ACLU Says New City Law Has ‘Chilling Effect’ on Free Speech
Stephen Beale, GoLocalProv News Editor
ACLU Says New City Law Has ‘Chilling Effect’ on Free Speech
The ACLU said it is reaching out to local community groups about the possibility of taking the issue to court.
“Despite the good and sincere intentions underlying this proposal, we believe it will deter and chill robust community advocacy,” said ACLU Executive Director Steven Brown. “We understand the City’s interest in promoting transparency in government, but this ordinance is not a proper way to achieve that goal.”
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLASTProvidence Mayor Angel Taveras’ office denied that the ordinance would infringe on free speech.
“This ordinance is not designed nor intended to have any effect other than bringing greater transparency to City Hall,” said spokesman David Ortiz. “We have every confidence that the law will be applied in a way that is fair and not prohibitive to free speech or civic engagement.”
Several city councilmen also told GoLocalProv that they had already sought to address the concerns raised by the ACLU.
Impact on community groups at issue
“The ordinance applies to virtually any communication to just about any official of city government, including the Mayor, his staff, a City Council member, the police chief or the school superintendent,” the ACLU said in a news release. “Further, in light of the broad definition of ‘lobbyist,’ a large percentage of community groups in the City and their staff and volunteers could be subject to the requirements of this ordinance and its penalties.”
For example, if an organization shares a copy of the latest RI Kids Count Fact Book or a study on homelessness with a council member or any other city official—in the hope of spurring city action on the issue—the ACLU says the representative of that organization would be considered a lobbyist under the ordinance.
The ACLU said the definition of a lobbyist applies to any paid employee, even if lobbying is just a small part of their job. Making one phone call, sending one letter, or asking one person to contact a city official turns that employee into a lobbyist, the ACLU said.
City councilmen respond
But city councilmen Luis Aponte and John Igliozzi said the ordinance simply mirrors what is already in place for lobbyists at the Statehouse. “It would be the same if they were lobbying at the Statehouse, so we’re not creating any higher threshold,” Aponte said.
The ACLU said it sent a letter to Igliozzi over the issue and never received a response.
Councilman Miguel Luna said he wished the ACLU had reached out to all council members, instead of just sending to the letter to Igliozzi. He said the council would have been able to work directly with the ACLU to make sure its concerns were addressed before a final vote on the ordinance.
But Igliozzi said he did incorporate the ACLU’s concerns into the final draft of the ordinance. “Those issues that they brought up we did address,” Igliozzi said.
He said the process of registering as a lobbyist is not a "cumbersome" one. And the $25 fee that would apply to smaller nonprofits and community organizations is a small price to pay for making city government more transparent and accountable, he added.
“What we’re doing is bringing more accountability to the City of Providence,” Igliozzi said. “I think it’s imperative that the public know who’s lobbying their elected officials and their department directors and their chiefs of staff.”