william murphy – RI Future

June 15, 2016June 15, 2016

Moms Demand Action walks out on Mattiello during prayer for Orlando

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Speaker Nicholas Mattiello opened yesterday’s House session by asking Rep Deborah Ruggiero to lead the chamber in a moment of silence and a prayer for the victims of the Pulse massacre in Orlando. In the galley, over a half dozen people representing Moms Demand Action stood up and left, tired of the meaningless platitudes and prayers offered by a General Assembly that does nothing to curb the easy access to the weapons used by mass murderers in this country.

Moms has advocated for a bill to take guns away from domestic abusers for three years. Every year the bill dies in committee.

Jennifer Smith Boylan, RI Chapter Leader at Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America told me after the walk-out, “As advocates for commonsense gun laws, Moms are weary of moments of silence and thoughts and prayers from our elected officials. We walked out to send a message that moments of silence do not disarm dangerous people who should not have easy access to firearms. We look to law makers to do their jobs and make laws to keep Rhode Islanders safe.”

With their heads bowed in a public display of of false piety, most of the legislators probably missed the walk out. Fortunately, I got it on video:

Moments earlier members of Moms Demand Action were on the floor of the House, where they presented the Speaker with 49 flowers, one for each victim killed in Orlando, and nearly 700 domestic violence post cards.. Mattiello was happy to take the flowers and find a place to display them, but offered no promises of legislative action that might stop killers from accessing weapons. Instead, he handed the problem of displaying the flowers and doing something with the post cards off to his staff and moved on. Conversation was all but impossible due to the ringing of the session bell.

Mattiello’s office has declined to answer my request for a comment on the status of pending gun legislation. But the Speaker told channel 12 “A terrorist militant is always going to find a way to access a weapon. Gun issue discussions are always valuable. However, not in this case.”

The Speaker has an A rating from the National Rifle Association. Former House Speaker William Murphy, is a highly paid NRA lobbyist and a close friend of Mattiello. The Speaker is more than happy to offer useless prayers, as he did when he issued his very first tweet from his new Twitter account on Sunday, but actually doing his job and passing common sense legislation to curb access to weapons that kill dozens in seconds is somehow beyond him.

With the General Assembly expected to wrap up all its business this week, it may already be too late to do anything about guns this legislative session. But that doesn’t mean that our legislators are off the hook.

This is an election year.

September 25, 2015

38 Studios documents release: Murphy’s deposition

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The release of the 38 Studios documents by Superior Court Judge Michael Silverstein have turned out to be a cache of revelations, flipping upside down the timeline of events and showing a level of involvement by various parties not previously considered. From the mundane (Lincoln Chafee, at the time of his deposition still Governor, refers to then-Treasurer Raimondo as ‘Ms. Wall Street’) to the massive (Michael Corso, William Murphy, and Gordon Fox were all invited to the famous fundraiser where then-Governor Donald Carcieri and Curt Schilling began discussions about moving the video game firm), this is going to be a story that rocks Rhode Island politics for a long time. As we sort through the material, RIFuture will continue to update you with our findings.

Q. And would you consider it to have been, and if you can’t answer this question, it’s not the greatest question, but would you consider it to have been, the crisis, to be on the same level as the DEPCO crisis?
A. Well, I don’t know if you can make the comparison because DEPCO had to do with the Rhode Island banks, where the closing of the institutions by Governor Sundlun affected many people individually. This crisis was people were out of work, which would impact a family directly. So I mean, you know, at different periods of time, it seems like every 10 years, you know, there’s a problem.
Q. Sure. If you were to compare the problem, let’s call it, of 38 Studios, with the, what we know now is a bad $75 million loan, if you were to compare that to in terms of negative effect to the State of Rhode Island as compared to the DEPCO crisis, are they in any way comparable? –Deposition of former Speaker William Murphy

Former Speaker Murphy’s deposition is a case study of a witness hedging his bets. Almost every single answer is couched in a variation of the qualifier ‘to the best of my knowledge’. It is clear in reading his testimony that he is playing a careful game and wants to be certain that he does not create an opening for any future litigation. To illustrate this point, one must only look to page 7, when asked about the date of his last day as Speaker, he replies “To the best of my knowledge, February 11, 2010”!

