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 registered nursing profession meets the different and emerging health care needs of the people of Maine in a wide range of settings; and

As the daughter, the niece, and the sister of veterans myself, I always mark Memorial Day with gratitude and grief. Gratitude that my loved ones came home from conflicts around the world and grief for the Maine servicemen and women we’ve lost.  

This Memorial Day, we honor those who perished to preserve our country and to protect our freedoms.

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

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

But when you consider Maine’s long and proud history of military service, that comes as no surprise.

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

Those Mainers – and many more – served and fought with determination and great hope for our collective future. A determination and hope that I respect and hold today.

This Memorial Day let us 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’.  

In their memory, may we better serve our veterans and their families. To our servicemembers, I want you to know that my Administration is standing by your side, just as you have stood by us.

Through the Maine Bureau of Veterans Services, we have re-established the Aides-De-Camp veterans’ advisory program; we have expanded free dental care for veterans; we have created the Governor’s Challenge to coordinate behavioral health services between agencies; and we have expanded our Homeless Veteran Coordinator team. Any veteran who is struggling to find affordable housing can reach out to the Bureau for help.

Through the Maine Department of Labor, we have connected veterans with employers through our annual Hire-A-Vet campaign, and through the Maine Revenue Service we have provided property tax relief to Maine veterans. And just recently we fought to keep the Maine Veterans’ Homes in Caribou and Machias open for veterans and their spouses.

I am 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.

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, 2022.

God bless you. God bless the State of Maine.

This is Governor Janet Mills and thank you for listening.

Maine’s current and its future workforce depend on accessible, affordable child care. Not only do working parents need a safe place to send their kids during the day, but research shows that successful early care and early education programs can boost academic outcomes and even high school graduation rates.

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

As you know, I am the proud grandmother of five young adults and small children here in Maine. I understand the great need for quality early child care.

To increase access to affordable childcare, my administration is investing $25 million in federal funds through my Maine Jobs & Recovery Plan, as approved by the Legislature, to help renovate, expand, and build new child care facilities and expand early childhood education programs.

Earlier this year, I visited a former call center in my hometown of Farmington, a call center that is being renovated and turned into the Sweatt-Winter Child Care and Early Childhood Education Center. Using some of the funds from my Maine Jobs & Recovery Plan, the University of Maine at Farmington is creating at least 20 slots for high-quality infant and toddler care at the new Center. That means at least twenty families living in western Maine will have reliable child care for their kids that they didn’t have before.

Ensuring our early childhood educators and child care providers have the physical space they need is certainly essential. We also have to invest in the people who provide such important care for our kids.

To attract and retain people to work in this valuable profession, last month I also signed into law a supplemental budget. A bipartisan budget that will deliver $200 monthly stipends to more than 7,000 child care workers across Maine, continuing the stipends that we began last year with federal funds.

Earlier this week, I toured the Creative Explorations Child Development Center in Windham. They used some of those federal funds to raise the wages of their staff who were working around the clock to keep children safe and to support their early development at the same time during the pandemic. And now they are continuing, filling eight-five slots for infants through five year old children with incredible, creative indoor and outdoor activities.

With our new budget and my Maine Jobs & Recovery Plan, we are expanding access to child care and we are giving working families what they need to provide healthy, safe care for their kids. Care that allows them to be productive, to go to work, bring home a paycheck, and strengthen our state’s economy.

This is Governor Janet Mills and thank you for listening.

WHEREAS, the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act of 2021 was signed by the President on November 15, 2021; and

WHEREAS, investment in Maine's infrastructure is essential to grow our state's economy, create jobs, and meet the needs of our communities and people; and

WHEREAS, a portion of the $1.2 trillion package will be allocated to Maine to fix roads and bridges, expand high-speed broadband, improve access to clean drinking water, and build a cleaner, more resilient and sustainable transportation network; and