By Janine L. Weisman | Editor-in-Chief
Good Wednesday morning,
It’s July 1, and that means Taylor Swift and other seasonal Rhode Island residents with high-dollar second properties now pay an extra $2.50 in taxes for every $500 of assessed value over $1 million.
And it means the manufacturing and sale of certain types of semi-automatic rifles and shotguns is now banned in Rhode Island. An assault-style weapons ban takes effect today.
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High tide in Westerly is at 10:20 a.m. and 10:30 p.m. Low tide is at 4:47 p.m. Sunset is at 8:24 a.m.
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Gov. Dan McKee signs legislation (S2644/H8106), which prohibits restrictive covenants related to grocery stores, into law at a 2 p.m. ceremony at the Woonsocket Education Center on Main Street in Woonsocket. He will be joined by Lt. Gov. Sabina Matos, who had championed the legislation.
The 88th Army Band performs at 6 p.m. in Bristol’s Independence Park as part of the Fourth of July Celebration 2026 Summer Concert Series. Country rocker AK Cody and the Wicked Northmen follow at 7:30 p.m.
An exam room at Brown University Health Middletown Primary Care. (Courtesy of Brown University Health)
By Nancy Lavin
Roughly 1,900 seniors and disabled residents on United Healthcare's Medicare Advantage plans will no longer be covered to see Brown University Health primary care and specialty doctors starting July 1. The coverage is ending because of contract disputes between the two companies.
This one-sentence cutline should be identical to the caption used on your website (Photo by Name/Newsroom)
By Christopher Shea
U.S. District Court Judge Mary S. McElroy on Monday ruled that the Trump administration’s attempt to overhaul a key federal homelessness grant program last year violated federal law because officials failed to adequately consider its consequences. But McElroy stopped short of blocking the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) from slashing the amount of funds that can be spent on permanent housing.
The exterior of U.S. District Court for the District of Rhode Island in downtown Providence. (Photo by Alexander Castro/Rhode Island Current)
By Nolan Page
The U.S. Department of Justice on Monday filed suit against both Rhode Island and Massachusetts over higher education tuition benefits for noncitizens. The two are the only New England states on the list of 12 states the Trump administration has sued, claiming they superseded a federal law, discriminate against U.S. citizens and incentivize illegal immigration.
An American flag attached to a lawn chair flies in the wind as concertgoers watch 7 Day Weekend perform during the opening night of the Bristol Fourth of July Concert Series on June 21, 2026, at Independence Park. (Photo by Jordan J. Phelan/Rhode Island Current)
By Jordan Phelan
After being held last year on the campus of Roger Williams University, Bristol's Fourth of July concert series returned to Independence Park with new vehicle barriers funded by a federal grant plus, redesigned safety plans and renewed community support.
Protesters held a rally on protecting birthright citizenship outside the U.S. Supreme Court as President Donald Trump attended oral arguments on April 1, 2026 in Washington, D.C. (Photo by Al Drago/Getty Images)
By Ariana Figueroa
The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday struck down President Trump’s attempt to limit birthright citizenship, reaffirming the 14th Amendment’s guarantee of citizenship to all born on U.S. soil. Democrats praised the decision, including Rhode Island’s U.S. Rep. Gabe Amo, who said the decision “should never have been necessary.”
ICYMI
25 Democratic-led states sue Trump administration over Medicaid work requirements | Anna Claire Vollers, Stateline
Come on down to the Great American State Fair — there’s plenty of room | Sam Gauntt, D.C. Bureau
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