He also is careful in how he is answering questions about Gordon Fox, who was his client on August 24, 2014, the date of his deposition. A great deal of information about Fox is claimed privileged under the attorney-client relationship and a good deal more by his qualifying statements. His testimony about the infamous March 6, 2010 fundraiser is revealing in its lack of disclosure, never mentioning Fox or Corso.

-Were you present at that party?
-At the World War II fundraiser for the Band of Brothers, yes, I did go to Mr. Schilling’s house with my wife.
-And did you see Mr. Schilling that day?
-I did.
-And did you speak with Mr. Schilling that day?
-Hi, how are you, thanks for inviting us.
-Did you have any conversation with him about 38 Studios that day?
-No.
-Did you see the Governor at that gathering?
-Yes, I did.
-Did you speak with the Governor at that gathering?
-Yes.
-Did your conversation include any discussions about 38 Studios?
-No.
-Were you present when the Governor had any conversations with Mr. Schilling at that gathering?
-To the best of my knowledge, no, other than seeing the Governor there.
-Do you have any knowledge of whether Mr. Schilling and Governor Carcieri spoke about 38 Studios at that gathering?
-I do not.

Murphy also does not mention Nicholas Mattiello, his protege and friend, who is now Speaker of the House.

The deposition includes two points that are worth noting. First, Murphy was asked by Schilling to introduce him to the Massachusetts Speaker:

-I did arrange a, if you want to call it a meet and greet or an introduction with Curt Shilling with the Massachusetts Speaker at the time.
-And who approached you to arrange that?
-To the best of my recollection that would have been Thomas Zaccagnino and maybe Mr. Schilling.
-And why couldn’t Curt Shilling in that he has a very strong reputation in Boston as a pitcher involved in the first World Series with the bloody sock, et cetera, why couldn’t he make his own introduction? Why did he need to come to you?
-That’s a better question for Mr. Schilling.

Then comes talk of Murphy’s tour of the Massachusetts 38 Studios offices. This moment is key. For years, it was thought that the first time someone who worked with 38 Studios met with a Rhode Island official was the March fundraiser, but this summer it was a big news disclosure to learn Murphy had been to the offices prior to that date.

I was asked at some point if I wanted to, you know, come and tour the facility. And I have to say back in the fall of 2009, I’ve been a Red Sox fan all my life. Mr. Schilling was a Red Sox nation hero. And the opportunity to see a mill development that was, you know, put back on the tax rolls, like we had historic credits here in Rhode Island where mills were put back on, created apartments, businesses, et cetera, I thought it would be a good thing to see, and at one point in the fall of 2009 I took a tour of 38 Studios.

June 2, 2015June 3, 2015

Mattiello’s payday loan position opposed by Catholic ideology

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Correction: After this piece was published I received the following communication from Carolyn Cronin, Director of Communications for the Diocese of Providence:

“The article you are referencing in your piece was an editorial in the RI Catholic newspaper. Bishop Tobin is the publisher, but he does not write or review the editorials. It is a separate opinion of the paper. So to attribute those quotes to him are not accurate. I would appreciate the clarification.”

When I asked Cronin what Bishop Tobin’s views on payday lending are, I received this reply:

“The Bishop supports the traditional teaching of the Church, but has not made any specific statements about pending legislation. Father Healey represents the diocese on this and other issues at the Statehouse.”

The piece below has been modified to reflect the fact that the statements made in Rhode Island Catholic should not be attributed to Bishop Tobin.

I regret the error.

The Rhode Island Catholic newspaper came out against payday loans in an editorial.

After referring to such loans as “heresy” Rhode Island Catholic said, “Usury, the charging of extreme interest, is condemned by Catholic doctrine. Recently Pope Benedict XVI explicitly condemned usury in his encyclical letter Caritas in Veritate. St. John Paul II called usury ‘a scourge that is also a reality in our time and that has a stranglehold on many people’s lives.’”

“Rhode Islanders,” continued Rhode Island Catholic, “especially R.I. Catholics, should stand up against payday lending, the usury of our time. The extremely poor need protections from what appears their only option in a challenging economy. Extreme rates of interests, with little chance of payment in a timely fashion, are not the way to grow a healthy economy. Instead, the poor need regulations against financial charlatans who seek the economic ruin of those on the margins.”

That usurious lending is ideologically opposed in Catholic theology should come as no surprise to Speaker of the House Nicholas Mattiello, a lifelong Catholic, who continues to oppose reform.

