2026 -- H 7873

========

LC005417

========

     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2026

____________

A N   A C T

RELATING TO PROPERTY -- RHODE ISLAND COORDINATE SYSTEM

     Introduced By: Representative Arthur Handy

     Date Introduced: February 27, 2026

     Referred To: House Corporations

     (Dept. of Business Regulation)

It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:

     SECTION 1. The title of Chapter 34-8 of the General Laws entitled "Rhode Island

Coordinate System" is hereby amended to read as follows:

CHAPTER 34-8

Rhode Island Coordinate System

CHAPTER 34-8

RHODE ISLAND STATE PLANE COORDINATE SYSTEM

     SECTION 2. Sections 34-8-1, 34-8-2, 34-8-3, 34-8-7, 34-8-9 and 34-8-10 of the General

Laws in Chapter 34-8 entitled "Rhode Island Coordinate System" are hereby amended to read as

follows:

     34-8-1. Adoption of ocean and geodetic survey systems. Adoption of the national

geodetic survey’s state plane coordinate systems.

     The two (2) systems Rhode Island shall adopt the most recent system of plane coordinates

which have, known as the State Plane Coordinate System, that has been established by the national

ocean/national geodetic survey, or its successors, for defining and stating the geographic positions

or locations of points on the surface of the earth within the state are hereafter to be known and

designated State of Rhode Island as the “Rhode Island State Plane Coordinate System.”

     Previous versions of these systems include the “Rhode Island coordinate system of 1927”

and the “Rhode Island coordinate system of 1983”.

     34-8-2. Use of term in documents. Definitions.

     As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the following meanings:

     (1) “Board” means the board of registration for professional land surveyors as established

by chapter 8.1 of title 5.

     (2) “National Geodetic Survey” or “NGS” means the subdivision of NOAA’s National

Ocean Service, or its successors, which provides the framework for all positioning activities in the

US.

     (3) “NOAA” means the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration, of the US

Department of Commerce.

     (4) “National Spatial Reference System” or “NSRS” means a consistent coordinate system

maintained by the NGS to determine latitude, longitude, height, scale, gravity, and orientation

through the U.S.

     (5) “Rhode Island state plane coordinate system” or “RISPCS” means the most recent

system of plane coordinates known as the “State Plane Coordinate System” established by the

National Geodetic Survey, based on the National Spatial Reference System, for defining and stating

the geographic positions or locations of points within the State of Rhode Island. The terms “Rhode

Island coordinate system” and “Rhode Island plane coordinate system” are synonymous with the

term “Rhode Island state plane coordinate system.”

     (6) Prior versions of the “Rhode Island coordinate systems,” collectively referred to as

“legacy systems” are defined as:

     (i) “The Rhode Island coordinate system of 1927” means a transverse Mercator projection

of the Clarke spheroid of 1866, having a central meridian 71° 30′ west of Greenwich, on which

meridian the scale is set at one part in one hundred sixty thousand (160,000) too small. The origin

of coordinates is at the intersection of the meridian 71° 30′ west of Greenwich and the parallel 41°

05′ north latitude. This origin is given the coordinates: x = 500,000 feet and y = 0 feet.

     (ii) “The Rhode Island coordinate system of 1983” means a transverse Mercator projection

of the North American datum of 1983 having a central meridian 71° 30′ west of Greenwich, on

which meridian the scale is set at one part in one hundred sixty thousand (160,000) too small. The

origin of coordinates is at the intersection of the meridian 71° 30′ west of Greenwich and the parallel

41° 05′ north latitude. This origin is given the coordinates: x = 100,000 meters, and y = 0 meters.

     (iii) The use of the term “Rhode Island coordinate system of 1927” or “Rhode Island

coordinate system of 1983” on any map, report of survey, or other document, shall be limited to

coordinates based on the Rhode Island coordinate system as defined in this chapter.

     (7) “State plane coordinate system” means the most recent system of plane coordinates

established by the National Geodetic Survey, based on the National Spatial Reference System, for

LC005417 - Page 2 of 6

defining and stating the geographic positions or locations of points within the United States.

     34-8-3. Location of point by coordinates.

     (a) The plane coordinate values for coordinates of a point on the earth’s surface, to be used

to express in expressing the geographic position or location of such the point on the Rhode Island

state plane coordinate system, shall consist of two (2) distances, expressed in:

     (1) Meters and decimals of a meter, or international feet and decimals of an international

foot when using the Rhode Island state plane coordinate system;

     (2) Meters and decimals of a meter when using the Rhode Island coordinate system of

1983; or

     (3) U. S. survey feet and decimals of a survey foot when using the Rhode Island coordinate

system of 1927, and expressed in meters and decimals of a meter when using the Rhode Island

coordinate system of 1983.

     (b) One of these the distances described in subsection (a) of this section, to be known as

the “east or x-coordinate”, shall give the position in an east and west direction distance east of the

y-axis; the other distance, to be known as the “north or y-coordinate”, shall give the position in a

north and south direction distance north of the x-axis. These coordinates shall be made to depend

upon and conform to plane rectangular coordinate values for the monumented points of the North

American horizontal geodetic control network tied to the NSRS as published by the national ocean

survey/national geodetic survey or its successors, and whose plane coordinates have been computed

on the systems defined in this chapter. Any such station may be used for establishing a survey

connection to either Rhode Island coordinate system set forth in § 34-8-1 of this chapter.

