Governor McKee left the millionaire's tax out of his State of the State Address
“I’m... disappointed to see Governor McKee leave out any mention of asking the top 1% to pay their fair share after suggesting this was this year to pass a millionaire’s tax just a few days ago..."
From a press release:
In response to Rhode Island Governor Daniel McKee’s failure to include any mention of legislation to make the wealthy pay their fair share in taxes in his 2026 State of the State Address, lawmakers and the RI Working Families Party responded with the following statements. These lawmakers are part of a group holding a press conference on January 22nd to announce a “Fair Share for Rhode Island Package,” a set of bills that would require the state’s highest earners to pay a comparable share of their income in taxes as other Rhode Island filers. The package will rebalance the state’s upside-down tax system, protect the state against Trump cuts, and fund critical services like public education, healthcare, childcare, and public transportation. Together, the package will raise more than $600 million annually and only affect top earners and people with extreme wealth.
“I’m really disappointed to see Governor McKee leave out any mention of asking the top 1% to pay their fair share after suggesting this was this year to pass a millionaire’s tax just a few days ago,” said State Senator Tiara Mack (Democrat, District 6, Providence). “We cannot have leaders that react to rising costs and serious funding threats to our schools, hospitals, and public transportation by leaving billions of dollars on the table because we won’t ask the wealthiest people in our state to genuinely pay their fair share.
“Working families and small businesses have needed relief for years. Now, Trump and MAGA Republicans are escalating the threat, and we need a robust plan that makes sure working people don’t have to pay more and more to get less and less.
“This is the year to pass a fairer tax system. Guaranteeing that the richest one percent will pay their fair share doesn’t just protect working people and small businesses, it can help us build the future we’re fighting for: one where we don’t waste much-needed revenue to reward wealth, but instead use it to advance economic justice and help fund the public services we all depend on.”
“The urgent choice the State House must make this year is clear,” said Working Families Party New England Regional Director Georgia Hollister Isman. “Will leaders make the wealthiest Rhode Islanders pay their fair share to help fund public schools, healthcare, and public transit, or let nurses, teachers, and all working people continue to pay more of their income in taxes than millionaires, even as they struggle to afford rent and groceries?
“The Governor missed a big opportunity tonight to be a champion for hundreds of thousands of working Rhode Islanders by laying out a proposal to ask the wealthiest to pay their fair share in taxes so we can stave off Trump’s cut to critical services, a proposal he floated just a few days ago.
“Two weeks ago, healthcare got more expensive for Rhode Islanders because Republicans in Congress, alongside Trump, deliberately chose to pass nearly $1 trillion in tax breaks for billionaires and big corporations and paid for it by raising health care costs for working people in Rhode Island and across the country. Children and seniors in America are going hungry and getting sicker while the richest people in the country enjoy tax breaks. We can do better here in Rhode Island – and that means taxing the wealthiest 1% in a way that genuinely reflects their ability to pay, so we can deliver immediate relief to working people and small businesses, and help make things like rent and childcare actually affordable.
“A fair share package is urgent and well overdue. Working people were struggling long before Trump took office, and economic inequality in Rhode Island was already large, growing, and highly unpopular. People want a different kind of politics, one that prioritizes working people, not billionaires. They’re tired of leaders who are disconnected from the pressures working people face every day. Rhode Island has a Democratic trifecta and a group of Working Families Party champions that are ready and willing to lead this fight. Together, we can create a fairer tax system, deliver tax cuts to help working families getting hit hardest by Trump and MAGA Republicans, and raise the revenue the state needs to build a Rhode Island that works for everyone.”
“Tonight we heard from the Governor about his vision for Rhode Island, and I’m dismayed it didn’t include any follow-up on his proposal from a few days ago to make the top 1% pay their fair share in taxes to address Trump’s cuts to services that Rhode Islanders depend on,” said State Representative Rebecca Kislak (Democrat, District 4, Providence). “Budgets are moral documents that show our values. And I will be looking this year to see how we plan to raise revenue and spend money to support Rhode Islanders.
“We need, especially this year, to plan to raise revenue to be able to meet Rhode Island’s needs in the face of growing federal cuts. For years, the highest income households in Rhode Island – those in the top 1% - have paid a smaller share of their income in taxes. We should ensure a budget where we are all paying our fair share. Where the federal government is cutting health care subsidies, food and child care programs to pay for tax cuts for the wealthiest, we here in Rhode Island should look to raise revenue by taxing those who can afford it the most. A fair share agenda will ensure that we can continue to make sure that our state is taking care of our residents, even where the federal government is failing to meet its responsibility.
“Working people and small businesses need relief now, and the only way to generate enough revenue without putting more strain on working families and communities is to tax wealthy Rhode Islanders in a way that genuinely reflects their ability to pay. We need to start showing people the better future that is possible if we fight for it. When the budget comes out later this week, I will be looking to see how the budget stands up for Rhode Islanders and whether it ensures that we are able to take care of each other and to ensure that working Rhode Islanders have what they need to thrive.”
You can watch Rhode Island Governor Daniel McKee’s 2026 State of the State Address here.
You can read Rhode Island Governor Daniel McKee’s 2026 State of the State Address here.
Democratic candidate for Governor, Helena Buonanno Foulkes, released the following statement in response to Governor McKee’s 2026 State of the State Address:
“Last night, Governor McKee made his case for an unprecedented third term. It wasn’t a very good one.
"You don’t solve problems by ignoring them. Rhode Islanders deserve a governor who will level with them about the challenges we are facing.
"In the governor’s speech last night, there was no responsibility for the Washington Bridge fiasco. There was no plan to address the affordable housing crisis in a meaningful way. There was no acknowledgement that a flagship company, Hasbro, left for Massachusetts, or any accounting of how to prevent other companies from doing this in the future. No mention of the fact that we have the worst roads in the country and under-performing public schools, with no recognition that the state takeover of the schools in Central Falls and Providence has not worked, and it is long past time to return them to local control.
"The governor provided no realistic solutions for our budget gap, and offered no solutions for the looming crisis that could close two major hospitals, devastating the entire system—$10m for our hospitals is a ludicrous, unserious proposal for the health care emergency Rhode Island faces.
"He ignored our problems and instead offered buzzwords and empty promises. Last night, the governor used the word ‘affordability’ as a crutch. But just talking about affordability doesn’t drive down costs.
"Rhode Islanders don’t need another speech about affordability, without any real solutions to change the trajectory of the State. We need competent leadership that will face our problems and actually work to solve them.
"Five years in, and we’re still waiting.”
That McKee who has clearly stated support for a millioniares tax, did not say so to the legislature shows him to be an idiot and very poor politiciian. A man of no courage or integrity. The legislature is exactly who he is supposed to say such things to. It is no wondfer that his poll ratings are in the toilet and chances of releection weak.