---
type: "Bill"
title: "AN ACT RELATING TO ELECTIONS -- STATEWIDE REFERENDA ELECTIONS"
description: "Amends certain election statutes to require ballot questions be written in plain language reasonably calculated to be understood by persons with an eighth-grade reading level."
jurisdiction: "us/states/ri"
legislature: "Rhode Island General Assembly"
session: "2024"
identifier: "SB 2447"
citation: "Rhode Island SB 2447 (2024)"
classification: ["bill"]
subjects: []
status: "enacted"
primary_sponsors: ["Acosta", "Cano", "Gallo", "Lawson", "McKenney"]
version_count: 1
action_count: 12
vote_count: 2
first_action: "2024-02-12"
last_action: "2024-06-04"
source: "openstates"
source_identifier: "ocd-bill/65b53872-0327-428b-a657-ffe02680801d"
source_url: "https://status.rilegislature.gov/"
source_hash: "529d03972fa6b7bf9a9abf1cdac286f4cf7f6a4433df8d21569ca28efd8912ea"
vintage: "2026-07-01"
source_snapshot: "https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump"
retrieved_at: "2026-07-06"
confidence: "reported"
tags: ["legislation", "bill", "us-ri"]
---

# Rhode Island SB 2447 (2024) — AN ACT RELATING TO ELECTIONS -- STATEWIDE REFERENDA ELECTIONS

Amends certain election statutes to require ballot questions be written in plain language reasonably calculated to be understood by persons with an eighth-grade reading level.

## Version chain

The bill's text revisions, in order — the diff chain from filing to enrollment.

1. **2447** (committee substitute) — [source](http://webserver.rilegislature.gov/BillText/BillText24/SenateText24/S2447.pdf)

## Votes

- Passage — **37–0** (pass) · upper
- IN CONCURRENCE — **66–0** (pass) · upper

## Sponsors

- Acosta — primary (person)
- Cano — primary (person)
- Gallo — primary (person)
- Lawson — primary (person)
- McKenney — primary (person)

## Timeline

The legislative action history — every referral, reading, and vote.

- **2024-02-12** 02/12/2024 Introduced, referred to Senate Judiciary `introduction, referral-committee`
- **2024-03-01** 03/01/2024 Scheduled for hearing and/or consideration (03/07/2024)
- **2024-03-07** 03/07/2024 Committee recommends passage `committee-passage-favorable`
- **2024-03-08** 03/08/2024 Placed on Senate Calendar (03/14/2024) `reading-3`
- **2024-03-14** 03/14/2024 Senate read and passed `passage`
- **2024-03-15** 03/15/2024 Referred to House State Government & Elections `referral-committee`
- **2024-05-17** 05/17/2024 Scheduled for consideration (05/23/2024)
- **2024-05-23** 05/23/2024 Committee recommends passage in concurrence `committee-passage-favorable`
- **2024-05-24** 05/24/2024 Placed on House Calendar (05/30/2024) `reading-3`
- **2024-05-30** 05/30/2024 House passed in concurrence `passage`
- **2024-05-30** 05/30/2024 Transmitted to Governor `executive-receipt`
- **2024-06-04** 06/04/2024 Signed by Governor `executive-signature`

## Source

OpenStates / OpenCivicData bulk snapshot [2026-07-01](https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump); origin `ocd-bill/65b53872-0327-428b-a657-ffe02680801d`. Confidence: reported (aggregated from official Rhode Island legislature records).