“The case has not been made to me to terminate an industry in our state,” said Mattiello last month, “The arguments against payday lending tend to be ideological in nature.”

This would not be the first time that Mattiello has found himself politically at odds with his putative faith. A Providence Journal report, published shortly after his accession to speaker, says, “A Roman Catholic who for half his life had been a lector at Immaculate Conception Church, in Cranston, Mattiello opposed gay marriage. His view changed, he says, as society became more accepting and the issue became one of equality. Today, Mattiello says his vote to legalize gay marriage is one ‘that I am proud of,’ even though it cost him his lector position.”

Mattiello’s recent statement on payday loans is no different than the view he expressed back in March 2014, when he said, “Payday lending is a hot button issue, but the consumer likes the product. It’s an ideological approach. I will make my decisions based on evidence and how it actually impacts people and our economy. I’ve asked for evidence on that issue in the past in my position as House majority leader and I’ve been promised a dozen times over, and I’ve never gotten evidence on that.”

What evidence Mattiello is looking for is hard to imagine, given that year after year the House Finance Committee hears testimony from the AARP, the Economic Progress Institute, Rhode Island Coalition for the Homeless, Rhode Island AFL-CIO and the Rhode Island Payday Lending Coalition. These groups present reams of evidence detailing the harmful effects of payday loans to both individuals the state’s economy.

To some, Mattiello’s willful ignorance about the plain evils of payday loans seems predicated on the special relationship he has with the payday loan industry’s paid lobbyist. According to RI Monthly, former Speaker of the House William Murphy, who is the paid lobbyist for the payday loan company Advance America Cash Advance Centers, is “like a brother” to Mattiello. “In 1994, Mattiello ushered at Murphy’s wedding.” In 2006 Murphy encouraged Mattiello to go into politics, starting him on his path to speaker of the house.

One of Speaker Mattiello’s favorite words is “outlier” in that he claims he doesn’t want Rhode Island to be one. “Rhode Island is one of only 13 states with an income tax on Social Security,” said Mattiello, “and I am tired of our state being an outlier.”

Sam Wroblewski, at WPRO, writes, “Mattiello said not assessing fees to out-of-state trucking operations makes Rhode Island an outlier in the northeast.”

One way that Rhode Island is an outlier that doesn’t seem to bother Mattiello is payday loans.

“Rhode Island payday loans are authorized to carry charges as high as 260% APR,” says the Economic Policy Institute, “Payday lenders can charge this rate in Rhode Island because in 2001, payday lenders received a special exemption from the state’s usury laws, making RI the only state in the Northeast to do so. The exemption enables licensed check cashers to make payday loans as at 260% rather than complying with the state’s small loan laws.”

Apparently, being an outlier is okay if one of your best friends is making $50,000 a year.

It seems clear that the day Nicholas Mattiello will allow a vote on the abolition or restructuring of payday lending laws here in Rhode Island is the day that Advance America decides to stop employing Mattiello’s friend Bill Murphy as a lobbyist. Until that day, the poor will continue to be exploited and money will continue to be sucked out of Rhode Island communities.

Catholic ideology be damned.

January 10, 2013January 11, 2013

Fox Is Wrong To Say No Alts. To Payday Loans

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CGF Loans vs Payday Graphic — This graphic shows the difference between a short term small dollar loan from the Capital Good Fund and a payday loan.

It’s simply not true that payday loans are the only option to low wage borrowers as House Speaker Gordon Fox suggested to RIPR this morning.

“I don’t like predatory lending practices,” Fox told RIPR, “but I also understand for folks that have nowhere else to go, it might be a valid tool for them to go to and not be driven to more onerous kinds of lending, including Internet lending, at higher interest rates, if you could imagine such a thing, or backroom lending, which is even worse.”

In fact, there are three alternatives in the local lending market: the Capital Good Fund and the West Elmwood Housing Development Corporation, both in Providence, as well as Navigant Credit Union, which has 13 locations in the state including branches in Central Falls, Pawtucket and Woonsocket.

Additionally, according to a Pew Center report on payday loans from July, “In states that enact strong legal protections … borrowers are not driven to seek payday loans online or from other sources.”

Reform advocates testified about alternatives last session at the State House and RI Future reported on them then. Additionally, Margaux Morisseau, of the Coalition for Payday Lending Reform, said her group has presented the data to Fox.

