BURRILLVILLE – Paul Roselli, candidate for Senate District 23, pointed to major differences between him and his opponent this week on important issues.
“Our current senator from District 23 voted to oppose Senate bill 509 – a bill designed to correct the wage disparities between men and women for similar work, similar experience, similar responsibilities,” Roselli said. “The legislation has been called the ‘gender and race equality bill.’”
“In response as to why the (she) voted no, Sen. de la Cruz responded in a Facebook post, “…women make less because they take on less paying jobs.”
Roselli noted his opponent also voted no on increasing nursing home staff and patient hours on Senate bill S2519, the senator stating that, “…the real issue with staffing in our care homes is indeed lack of proper compensation for employees. Imposing staffing increases without increased funding will bankrupt the care facilities. I support increased compensation but not the specific narrow bill at issue.”
“I declared my candidacy to replace the current senator because of votes similar to the two above,” Roselli said.
Roselli, president of the Burrillville Land Trust, noted that in the fight against the Invenergy power plant, many wanted changes to the Energy Facility Siting Act – the legislation that regulates where power plants can be sited in the state.
Roselli participated in many of the discussions on changes to the EFSA, took part in a House study panel, and participated in Office of Energy Resources study groups, as a key member of a stakeholders group organized by OER and the town of Burrillville, from September 2019 to March 2020.
Roselli noted that the bill the group drafted would have created more oversight and given more power to communities.
“de la Cruz saw it differently,” he said.
Roselli notes that instead, a week before a hearing on the bill, the stakeholders group received draft legislation that stripped away important protections for the environment and municipalities, and added the secretary of commerce to membership.
“Today, Stephen Pryor is the RI secretary of commerce and a proponent of big business and big industry,” said Roselli. “Another Invenergy would suit Secretary Pryor well.”
Roselli said he believes that de la Cruz is out of step with social services, women, firefighters, nursing home staff, the environment and more.
Roselli noted that he has devoted his adult life to being a voice for the environment, walked the picket lines for the RI Carpenters Union, the United Nurses and Allied Professionals, nursing home staff and more.
“I, we, should not let someone propel us backwards to a time where gender and race determine wages, where private equity companies are more important than people and where the environment takes a back seat to the fossil fuel industry,” Roselli said. “In a time that we need forward thinking and solutions to our issues de la Cruz is out of step with the realities of the day.”
“There is much joy out there. I believe in all things possible. COVID-19 is a wake up call that needs leadership and action. I believe I have both. I hope you do too.”
