Senate Judiciary Committee Passes Same-Sex Marriage Bill, 7-4

A vote in the full Senate is scheduled for Wednesday at 4 p.m.

Rhode Island took one step closer to the legalization of same-sex marriage on Tuesday following Judiciary Committee passage of a bill that would allow gay couples to marry in the state. With little debate, the 10-member Senate committee, which includes Sen. Lou Raptakis (D-Coventry, East Greenwich, West Warwick) and Sen. Dawson Hodgson (R-E.G., N.K., S.K. and Narragansett) voted 7-4 to pass the amended Senate Bill 38 (S38), sponsored by Sen. Donna Nesselbush (D-Pawtucket). The bill defines marriage as "the legally recognized union" of two people, regardless of gender. The seven Committee members who voted in favor of the bill include Sens. Stephen Archambault, William Conley, Paul Jabour, Erin Lynch, Nesselbush, Hodgson and Raptakis. …

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General Assembly Notes

Senate Passes Raptakis Bill On Alcohol Sales; Newton Takes State House Job

News from the General Assembly as it relates to East Greenwich.

The state Senate approved legislation last Tuesday to amend a new reporting requirement on alcohol sales in the state. The bill was introduced by Sen. Leonidas Raptakis (D-Dist. 33, Coventry) and now goes to the House of Representatives for consideration. Raptakis represents part of western East Greenwich as well as part of West Greenwich. Raptakis decried the reporting requirement – which was passed last session. He said restaurant and bar owners received notification from the Division of Taxation early in January that they had until Feb. 1 to provide this new report, a detailed two-page form that requires businesses to compile their total alcoholic beverage sales for the previous year. Currently, restaurants and bars have to file a …

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Leonidas Raptakis, Democratic Candidate for R.I. Senate District 33

Raptakis previously served 14 years in the state Senate.

Name : Mr. Leonidas Raptakis Also known as : Lou Date of birth : 18 November 1959 Place of residence : Coventry, Rhode Island Attended college : Yes College : Rhode Island College Degree : BA Year of graduation : 1985 Job titles held : Restaurant Owner/Operator Employers : Self-Employed Party affiliation : Democrat Running for a: State office Running for position: State Senate Chamber/district: Senate District 33 Incumbent: No First elected: 03 November 1992 Previous elective offices : RI State Representative (1992-1996); RI State Senator (1996-2010) Unsuccessful bids for elective offices : Secretary of State, 2010 Address: 2080 Nooseneck Hill Road Coventry RI 02816 Website : www.louraptakis.com Facebook : http://www.facebook.com/pages/…

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