“We’ve given him the information,” she said. “We need him to read the information.”

Gina Raimondo, a proponent of payday lending reform, mentioned these alternatives in a Providence Journal op/ed in May.

Fred Reinhardt, chief lending officer at Navigant Credit Union, said they offer a “short term, small dollar” loan that allows credit union members to borrow between $200 and $600 for up to 90 days at 18 APR. Payday loans can carry interest as high as 260 percent annually.

“We designed this product primarily specifically so people can refinance existing payday loans,” Reinhardt said.

He said they just started offering the loan in April and since then “most of them have been repaid on time,” he said.

Borrowers must be credit union members for 30 days before taking advantage of the loan, he said, but he noted that branch managers have told him that several people have opened accounts in order to apply for the loan.

The Capital Good Fund loan does not require a waiting period and loans up to $2,000 and 20 APR, according to Andy Posner of CGF. The average interest in a $325 loan from CGF is $87.80 compared with $468 from a payday lender.

The West Elmwood Housing Development Corporation loans up to $1,500 at 18 to 25 APR, Morisseau said.

According to the Pew report, “Most borrowers use payday loans to cover ordinary living expenses over the course of months, not unexpected emergencies over the course of weeks.”

Rhode Island is the only New England state that still allows predatory payday lending. Currently they are exempt from usury laws and charge interest up to 260 percent a year. Reform legislation last session introduced by Rep. Frank Ferri and Sen. Juan Picahrdo would cap them at 36 percent.

January 4, 2013January 4, 2013

Gordon Fox, William Murphy and Payday Loans

Senator Paiva-Weed and Represenative Fox at the Fighting Poverty with Faith vigil After a short stint spent ostensibly serving the public, former House Speaker William J. Murphy now pointedly serves himself at the public’s expense working as a hired gun for predatory lenders Advance America, which has paid Murphy $50,000 to lobby the General Assembly on its behalf.

Like any hired gun stripped clear of conscience, Murphy is unconcerned with the harm his corporate masters inflict on the most vulnerable members of our society. In fact, Murphy seems to like the money mercilessly drained from low-income families so much he has signed up to repeat last year’s performance.

Surely, to be able to advocate properly for Advance America (whose name could not be more ironic) Murphy has acquainted himself with the arguments and analysis those in favor of banning payday loans have made. Murphy must know that payday loans:

Drain money from low-income communities in the form of high interest. The money drained leaves the community and goes directly into the bottom line of companies like Advance America and the pockets of corporate lobbyists like William Murphy.
Exploit financial hardship for profit by targeting those in low-income communities and those who live near military bases. Whereas middle income families can get loans with interest rates around 25%, under the terms of payday loans available in Rhode Island low-income families can pay %260 or more!
Are made by companies that often resort to aggressive, possibly illegal advertising and collection strategies.

Payday loans amount to legalized racketeering. Companies like Advance America function by exploiting loopholes in the laws against usury. That is why payday loans are illegal in thirteen states, including Connecticut, Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine and New York, and highly regulated in Massachusetts.

No wonder Advance America fights so aggressively here in Rhode Island. Our state is the only one in New England that allows the immoral practice of gouging our own poor.

On Wednesday I attended a vigil held by the Rhode Island Interfaith Coalition that sought to call attention to the evils of payday loans. In attendance were over one hundred people representating over 30 faith and non-faith traditions. Governor Chafee said a few words, and Senate President Paiva-Weed stood side by side with House Speaker Fox watching the proceedings.

Speaker Fox seems unmoved by the vigil. In the ProJo, Fox said,

Obviously, there are advocates who say that it’s a necessary service and that if the service was not there, then these folks would go somewhere else and then there are advocates on the other side who say they are predatory lenders and they should be put out of business.

Rep. Frank Ferri introduced legislation effectively banning the practice, and Sen. Juan Pichardo said he will sponsor the bill in the Senate, but Fox seeks compromise. How effective the compromise that Fox seeks will be remains to be seen. Fox’s re-election this year was not as simple or obvious as it appears in retrospect. Stumbling on issues like payday lending will mobilize those who live in his district (like me) to begin a very real search for his successor.

Fox might have been hand-picked by William Murphy to lead the House in his wake, but Fox was elected by citizens who care more about those suffering from grinding poverty than they do about Advance America’s bottom line or William Murphy’s next $50,000 pay day.