general's office, last amended in 2023, that creates an account where legal fees recovered in settlements are deposited to help pay "for staff and other operational expenses of the department."
"All settlement proceeds" that are not put in that account "shall be deposited" into the state's general fund, it says.
'The law is crystal clear. In fact, I don't think the Attorney General even argues that point," Rep. Brian Newberry, R-North Smithfield, said in a news release. "Instead his public defense of his conduct is that the assembly cannot usurp his power and thus he is free to ignore the statute entirely, a statute that was passed incidentally at his request to help him resolve a dispute with the Governor over staffing a few years ago."
Rep. George Nardone, R-Coventry, commended Neronha for winning the settlement money, but said he saw "no provision in Rhode Island law that authorizes him to redirect those funds to a private foundation."
The Barletta settlement, announced May 21, resolved a state criminal case over contaminated highway fill that Neronha brought against the Massachusetts-based contractor after it had already settled a federal civil suit two years ago.
Under the terms of the court-approved settlement, $10 million will go to the Rhode Island Foundation to be awarded as grants that address the "health needs of children residing in Providence," particularly those living near the 6-10 interchange and who are in need of dental care. The attorney general's office will be part of the committee that advises the Rhode Island Foundation on how the settlement money should be awarded to achieve the goal of promoting child health.
Of the remaining money, $750,000 will go to the attorney general's office and $250,000 to the Department of Environmental Management, which investigated the case.
Neronha's office did not respond to a Journal question about the settlement law in May, but on June 16 called the GOP budget amendment a "stunt" that, unlike his settlement, sought to tackle glaring deficiencies in child health.
"Rhode Island faces many challenges. My office attempts to tackle any and all of those challenges within the confines of our authority ... Meanwhile others, like Rep. Newberry and Rep. Nardone, remained silent and have done nothing," Neronha wrote in response to the GOP.
"Bottom line: directing funds from the resolution of a criminal case brought by this office and authorized by a court to solve severe and unmet oral health challenges for Providence children is well within the authority of my office," he added.
Gov. Dan McKee, who has sparred repeatedly with Neronha in recent years, and General Assembly leaders who would have been able to spend the settlement money if it were sent to the general fund, have been silent on the legality of sending it to the Rhode Island Foundation.
"I don't know a lot about it," House Speaker K. Joseph Shekarchi told reporters June 10 when asked whether the settlement was legal. "I'm not challenging it at this time, and I do accept it right as this moment, the answer is yes. And there's nothing in the budget or nothing planned by House leadership to take any action. Quite frankly, I don't know if we can, and I haven't had a chance to study, to look at it."
McKee's office has not responded to multiple inquiries about the settlement since May.
The state House of Representatives is slated to take up the state budget Tuesday, June 17.
Republican budget amendments traditionally have an extremely low success rate and typically serve to raise public awareness of issues more than change the law.
If the GOP amendment were successful, it would redirect the settlement money evenly between the Economic Progress Institute, Rhode Island Kids Count, Arthur E. Coia Scholarship & Education Fund at the Laborers' International Union of North America, Women's Fund of Rhode Island, Progreso Latino, United Way of Rhode Island, The Rhode Island Dental Association, The Rhode Island Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, Save The Bay, Crossroads Rhode Island and Sojourner House.
This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Can RI AG Neronha give the 6-10 soil case money to the RI Foundation?