Press & News
RI Sea Grant — Understanding Rhode Island’s New Shoreline Access Law
By Rhode Island Sea Grant — …Below is a breakdown of what this law means, as well as tips for advocates and the webinar sponsored by the Rhode Island Coastal Resources Management Council (CRMC) and Rhode Island Sea Grant.
Newport This Week — Opinion: Senators Should Pass Shoreline Access Bill
OPINION By Dennis Nixon and Thomas Gibson Jr — After decades of uncertainty, the General Assembly is on the cusp of reaffirming one of the oldest and most cherished Rhode Island constitutional rights: the “rights of fishery, and privileges of the shore,” which includes the right of access along the shore.
Save the Bay — A 2023 Legislative Session Update
By Topher Hamblett — The Rhode Island General Assembly is in full swing, and considering important legislation that will impact Narragansett Bay. Save The Bay has been hard at work meeting with legislators, testifying at Committee hearings, joining and building coalitions to support good policies, and monitoring for bills that might do harm to the environment and the Bay.
Projo — Coastal property owners dislike shoreline access bill. Will they sue to stop it?
By Antonia Noori Farzan — Is the General Assembly willing to throw its weight behind an idea with broad popular support, knowing that it's all but guaranteed to lead to lawsuits?
Projo — Shoreline commission gets closer to proposing legislation that would clarify public rights
By Antonia Noori Farzan — If you have access to an old ox cart, now would be the time to get out a tape measure and figure out exactly how wide it is. The answer to that seemingly esoteric question could determine where you're allowed to walk on the beach this summer.
Projo — Shoreline access commission agrees law should change, but has yet to settle on new boundary
By Antonia Noori Farzan — Most members of the special legislative commission on lateral shoreline access agree that it's absurd to use 18.6-year metonymic cycles to determine where the public beach ends and private property begins.
Boston Globe — Would R.I. lose lawsuits if it expanded shore access? Probably not, an expert says.
By Brian Amaral — Rhode Island lawmakers could actually redefine the rights of the “shore” further landward than the law does now, said Michael C. Blumm, professor at the Lewis & Clark Law School
Projo — How much of RI’s shoreline is the public entitled to? Commission seeks clarity
By Antonia Noori Farzan — Three summers ago, Scott Keeley set out to make a point about his constitutional right to the shoreline, and collect some seaweed for his garden while he was at it.
The Public’s Radio — House commission to invite public comment in South County on shoreline access
By Alex Nunes — A State House commission set up to study access to Rhode Island’s shoreline will take one of its meetings to South County later this year to get public comment from communities where disputes over beach access have been most contentious.
The Boston Globe — Here’s who will serve on a commission looking into R.I. shoreline rights
By Brian Amaral — A new Rhode Island House study commission looking into the hotly contested subject of shoreline rights will meet for the first time Aug. 26 at the State House, according to the office of House Speaker K. Joseph Shekarchi.
The Public’s Radio — Members named to new state commission on shoreline access in Rhode Island
By Alex Nunes — State lawmakers are taking another step forward in their plans to examine shoreline access in Rhode Island with appointments to a new House commission.