2026 -- H 7532

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     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2026

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J O I N T   R E S O L U T I O N

CREATING A SPECIAL JOINT LEGISLATIVE COMMISSION TO STUDY SLUDGE

MANAGEMENT IN RHODE ISLAND

     Introduced By: Representatives Cortvriend, Noret, and Phillips

     Date Introduced: February 06, 2026

     Referred To: House Environment and Natural Resources

     WHEREAS, "Sludge" is defined as any solid, semisolid or liquid waste generated from a

municipal, commercial, or industrial wastewater treatment plant, water supply treatment plant, or

air pollution control facility or any other such waste having similar characteristics and effects;

and

     WHEREAS, Effective sludge management is essential to reduce the massive volumes of

waste generated by wastewater treatment, mitigate severe environmental contamination

(groundwater and soil), and eliminate pathogens in order to protect public health; now, therefore

be it

     RESOLVED, That a special joint legislative commission be and the same is hereby

created consisting of nineteen (19) members: three (3) of whom shall be members of the House of

Representatives, not more than two (2) from the same political party, to be appointed by the

Speaker of the House; three (3) of whom shall be members of the Senate, not more than two (2)

from the same political party, to be appointed by the President of the Senate; one of whom shall

be a member of the Rhode Island Clean Water Association (RICWA), to be appointed by the

Chair of the Board of Directors for the RICWA; one of whom shall be the Executive Director of

the Narragansett Bay Commission (NBC), or designee; one of whom shall be the Executive

Director of the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management, or designee; one of

whom shall be the Executive Director of the Rhode Island Resource Recovery Corporation, or

designee; one of whom shall be the Director of the Rhode Island Department of Administration

Division of Planning, or designee; one of whom shall be a representative of a treatment facility

that composts, to be appointed by the Speaker of the House; two (2) of whom shall be

representatives of Rhode Island communities that have incinerators, one of whom to be appointed

by the Speaker of the House, and one of whom to be appointed by the President of the Senate;

one of whom shall be a representative of a Rhode Island community that is shipping its sludge to

a landfill in Ohio, to be appointed by the President of the Senate; one of whom shall be the

Executive Director of the North East Biosolids & Residuals Association (NEBRA), or designee;

one of whom shall be a professor from the University of Rhode Island and/or Brown University

conversant in sludge processing, to be appointed by the Speaker of the House; one of whom shall

be an end user of biosolids (such as a turf farm or golf course), to be appointed by the President

of the Senate; and one of whom shall be a representative of a private company involved in

biosolids management, to be appointed by the Speaker of the House.

     In lieu of any appointment of a member of the legislature to a permanent advisory

commission, a legislative study commission, or any commission created by a General Assembly

resolution, the appointing authority may appoint a member of the general public to serve in lieu

of a legislator.

     The purpose of said commission shall be to make a comprehensive study and review of

the current state of sludge management in Rhode Island (from the 19 facilities treating over 120

million gallons of wastewater every day and including septage) in order to understand and

provide recommendations regarding the effects of decreasing outlets, including the cost to

ratepayers and environmental and climate impacts, and to also identify potential state-wide

solutions and future opportunities to make sludge management more sustainable in Rhode Island.

     Forthwith upon passage of this resolution, the members of the commission shall meet at

the call of the Speaker of the House and President of the Senate and organize and shall select a

Chairperson and Vice Chairperson, one of whom shall be a member of the House and one of

whom shall be a member of the Senate.

     Vacancies in said commission shall be filled in like manner as the original appointment.

     The membership of said commission shall receive no compensation for their services.

     All departments and agencies of the state shall furnish such advice and information,

documentary and otherwise, to said commission and its agents as is deemed necessary or

desirable by the commission to facilitate the purposes of this resolution.

     The Joint Committee on Legislative Services is hereby authorized and directed to provide

suitable quarters for said commission; and be it further

     RESOLVED, That the commission shall report its findings and recommendations to the

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General Assembly no later than January 5, 2027, and said commission shall expire on March 5,

2027.

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EXPLANATION

BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL

OF

J O I N T   R E S O L U T I O N

CREATING A SPECIAL JOINT LEGISLATIVE COMMISSION TO STUDY SLUDGE

MANAGEMENT IN RHODE ISLAND

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     This resolution would create a nineteen (19) member special joint legislative commission

whose purpose it would be to study and provide recommendations for effective sludge

management, and who would report back to the General Assembly on or before January 5, 2027,

and whose life would expire on March 5, 2027.

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