Dominick J. Ruggerio

Dominick J. Ruggerio
Member of the Rhode Island Senate from the 4th district
In office 1984 -
Personal details
Born	December 19, 1948 (1948-12-19) (age 62) Providence, Rhode Island
Political party	Democratic
Residence	Providence, Rhode Island
Alma mater	Providence College
Religion	Roman Catholic

Dominick J. Ruggerio is a Democratic member of the Rhode Island Senate, representing the 4th District since 1985. He is currently Majority Leader of the Rhode Island Senate. A member of the Senate since 1985, he was elected Majority Leader on November 10, 2010, having won election to his 14th term in the Senate on November 2, 2010.

As Majority Leader, Senator Ruggerio serves as an ex officio member of all standing Senate committees. He also used this position to hire Stephen Iannazzi, a 25-year-old with no college degree to work for him at the State House for more than $88,000 a year. Ianazzi is the son of Donald Iannazzi, the head of Local 1033. Donald Iannazzi also hired 30-year-old Charles Ruggerio, the son of Senator Dominick Ruggerio.

State senator Dominick J. Ruggerio, of Providence, was arrested in September 1990 for shoplifting condoms from a CVS drug store, in Cranston. He stuffed the condoms in his socks. Ruggerio was not prosecuted and has been reelected from his district in the city's North End every election since. ^[1]

Senator Ruggerio served as Majority Whip from 2003 through 2010. He has previously served as a member and as Vice Chairman of the Senate Labor Committee, Chairman of the Senate Subcommittee on Labor and Transportation, and as a member of the Senate Finance Committee, the Senate Rules Committee, the Senate Labor Committee, and the Joint Committee on Accounts and Claims. He also previously served as Deputy Majority Leader.

Senator Ruggerio is the “Dean,” or most senior member, of the Senate.

Prior to his tenure in the Senate, Senator Ruggerio was a member of the Rhode Island House of Representatives from 1981 through 1984, and was a member of the House Labor Committee and House Corporations Committee.

He served as a Policy Aide for the Office of the Lieutenant Governor from 1977 through 1981.

A 1966 graduate of La Salle Academy, Senator Ruggerio attended Bryant College and earned his Bachelor of Science degree in 1974 from Providence College. He is employed as an Administrator by the New England Laborers Labor Management Coop Trust. He serves on the Board of Directors of the Wanskuck Library and as a member of the Sons of Italy, Loggia Vittoria and the DaVinci Center Development Committee.

Among the awards and honors Senator Ruggerio has received for his public service is The Humane Society of the United States’ Humane Legislator Award, in recognition of his efforts to prohibit double-decker horse trailers.

He has co-sponsored the Rhode Island Senate’s initiatives to make it easy to do business in Rhode Island by reforming the income tax code, cutting red tape, improving access to capital and building the skills of the workforce. He co-sponsored the legislation to reform the state income tax by reducing the top marginal rate from 9.9 percent to 5.99 percent.

Other initiatives Senator Ruggerio has sponsored include the law, enacted in 2007, allowing automobile dealerships to open on Sundays.

Senator Ruggerio co-sponsored the law, enacted in 2010, establishing a fair and predictable formula for state aid to education in Rhode Island.

Senator Ruggerio has been an advocate for Catholic and parochial schools in Rhode Island, supporting issues such as a tax credit program enabling businesses to establish scholarships for students at these schools and a text book sharing program.

He has also pushed legislation to preserve the environment, including new laws to institute a recycling program for mercury used in automobiles and improve collection and disposal rules for mercury thermostats.

Majority Leader Ruggerio resides in North Providence and represents District 4, which includes portions of North Providence and Providence. He is the father of two children, Charles and Amanda.

References

1. ^ "Rhode Island Century: Dubious Achievments". The Providence Journal. http://www.projo.com/specials/century/month12/dubious.htm. Retrieved 2011-08-15.  (Archived by WebCite® at http://www.webcitation.org/61m01J75J)

External links

• Rhode Island Senate - Senator Dominick J. Ruggerio official RI Senate website
• Project Vote Smart - Senator Dominick J. Ruggerio (RI) profile
• Follow the Money - Dominick J. Ruggerio
  • 2006 2004 2002 2000 1998 1996 1994 campaign contributions
• TransparencyRI.com

Persondata
Name	Ruggerio, Dominick J.
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	1948-12-19
Place of birth	Providence, Rhode Island
Date of death
Place of death