Rhode Island Constitution
Articles
Preamble •I •II •III •IV •V •VI •VII •VIII •IX •X •XI •XII •XIII •XIV •XV

TheRhode Island Constitution is thestate constitution ofRhode Island.

• The current Rhode Island Constitution was adopted in 1986.
• Rhode Island has had two constitutions.
• The current state constitution has 15 articles.
• The current Rhode Island Constitution has been amended14 times.^[1]
• Voters last approved a new amendment to the Rhode Island Constitution onNovember 3, 2020.

A state constitution is the fundamental document that outlines a state's framework for governance, including the powers, structure, and limitations of the state government, individual and civil rights, and other matters.

Features

The Rhode Constitution describes the structure and function of the government ofRhode Island. It consists of a preamble followed by 15 articles.^[2]

Background

On May 4, 1776, Rhode Island became the first American colony to renounce allegiance to King George III, and the last state to ratify theUnited States Constitution on May 29, 1790. Rhode Island did not adopt a state constitution until November 1842, which became effective in May 1843. Prior to this time, the state was governed by the original royal charter granted in 1663. Rhode Island functioned as a parliamentary form of government, in which the legislature held all of the power.^[3] This remained in force until 1842.^[4]

In 1984, Rhode Island voters approved a referendum to call for a constitutional convention, which convened in 1986. Voters approved the new constitution on November 4, 1986.^[3]

Preamble

See also:Preamble, Rhode Island Constitution andPreambles to state constitutions

The preamble to the Rhode Island Constitution states:

Amendments

• Amended on November 3, 2022, with voter approval ofQuestion 1.

Article I: Declaration of Certain Constitutional Rights and Principles

See also:Article I, Rhode Island Constitution

Article I of the Rhode Island Constitution is entitled "Declaration of Certain Constitutional Rights and Principles" and consists of 24 sections.

Click here to read this article of the Rhode Island Constitution.

Article II: Suffrage

See also:Article II, Rhode Island Constitution

Article II of the Rhode Island Constitution is entitled "Of Suffrage" and consists of two sections.

Click here to read this article of the Rhode Island Constitution.

Article III: Of Qualification for Office

See also:Article III, Rhode Island Constitution

Article III of the Rhode Island Constitution is entitled "Of Qualification for Office" and consists of eight sections.

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Article IV: Of Elections and Campaign Finance

See also:Article IV, Rhode Island Constitution

Article IV of the Rhode Island Constitution is entitled "Of Elections and Campaign Finance" and consists of ten sections.

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Article V: Of the Distribution of Powers

See also:Article V, Rhode Island Constitution

Article V of the Rhode Island Constitution is entitled "Of the Distribution of Powers" and consists of one section.

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Article VI: Of the Legislative Power

See also:Article VI, Rhode Island Constitution

Article VI of the Rhode Island Constitution is entitled "Of the Legislative Power" and consists of 22 sections, one of which has been repealed.

Click here to read this article of the Rhode Island Constitution.

Article VII: Of the House of Representatives

See also:Article VII, Rhode Island Constitution

Article VII of the Rhode Island Constitution is entitled "Of the House of Representatives" and consists of two sections.

Click here to read this article of the Rhode Island Constitution.

Article VIII: Of the Senate

See also:Article VIII, Rhode Island Constitution

Article VIII of the Rhode Island Constitution is entitled "Of the Senate" and consists of four sections, two of which have been repealed.

Click here to read this article of the Rhode Island Constitution.

Article IX: Of the Executive Power

See also:Article IX, Rhode Island Constitution

Article IX of the Rhode Island Constitution is entitled "Of the Executive Power" and consists of 17 sections.

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Article X: Of the Judicial Power

See also:Article X, Rhode Island Constitution

Article X of the Rhode Island Constitution is entitled "Of the Judicial Power" and consists of seven sections.

Click here to read this article of the Rhode Island Constitution.

Article XI: Of Impeachments

See also:Article XI, Rhode Island Constitution

Article XI of the Rhode Island Constitution is entitled "Of Impeachments" and consists of three sections.

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Article XII: Of Education

See also:Article XII, Rhode Island Constitution

Article XII of the Rhode Island Constitution is entitled "Of Education" and consists of four sections.

Click here to read this article of the Rhode Island Constitution.

Article XIII: Home Rule for Cities and Towns

See also:Article XIII, Rhode Island Constitution

Article XIII of the Rhode Island Constitution is entitled "Home Rule for Cities and Towns" and consists of eleven sections.

Click here to read this article of the Rhode Island Constitution.

Article XIV: Constitutional Amendments and Revision

See also:Article XIV, Rhode Island Constitution

Article XIV of the Rhode Island Constitution is entitled "Constitutional Amendments and Revisions" and consists of two sections.

Click here to read this article of the Rhode Island Constitution.

Article XV: General Transition

See also:Article XV, Rhode Island Constitution

Article XV of the Rhode Island Constitution is entitled "General Transition" and consists of four sections.

Click here to read this article of the Rhode Island Constitution.

Amending the constitution

Main article:Article XIV, Rhode Island Constitution

There are two paths by which theRhode Island Constitution can be changed: thelegislatively referred constitutional amendment and theconstitutional convention. Rhode Island residents do not have the power ofinitiated constitutional amendments.

Legislature

See also:Legislatively referred constitutional amendment

A simple majority vote is required during one legislative session for theRhode Island State Legislature to place a constitutional amendment on the ballot. That amounts to a minimum of 38 votes in theRhode Island House of Representatives and 20 votes in theRhode Island State Senate, assuming no vacancies. Amendments do not require the governor's signature to be referred to the ballot.

Convention

See also:Convention-referred constitutional amendment

According tosection 2 of Article XIV of theRhode Island Constitution, a simple majority vote in one legislative session is required for the state legislature to place a constitutional convention question on the ballot. A simple majority vote of the electorate is required to call the convention. The state constitution also requires that a state constitutional convention question is provided to voters at least 10 years after the prior question. Rhode Island is one of 14 states that provides for an automatic constitutional convention question.

The table below shows the last and next constitutional convention question election years:

See also

• State constitution
• Constitutional article
• Constitutional amendment
• Constitutional revision
• Constitutional convention
• Amendments
  • Initiated constitutional amendment
  • Legislatively-referred constitutional amendment
  • Publication requirements for proposed state constitutional amendments
  • Rules about constitutional conventions in state constitutions
  • State constitutional articles governing state legislatures

External links

Suggest a link

• Rhode Island General Assembly, "Constitution of the State of Rhode Island"
• Roots Web, "Rhode Island History"

Footnotes

v • e Rhode Island Constitution Rhode Island Constitution •Preamble •Article I •Article II •Article III •Article IV •Article V •Article VI •Article VII •Article VIII •Article IX •Article X •Article XI •Article XII •Article XIII •Article XIV •Article XV

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