Maria Cimini on tax equity, her education policy agenda and a plastic bag ban for RI

Progressive Providence Rep. Maria Cimini is probably best known for leading the charge for tax equity in the General Assembly. This year, she said, education will also be high on her priority list. In fact, she said she may earmark new revenue raised by her tax equity legislation to better fund education.

But when asked what she would focus on if she could only have one issue this session, she said education.

“I would want to focus on really widespread and broad education policy that would involve pre-K, solid care for children, looking at the GED changes that I think are going to be really difficult for low income individuals,” she said. “It’s beyond test taking and beyond even workforce training. It’s about preaparing people to work creatively and work in teams  and respond to careers that we can’t even imaine exist at this moment and I’m concerned that the trajectory of public education is more focused on the jobs that exist right now and very finite skills and a world that changes.”

She also said she’ll be reintroducing her plastic bag ban bill. Please listen to our entire conversation here: