WHEREAS, gardens play a large role in Maine’s economy, providing employment for thousands of people across the State, and generating millions in sales of crops from blueberries and potatoes to flowers and trees; and

WHEREAS, gardens in Maine can range from a few backyard garden beds of roses or vegetables to commercial farms that encompass hundreds of acres; and

WHEREAS, Maine Clean Water Week is celebrated to recognize the value, importance, and need to protect and conserve our water resources; and

WHEREAS, the citizens of the State of Maine should be able to rely on a safe and dependable supply of clean water both now and in the future; and

WHEREAS, the State of Maine has been blessed with an abundance of clean, safe, and accessible sources of fresh drinking water, a resource precious to all Mainers and a living legacy to be handed on to our children and grandchildren; and

As Washington, D.C. debated paying our nation’s debts this week, independent global companies that issue reports of credit worthiness reaffirmed Maine’s solid financial footing. 

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

Moody’s Investors Service and S&P Global Ratings – which used to be Standard & Poor’s—global companies that analyze and issue reports of credit worthiness, have affirmed their strong credit ratings on the State of Maine’s general obligation debt. That’s a key measure of their confidence that we could weather an economic downturn with the resources we have on hand. Moody’s affirmed their Aa2 rating and upgraded their outlook from stable to positive. S&P affirmed their AA rating and stable outlook.

S&P applauded Maine’s “good financial policies and budgetary management” as well as our “stable government framework.” Moody’s cited our “strong financial reserves,” writing that “the state's finances will remain in solid shape thanks to strong fiscal governance.” Moody’s attributed its upgrade of Maine’s outlook from ‘stable’ to ‘positive’ to Maine’s “continued GDP growth at or above the national rate,” and Maine’s growing population and employment rates.

Since I’ve taken office, Maine’s Gross Domestic Product or GDP, a key measure of economic strength, has grown by 8.8 percent – the 8th best rate of growth in the nation and the best rate of growth in New England. 

Personal income has grown by nearly 20 percent in Maine from 2019 to 2022, the 14th best rate of growth in the country and the best rate of growth in New England.  

Maine’s unemployment rate has dropped to a new record low of 2.4 percent, below the New England average and the U.S. average. 

In 2022, Maine had the 11th highest net in-migration rate, the number of people moving into our state, in the nation and the highest net in-migration rate in New England.  Basically, people coming here from other states.

Maine’s budget is balanced, our Rainy Day Fund is at a record high, our unemployment rate is at a record low, we have a high number of jobs available, and our economy is strong, despite challenges we face.

The positive credit ratings from Moody’s Investor’s Service and S&P Global Ratings confirm our good fiscal management of the state budget and reflect the effectiveness of our policies in strengthening Maine’s economy. 

In addition, we continue to work toward appropriate, reasonable tax incentives for good businesses, high-paying jobs to come here to Maine, upskill our workforce, and give them incentives to train our workforce for the jobs of the future. Things like the Dirigo Business Incentive, in the change package being considered by the Appropriations Committee.

Well, there’s no doubt that we still have some challenges in front of us. We’ll meet them by investing in Maine people to build a stronger, more prosperous state, and we’ll do so while living responsibly within our means. Perhaps Washington D.C. could learn a thing or two from how we do business here in Maine. 

This is Governor Janet Mills and thank you for listening.

WHEREAS, Samantha Smith, a Maine native, looked upon the Cold War between the United States and the Soviet Union with the innocence of a ten-year-old child; and

WHEREAS, through a letter to Soviet Premier Yuri Andropov, Samantha Smith expressed her fears of the possible threat of nuclear holocaust; and

WHEREAS, after receiving the letter, Premier Andropov invited Samantha Smith to visit the Soviet Union where she learned that its citizens, especially its children, were very similar to those in Maine; and

WHEREAS, in keeping since 1939, June has been designated as the time to celebrate the bounty of dairy products and pay tribute to U.S. dairy farmers and their contribution to and important role in agriculture; and

WHEREAS, two hundred and twenty-seven Maine dairy farms care for herds of cows, goats, and sheep and steward 700 thousand acres of desirable and critical farmland, which also provide numerous public benefits in addition to agricultural products, such as scenic and open spaces that enhance their communities; and

The day after Christmas, last December, I went over to Togus and visited with some of our honored veterans.

I got to talk to people who had served in all different branches of the military and all different parts of the world, and hear their stories.

And so it is this Memorial Day, I look forward to honoring those who perished to preserve our country and protect our freedoms, and other honored veterans who are still with us.

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

Our state can proudly say that we’re home to one of the highest number of veterans per capita of any state in the country.

When you consider Maine’s long and proud history of military service, I guess that comes as no surprise.

From the Revolutionary War to the Civil War to World War I, World War II, Korea, Vietnam, Iraq, Afghanistan, Maine people have always stood up to defend our nation and its ideals and our state has shouldered its responsibility to protect our country.

As the daughter, the niece, and the sister of veterans myself, I always mark Memorial Day with both gratitude and grief. Gratitude that my loved ones came home from conflicts around the world and grief for the Maine service members who did not.

As Governor, I have pledged to honor their memory by making sure that Maine better serves our veterans and their families.

Through the Maine Bureau of Veterans’ Services, we have re-established the Aides-De-Camp veterans’ advisory program; we’ve expanded free dental care for veterans in need; we’ve created the Governor’s Challenge to coordinate behavioral health services and prevent suicides by veterans; we’ve expanded our Homeless Veteran Coordinator team. Any veteran who is struggling to find affordable housing can reach out to the Bureau of Veterans Services for help. And through our Veterans and Community Connection Expos, we have connected hundreds of service members, veterans, and their families with resources, benefits and peer groups to enrich their lives in our great state.