     34-8-7. Reliance on system not required — Describing location of survey system or

land boundary corner.

     (a) Nothing contained in this chapter shall require any purchaser or mortgagee of real

property to rely wholly on a land description, any part of which depends exclusively upon either

Rhode Island coordinate system.

     (b) For purposes of describing the location of any survey station or land boundary corner

in the state it shall be considered a complete, legal, and satisfactory description of such location to

give the position of the survey station or land boundary corner on the system of plane coordinates

defined in this chapter. Coordinates based on any Rhode Island coordinate system defined in § 34-

8-2, purporting to define the position of a point on a land boundary, presented to be recorded in any

public land records or deed records shall conform with current standards and guidelines published

by NGS and shall be accompanied by a specific statement as to their basis and a description of the

survey method used to determine them on the record plat or description of the survey. Such

LC005417 - Page 3 of 6

coordinate values shall not supersede the board of registration for professional land surveyors’ rules

for procedural and technical standards, as promulgated by the board through regulation, for the

actual establishment and location of the purported boundary.

     34-8-9. Use of coordinate systems.

     (a) The Rhode Island coordinate system of 1927 may be was used up to and including

December 31, 1989, but shall not be used thereafter.

     (b) The Rhode Island coordinate system of 1983 may be used up to and including

December 31, 1989, and shall be the exclusive Rhode Island coordinate system thereafter. the

official release of the State Plane Coordinate System 2022 by the National Geodetic Survey.

     (c) The Rhode Island state plane coordinate system shall be used for projects commenced

after the official release of the State Plane Coordinate System 2022 by the National Geodetic

Survey.

     34-8-10. Meter-to-foot conversion.

     (a) The international foot shall be used for all foot distances and coordinates unless the

distances or coordinates are tied to one of the legacy systems defined in § 34-8-2.

     (1) One international foot equals .3048 meter exactly.

     (b) For purposes of this chapter, and for purposes of conversion between the two (2)

systems set forth in § 34-8-1 of this chapter legacy systems defined in § 34-8-2, one meter equals

3.2808-⅓ survey feet.

     SECTION 3. Sections 34-8-4 and 34-8-6 of the General Laws in Chapter 34-8 entitled

"Rhode Island Coordinate System" are hereby repealed.

     34-8-4. Technical definition of systems — Origin of coordinates.

     (a) For purposes of more precisely defining the Rhode Island coordinate system of 1927,

the following definition by the national ocean survey/national geodetic survey is adopted:

     The Rhode Island coordinate system of 1927 is a transverse Mercator projection of the

Clarke spheroid of 1866, having a central meridian 71° 30′ west of Greenwich, on which meridian

the scale is set at one part in one hundred sixty thousand (160,000) too small. The origin of

coordinates is at the intersection of the meridian 71° 30′ west of Greenwich and the parallel 41° 05′

north latitude. This origin is given the coordinates: x = 500,000 feet and y = 0 feet.

     (b) For the purposes of more precisely defining the Rhode Island coordinate system of

1983, the following definition by the national ocean survey/national geodetic survey is adopted:

     The Rhode Island coordinate system of 1983 is a transverse Mercator projection of the

North American datum of 1983 having a central meridian 71° 30′ west of Greenwich, on which

meridian the scale is set at one part in one hundred sixty thousand (160,000) too small. The origin

LC005417 - Page 4 of 6

of coordinates is at the intersection of the meridian 71° 30′ west of Greenwich and the parallel 41°

05′ north latitude. This origin is given the coordinates: x = 100,000 meters, and y = 100,000 meters,

and y = 0 meters.

     34-8-6. Proximity to established station required for use of coordinates in public

records.

     No coordinates based on either Rhode Island coordinate system, purporting to define the

position of a point on land boundary, shall be presented to be recorded in any public land records

or deed records unless such point is within one kilometer of a monumented horizontal control

station and unless minimum THIRD ORDER — class II procedures are used in conformity with

the standards of accuracy and specifications prepared and published by the federal geodetic control

committee established in conformity with the standards of accuracy and specifications for first —

or second-order geodetic surveying as prepared and published by the federal geodetic control

committee (FGCC) of the United States department of commerce. Standards and specifications of

the FGCC or its successor in force on date of the survey shall apply. The publishing of the existing

control stations, or the acceptance with intent to publish the newly established control stations, by

the national ocean survey/national geodetic survey will constitute evidence of adherence to the

FGCC specifications. Above limitations may be modified by the Rhode Island department of

transportation land surveying section to meet local conditions.

     SECTION 4. This act shall take effect upon passage.

========

LC005417

========

LC005417 - Page 5 of 6

EXPLANATION

BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL

OF

A N   A C T

RELATING TO PROPERTY -- RHODE ISLAND COORDINATE SYSTEM

***

     This act would update the Rhode Island coordinate system to adopt the most recent system

of plane coordinates established by the National Geodetic Survey, a federal agency which is part

of NOAA and the US Department of Commerce, and would modify the meter to foot conversion

to adopt the international foot to provide national uniformity.

     This act would take effect upon passage.

========

LC005417

========

LC005417 - Page 6 of 6