PROVIDENCE, R.I. – The R.I. Department of Revenue today announced that its Central Collections Unit has produced more than $1.6 million in payments for state agencies and workers in Rhode Island since the agency's creation in 2019.

The Central Collections Unit (CCU) reached the mark this month when it recently secured payments totaling more than $29,000 for the Executive Office of Health and Human Services (EOHHS).

State lawmakers authorized the Department of Revenue to create the CCU in Fiscal Year 2019 to help state agencies collect unpaid fees, fines, and legal settlements bringing a systematic approach to securing these payments. The CCU has signed agreements with the DLT and 17 other state agencies and has collected more than $1 million in overdue payments since the unit's inception. All funds secured by the CCU are turned over to its partner agencies. These funds help agencies fulfill their own legislative mandates and carry out their missions to serve Rhode Islanders and the general public.

"We take seriously our duty to assist the state and Rhode Island workers in collecting the money they are owed for legal settlements and overdue wages," said Edmund Murray, the chief of legal services overseeing the CCU.

The recent settlements reached on behalf of EOHHS resolve cases involving entities that violated the terms of loans received through the Workforce Stabilization Loan Program established by the State of Rhode Island to aid congregate care providers during the COVID-19 pandemic. These loans are forgiven if the providers use the money as intended and meet a set of audit requirements.

Of the more than 150 providers that received funding through the program, five thus far were referred to the CCU for action. The CCU has collected $59,200, in all, for EOHHS during the last three months from participants in this loan program.

For more information about the CCU, its activities, or to learn how to make a payment on delinquent state debt, visit http://www.dor.ri.gov/central-collections-unit/