WHEREAS, Maine’s growing life science sector represents a vital component of the State’s economy, with emerging opportunities across biomedical research, marine biology, agriculture, forestry, and data science; and

WHEREAS, the life sciences sector is one of the fastest-growing sectors of Maine’s economy, employing nearly 10,000 people, contributing $2.3 billion annually to state GDP, and providing wages that are 1.7 times higher than the state average; and

WHEREAS, emergency preparedness planning for all potential hazards – whether natural, technological, or human-caused – is essential to protect the public health, safety and welfare;

WHEREAS, effective emergency preparedness requires a coordinated, collaborative effort across State agencies to respond, mitigate damage and coordinate recovery;

WHEREAS, October 2025 marks the 80th anniversary of National Disability Employment Awareness Month; and 

WHEREAS, workplaces across our state that are welcoming of the talents of all people, including people with disabilities, are critical to healthy communities and a strong economy; and

WHEREAS, while the employment of persons with disabilities ages 16 to 64 in Maine has seen significant gains, it is still far less than the percentage of Maine people without disabilities; and

WHEREAS, blindness and low vision affect millions of Americans, including an estimated 35,000 Maine people; and

WHEREAS, the white cane and guide dog serve as essential tools of independence, mobility, and safety for blind and low vision individuals, and their use is legally protected under Maine law as a signal to motorists to yield the right of way; and

WHEREAS, the logging industry has served as an economic driver and cultural tradition in Maine for centuries; and

WHEREAS, the logging industry creates rural jobs and provides revenue for local communities, contributing $582 million to the state’s economy annually; and

WHEREAS, loggers provide renewable material for products used by people in Maine every day; and

WHEREAS, loggers are the root of Maine’s $8.1 billion forest economy; and

Hello, this is Governor Janet Mills and thank you for listening.

I truly understand how important it is to have affordable and accessible childcare for Maine parents. You know, when I met and married my husband, Stan, he was a widower with five daughters, ages 4 to 16. So overnight, I became the stepmother to five girls, while at the same time serving as the elected District Attorney -- for Androscoggin, Franklin and Oxford counties -- a full-time job.

Parents across the state of Maine need consistent, affordable care for their children, not just so they can go to work, but so their children can learn and grow in a safe place, especially in the early years before they're old enough to go to school.

Research shows how very important those earliest years are -- they tell us that a child's brain forms over a million new neural connections every second during their earliest years of life. Early childhood education is critical to teach those early skills like recognizing letters and sounds, and understanding and managing emotions, and building relationships with others -- socialization that children need as they grow. That's why my administration has invested more than $145 million in state and federal funding to strengthen the child care system in Maine and start and expand Pre-K programs in Maine for all who want it.

Recently, I visited child care facilities and early childhood programs in Sanford, and East Millinocket, and Windham. I visited the new child care center in Windham with infant, toddler, and preschool classrooms and outdoor spaces for kids to explore. That was built with $250,000 in federal funding from my administration. This project in Windham is just one of nearly 300 child care facilities and family child care providers who received grants through my Jobs Plan.

RSU 14, serving students in Raymond and Windham, also got a grant of more than $110,000 through my jobs plan to expand Pre-K at two local child care programs. And the district got another $50,000 through the American Rescue Plan from the Maine Department of Education to open and furnish a brand new Pre-K classroom at Raymond Elementary School.

Creating safe places where kids can learn and grow does more than just support kids. It ensures that parents can go to work, that they can earn a living, that they can contribute to a strong economy. So I am proud of the high quality child care and early childhood education programs that my administration has helped create over the past several years, more than more than 6,000 child care slots across the State of Maine.

That's a lot. But I also know that child care providers have challenges. As someone who helped raise five daughters, and as someone who is now a grandmother to five kids, I deeply appreciate the work that childcare providers do every day. I know it's not easy.

But to all of our childcare workers statewide: I thank you for all you're doing to support our workforce, to strengthen our economy, and to set our kids on a path to lifelong success.

Our children are our most precious assets and our highest priority. My administration will continue to support high quality care to Maine's children and families for as long as I am Governor.

This is Governor Janet Mills and thank you for listening.

WHEREAS, falls are a serious and growing public health concern and are the leading cause of injury-related emergency department visits, hospitalizations, and deaths among older adults; and

WHEREAS, falls often result in serious injuries such as hip fractures and head trauma and cause a loss of independence, significantly impacting the quality of life for older adults and their families; and

WHEREAS 1,566 Americans are still missing and unaccounted for from the Vietnam War, as well as 7,399 from the Korean War, 126 from the Cold War, and 71,853 from World War II, though thousands from World War II are assessed as unrecoverable deep-sea losses; and

WHEREAS, the families and friends of unaccounted for Vietnam War Veterans, as well as countless fellow Veterans and other Americans, still await recovery and identification of their remains or clarity regarding their fates; and

WHEREAS, domestic abuse and violence is a serious injustice and public health crisis that affects people and families of all races, ages, genders, sexual orientations and income levels; and

WHEREAS, each year nearly half of all homicides in Maine are related to domestic abuse and violence; and

WHEREAS, support and help are available 24/7/365 to anyone affected by domestic abuse, through the programs of the Maine Coalition to End Domestic Violence and the statewide domestic violence helpline; and

WHEREAS, the First Amendment of the United States Constitution guarantees the rights of free expression, including the freedom to read, write, speak, publish, and access information without government interference or censorship; and

WHEREAS, libraries – as trusted public institutions – embody these constitutional principles by ensuring that people of all ages, backgrounds, and beliefs have open access to a broad range of ideas and perspectives; and