The bill amends Section 44-3-3 of the General Laws in Chapter 44-3 to add a new category of property exempt from taxation. Specifically, it exempts the real and tangible personal property of the Pokanoket Management Group, a Rhode Island nonprofit corporation and trustee of the Pokanoket Tribe Land Trust, located in the town of Bristol, Rhode Island. This property is to be used directly for the cultivation, preservation, and protection of the natural, cultural, traditional, and historical resources, watersheds, habitats, ecosystems, and archaeological sites within the ancestral territory of the Pokanoket people.

Additionally, the bill modifies Section 45-13-5.1, which establishes that the state will appropriate funds to municipalities equal to 27% of the tax that would have been collected on properties owned by private nonprofit institutions of higher education, the Pokanoket Management Group, nonprofit hospital facilities, and state-operated facilities. The property of the Pokanoket Management Group is included in the list of properties eligible for appropriations in lieu of municipal property tax, thereby exempting it from municipal property tax obligations. The act stipulates that annual appropriations to municipalities will be distributed by July 31 each year, contingent upon verified assessment data, and includes a provision for proportional reductions in payments if municipalities reduce essential services. The act is set to take effect on December 31, 2025.

Statutes affected:
6291: 44-3-3, 45-13-5.1
6291  SUB A: 44-3-3, 45-13-5.1