On November 8, Rhode Island voters approved a constitutional amendment giving the Ethics Commission the ability to investigate and prosecute state lawmakers for ethics violations. Question 2, the Rhode Island Ethics Commission Amendment is aimed at deterring unethical behavior in the Legislature and will go into effect January 3, 2017. The amendment requires lawmakers to disclose potential conflicts and tightens rules regarding formal ethics complaints.

The Rhode Island Ethics Commission previously oversaw issues of misconduct in the General Assembly, but lost the authority in a 2009 court ruling.

The constitutional amendment passed 77.7 percent to 22.3 percent with 98 percent of precincts reporting.