Through the Maine Department of Labor, we’ve connected veterans with employers through our annual Hire-A-Vet campaign; through the state budget, we’ve provided significant property tax relief to Maine veterans; and through the Maine Department of Health and Human Services, we’ve kept the Maine Veterans’ Homes in Caribou and Machias open for veterans and their spouses.

Well, I’m proud of that progress, but there is always more we can do to support those who wore the uniform. My Administration will continue to push for better services for all Maine veterans and their families – all of whom have sacrificed so much to keep us safe.

This Memorial Day, let’s honor with reverence all those who have faithfully served our state and our nation in the Armed Forces and those who gave, as President Lincoln said, ‘the last full measure of devotion’.  

To all those who have served and to all those who continue to serve our country: our hearts, our gratitude, are with you this Memorial Day, 2023.

And blessings on those who are in our Veterans’ Homes and in care at our great facility at Togus.

God bless you all, and God bless the State of Maine.

This is Governor Janet Mills and thank you for listening.

WHEREAS, the Stonewall riots that began on June 28, 1969, sparked the LGBTQ rights movement in America; and

WHEREAS, during these riots, LGBTQ citizens, led by transgender women of color, rose up and resisted police harassment that arose out of discriminatory criminal laws that have since been declared unconstitutional; and

WHEREAS, in the decades since the Stonewall riots, Pride celebrations have taken place around the country every June to commemorate this historic turning point for the LGBTQ community; and

Every day, brave members of Maine’s law enforcement community defend our right to peace and safety in our homes, in our streets, in our woods and waters. They deserve our recognition and our respect.

This week, we also remember the officers who ended their watch protecting and serving every part of our great state as the nation celebrates Peace Officer Memorial Day and National Police Week.

Hello, this is Governor Janet Mills. Thank you for listening.

The eighty-eight individuals whose names are on the memorial in Augusta who gave their lives in service to our state were law enforcement officers ranging from sheriffs and sheriff’s deputies, chiefs of police and patrolmen, park rangers, game wardens, troopers and detectives.

Many of them had already served this country in various wars and branches of the military.

They served Androscoggin County and Auburn, Bath and Bingham, Cumberland and Calais, Millinocket and Mattawamkeag, Paris and Penobscot, Lebanon and Lincoln, Westbrook and Washington, and almost every town and territory in between.

Some were young, like Officer Nathan Desjardins of Fryeburg, who died at the age of twenty in 2017, when his boat crashed on its way to rescue canoeists on the Saco River.

Others were older, like Officer Howard Eye of Calais, who died at the age of 78 in 1951 after a fatal heart attack fr0m breaking up a fight at a local carnival, eleven years after he retired formally from the force.

Some were veterans on the force, like Game Warden Daryl Gordon, who was 60 in 2011 when his plane crashed into Clear Lake in Piscataquis County. He had been with the Warden Service for 25 years.

Some were rookies, like Trooper Frank C. Wing, who was 26 in 1928 when his motorcycle struck a truck while he was on patrol in Millinocket. He had been with the Maine State Police for only two months.

Young and old, veteran and rookie, these men sacrificed their own lives to protect life and property in the State of Maine.

Some of them lost their lives keeping the peace, like Officer Rufus Lishness, age 43, who was shot and killed in Augusta in 1884 trying to arrest a suspect for disturbing the peace. He left his wife and four children.

Some lost their lives defending property, like Officer Charles E. Black, age 28, father of two with another on the way, who was shot and killed—shot five times by robbers in South Berwick in 1964.

Some lost their lives saving others, like Baxter Park Ranger Ralph W. Heath, age 37, who fell from a ledge on his beloved Mt. Katahdin during his second attempt to rescue a lost woman in a snow storm.

Many of these men were taken from us in car accidents and just cruel acts of fate, like Deputy Luke Gross, age 44, and Maine State Police Detective Ben Campbell, age 32, each of whom died in recent years while investigating traffic accidents. 

Who they were, which communities they served, where and how they lost their lives was different, but these members of law enforcement shared the same guiding principal. A principal that governed how they upheld the law, a promise to practice integrity, fairness, compassion, and excellence in the thousand daily acts of heroism they performed on behalf of Maine people.

Well, as District Attorney, as a private attorney for years, as Attorney General, and now as Governor, I see the risks that each one of our law enforcement members take when they assume their duty every day. I see the sacrifice of their loved ones waiting to know if they will come home safe. I see the spirit of our fallen officers embodied in their commitment to serve their community and to keep this state the safest place to work, live, and raise a family.

Let that be their legacy. These souls whose lives were abbreviated by fate, or lost to duty, lost to circumstance, or to misfortune, or to malice, their service dedicated to the rule of law. May we honor the compact they observed – a shared commitment, born of sacrifice and solemnity, to be the best citizens we can be, the most protective, the most unselfish, the most civil in our common humanity and the most caring of our human community.

God bless those departed officers. And if you see a law enforcement officer this weekend, please thank him or her, and tell them to carry on. They have our support.

This is Governor Janet Mills and thank you for listening.

WHEREAS, emergency medical services is a vital public service; and

WHEREAS, the members of emergency medical services teams are ready to provide life-saving care to those in need 24 hours a day, seven days a week; and

WHEREAS, access to quality emergency care dramatically improves the survival and recovery rate of those who experience sudden illness or injury; and

WHEREAS, registered nurses in the United States constitute our nation’s largest health care profession and are an indispensable component of the safety and quality of care of hospitalized and non-hospitalized patients; and

WHEREAS, the depth and breadth of the nursing profession meets the different and emerging health care needs of the people of Maine in a wide range of settings; and