Rhode Island Voters Back $120 Million Bond Measure To Support Affordable Housing

Rhode Island voters are projected to pass a ballot initiative to support increased housing through a massive bond issuance.

Rhode Island's Question 2 issues $120 million in general obligation bonds, which could then be used in various costs to increase the supply of affordable housing. The funding would go to pre-development work, new construction, property acquisition, and infrastructure improvements.

At 9 p.m. ET on Tuesday, an hour after polls closed, the measure had 61% support with 84% of the vote reported, according to the state's Board of Elections. The measure needs 50% support to pass.

Of the money from the bond issue, $25 million must go to increasing construction of for-sale homes and $10 million for public housing. The state expects construction on these projects to begin in 2028 and the new housing to come online from 2029 to 2032. That's according to the state's information on the ballot measure, which notes that the total cost of the bond will top out at around $192.5 million with interest.

The National Low Income Housing Coalition estimates that Rhode Island, with a population of about 1.1 million people, is short around 23,000 affordable rental homes for low-income renters. Around 30% the state's renters are considered extremely low income, with an average income of $31,970 for a household of four. According to NLIHC, renters need to make an annual household income of $70,617 to afford a two-bedroom rental home at HUD's fair market rent.

Many prospective buyers in Rhode Island are also being priced out.

Rhode Island's median listing price is $569,900, about $150,000 more than the median national listing price of $419,250.

Housing Works Rhode Island's 2026 Housing Fact Book found that purchasing a home in Rhode Island is out of reach for anyone making the median annual income and that housing costs continue to outpace wages.

Around a third of Rhode Island's homeowners are considered cost-burdened and spend more than 30% of their income on housing.

In the state's capital city, Providence, less than 4% of homes were considered affordable to middle-income buyers, showing a significant misalignment between available homes and local income level. In fact, Providence ranks among the most misaligned markets when it comes to incomes meeting the cost of housing, according to Realtor.com® research.

Former Gov. Dan McKee, who made housing reform a major focus of his administration, urged voters to support the bill. In September, he was defeated in the primary by Helena Foulkes, who is running against Republican gubernatorial candidate Aaron Guckian.

Guckian expressed opposition to the measure.

"Before we ask taxpayers to borrow another $120 million, plus interest, I think we owe them an accounting of the housing money we're already spending and what we're getting for it," Guckian wrote in an email to the Providence Journal.