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Letter Support & Important Hearing on Farmland Protection, Tomorrow!

This Wednesday, March 6, the Rhode Island House Finance Committee will review a bill, HB7550, that would provide $5 million for farmland protection and $9 million for open space and forest management in the upcoming Green Bond.  The current proposal for the Green Bond does not include support for farmland, open space, or forest management, and without strong support for HB7550, new state investments for preserving farmland, and green, open space will remain unfulfilled until the next Green Bond in 2026.

To get this bill passed, the members of the House Finance Committee need to hear from Rhode Islanders who care about protecting our farms! Consider sending in a letter to support the addition of farmland protection to the Green Bond, or attending the committee hearing in person to provide testimony in support of farmland protection funding:

Send in a letter of support: E-mail a letter, to Chris O’Brien, Clerk, at HouseFinance@rilegislature.gov. by Wednesday morning (March 6) with the subject line: ‘HB 7550 – FOR’. In the body of your email, include: reasons why you believe farms are important and worth protecting, and request for the proposed Green Bond to include $5 million for farmland protection. Make it personal and include your full name and any organizational affiliation. Check out the RIPFC letter of support for HB7550 for reference. 

To attend the meeting and provide testimony in support: Room 35 in the State House, March 6 at 4:00 pm. Sign your name on the sign-up sheet and wait in the back of the room or hallway for your name to be called. When called, introduce yourself, keep comments to 3 minutes or less, and share your perspective and thoughts about why farms are important and worth protecting.

Letters make a big difference, and in-person testimony makes an even bigger one. Forward this to anyone in Rhode Island who supports farmland preservation and thank you, in advance, for your support.