Maine’s natural resources are a cornerstone of our heritage and of our economy.

Protecting these precious resources is not some partisan rallying cry, it’s a responsibility that all of us share.

Good morning, I am Governor Janet Mills. Thank you for listening.

You know the movement towards a clean environment was led in Maine by Republicans like Harry Richardson, Sherry Huber, Joe Sewall and nationally by Senator Bill Cohen, and Maine Democrats like Ted Kofman, Linda McKee, Ed Muskie and George Mitchell on the national stage.

Maine people have always led the way in the pursuit of clean air, clean water and uncontaminated soils.

So earlier this week our nation and our state celebrated Earth Day. We recommitted ourselves to that noble goal with more urgency than ever before as climate change takes its toll on our state and our country every day.

You know we do not need another study or report to tell us what we already know: that our climate is changing; that it is changing rapidly; that it will have profound implications for us and for future generations; and that there is limited time to address it.

We know this because, here in Maine, we are witnessing changes firsthand.

In the not too distant future, our children and grandchildren could live in a Maine we would not recognize.

Hey, I mean why care about ticks invading our woods and our public parks? Why care about kids with high asthma rates? Why care about lobsters off the coast moving north and diminished fisheries in cod and shellfish and herring and about rising sea levels?

Why care that Maine is the most heating oil dependent state in the country, with nearly 70 percent of homeowners relying on oil for their heating needs?

Why care that we send five billion dollars out of state every year to pay for our use of fossil fuels?

Because it is Maine and we value clean water and clean air. We value public health and the strength of our economy.

That is why my Administration is committed to serious climate change prevention and mitigation.

I know Maine can become a leader in clean energy. I have set a goal for our state to reach 80 percent of electricity consumption from renewable sources by 2030 and 100 percent by 2050.

In the past three months we have begun to make progress.

We have lifted the blanket ban on wind power.

We signed a bill to restore net metering for solar installations.

We announced new incentives for the use of electric vehicles and charging infrastructure to reduce our reliance on fossil fuels for transportation.

We set a goal of 100,000 new heat pumps to reduce our fossil fuel consumption for heating needs.

And, next week we will officially introduce legislation to create the Maine State Climate Council.

This Council will be responsible for developing the action plan and timetable to meet the state’s emission reduction goals, to promote jobs and economic benefits for Maine people in transitioning to a lower carbon economy, and to support climate resilience in Maine’s communities.

Combating climate change and moving Maine toward a clean energy future won’t be easy.

But, to paraphrase President John F. Kennedy, we choose to take on these issues, not because they are easy, but because they are hard. Because they are necessary and because our future depends on it.

We’ll make progress, but let’s create together a forward-looking Maine that ensures we adapt to and mitigate the impacts of climate change.

Let us create an economy built for every Mainer that thrives on the creation of clean energy jobs long into the future.

Let us ensure that our children and grandchildren will enjoy, as we do, Maine’s unsurpassed bounty and beauty.

That is how we truly lead.

I am Janet Mills, Governor of the great State of Maine and I thank you for listening.

Good morning, this is Janet Mills, Governor of the great State of Maine.

Hey, earlier this week, I was so proud to join a group of business people and veterans to recognize the growing number of employers who participated in Maine’s Hire-A-Vet Campaign in the last year.

Maine’s Hire-A-Vet Campaign had such ambitious goals last year, we thought they’d never fulfil them!

100 days, 100 employers, and 100 veterans hired.

Well they not only fulfilled that goal, they far surpassed it.

That contribution to expanding Maine’s workforce, and supporting businesses across the state, and improving the financial wellbeing of our veterans would have been impressive by itself, but the fact that they surpassed those goals to such an extent is nothing short of astounding.

To the 191 different employers across the state who hired more than 286 veterans, including 52 women, in every county of Maine I want to say, thank you. Thank all of you.

Thank you to those employers in every industry, every sector whose names span from A to Z and would take way too long for me to list, from Anthem and Cianbro to Woodford’s and Zajac.

I say thank you to all of them because they did not hire veterans merely out of a sense of charity or obligation.

They hired Maine veterans because they recognized what we all know to be true.

Veterans know what it means to work as a team. Veterans know that they can’t leave anyone behind.

They know how to serve with integrity and commitment to a vision and mission while adapting to dangers that are known and unknown.

Sounds like pretty good employees to me.

According to the Maine Bureau of Veteran’s Services, there are more than 114,000 veterans in Maine. We are one of three states in the nation with the highest percentage of veterans.

That includes thousands of working-age men and women who are ready to learn the skills our businesses need to expand, modernize, and succeed.

With a workforce shortage as we have today and our aging population - those are threats that are still looming over our future - Maine’s Hire-A Vet Campaign is even more critical to making the connection between an army of workers and all available, high-quality jobs.

The average hourly wage of veterans hired thanks to this Maine’s Hire-A-Vet Campaign was $23.05, which is higher than the mean hourly wage of all occupations in Maine in 2018 and which is higher than the minimum livable wage across our state.

These are not make work jobs. These jobs are at the foundation of our economy and the financial well-being of countless Maine people.

You know President F. Kennedy once said, “As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them.”

It is not enough to simply say “thank you” and pat ourselves on the back for fulfilling a promise to honor our nation’s veterans.

It is time to do our duty as they have done and to ensure that every Maine veteran has the opportunity that they have earned to live, work and raise a family right here in Maine.

My administration will continue to partner with Maine’s Hire-A-Vet Campaign, and with employers big and small, with nonprofit and private organizations to make that goal a reality.

I look forward to next year’s Campaign and I thank those businesses and those veterans for their hard work and their enduring commitment to our people at large and especially to our veterans.

This is Janet Mills, Governor of the great State of Maine, and thank you for listening.

During my campaign for governor, I promised a new and better direction for our state. In these first one hundred days, I believe my administration has delivered on that promise.

Good morning, I am Governor Janet Mills. Thank you for listening.

In the last 100 days my administration has made significant progress in ensuring that Maine people have access to affordable health care, in protecting Maine’s environment, in addressing climate change, in investing in public education, and in strengthening our economy.

Thanks to Medicaid expansion, more than 19,000 people across the state now have access to life-saving health care coverage, and the influx of millions of federal dollars will help support the financial stability of our rural hospitals.

We have protected health care coverage for Maine families by enshrining patient protections under the Affordable Care Act in state law and we have started to rebuild our public health infrastructure like hiring public health nurses to combat any potential outbreaks of disease.

We have taken serious and significant steps to address the opioid epidemic that is ravaging our communities.

More than 35,000 doses of the life-saving drug Naloxone will soon be distributed to health entities across the state, 250 recovery coaches are being recruited and trained to ensure that Maine people get the treatment they need, turning their lives around.

And we have established the Prevention and Recovery Cabinet to mobilize state government to work together to stem the tide of this deadly epidemic.

We are embracing renewable energy opportunities that will grow our economy and fight climate change.

Maine has joined the U.S. Climate Alliance and we are creating the Maine Climate Council to advance public policy to cut Maine’s carbon emissions, to reduce our reliance on fossil fuels, and to address climate change before it is too late.

We are investing in our schools, in our teachers, and our students to provide the foundations for greater opportunity and life-long learning in Maine.

And, we are promoting economic development statewide by creating a long-term development strategy for the first time in decades, expanding our supports for small businesses, investing in high-speed internet, and leveraging private funding to spur innovation.

I am proud of these accomplishments and I am grateful for the work of our talented commissioners, lawmakers on both sides of the aisle, and dedicated employees across state government who are helping to advance these changes.

My Administration will continue to ensure that state government will be effective and responsive to the needs of Maine people, and we will do so responsibly and within our means.

Most of all, I will continue to promote Maine – my home state - as the best place to live, work, and raise a family.

I welcome everyone back home to Maine.

I am Janet Mills, Governor of the State of Maine, and I thank you for listening.

This week, the federal government approved Maine’s State Plan Amendments to expand Medicaid, known as MaineCare, under the Affordable Care Act.

This approval marks the end of a long-overdue effort to fulfill the will of Maine voters and to help tens of thousands of people access health care.

Good morning, I am Janet Mills, governor of the State of Maine. Thank you for listening.

More than a year ago Maine voters, including many of you listening right now, voted overwhelmingly to expand Medicaid at the ballot box.

The benefits of expansion – including the injection of hundreds of millions of dollars of federal money into our state– will extend to rural hospitals, to businesses, and to our economy as a whole. And, by the way, Medicaid expansion is the law.

Maine people have waited long enough.

That is why on my first day in office I issued an Executive Order directing the Department of Health and Human Services to implement Medicaid expansion as swiftly as possible.

Since that time, we’ve already enrolled 18,129 Maine people in health care coverage under the Medicaid expansion program.

Federal approval means the federal government will finance more than $800 million in estimated costs for those who enroll under the expansion from July 2, 2018 - the effective date of expansion - through state fiscal year 2021.

Those are Maine taxpayer funds that are finally returning to our state to support affordable health care coverage.

Medicaid expansion has the power to change many Maine people’s lives for the better and, even save lives.

Now people can see a doctor, they can receive preventive care, they can afford critical prescription medications, and much more.

Now they can stay healthy, they can work, and care for and support their families.

Expanding Medicaid will also help our rural hospitals – many of whom our biggest employers in their communities – and this will help walk them off the brink of financial collapse.

You know, we’re just getting started.

In the coming months, my Administration will work with partners across the state to ensure that people who qualify can enroll and receive the health care they need.

I hope that if you or your family are struggling with medical bills in this complicated health care system, you might explore whether you qualify for Medicaid, known as MaineCare, so that you can receive the coverage you need.

You can enroll by going online, visiting MaineCare at www.maine.gov/mymaineconnection.

That’s w-w-w- dot – M-A-I-N-E- dot- gov- backslash- my- M-A-I-N-E -connection.

When my husband Stan had his medical issues and passed away four years ago, I learned an awful lot about the health care system in Maine.

Then again, we were lucky, you know we had insurance.

But dealing with copays and deductibles and the high cost of prescription drugs is a challenge for everybody, an even greater challenge of course, if you’re not fortunate enough to have health insurance.

Health care coverage should not be a luxury or a privilege reserved for well to do people.

It is a human right. And it’s part of our workforce needs, the fact that people don’t have health insurance to stay healthy and work.

My top priority as governor is to ensure affordable, accessible health care for all Mainers, and every small business, every entrepreneur, every family across the state.

Federal approval and funding for Medicaid expansion brings us one step further in reaching that goal, but I won’t rest until every eligible Maine person is able to access affordable health care.

I am Governor Janet Mills. I thank you for listening.

Fishing in Maine is at the core of our state’s economy, it contributes more than $319 million annually to our economy, including $75 million from ice fishing alone, and it supports over 3,300 jobs.

Good morning, I am Governor Janet Mills and thank you for listening.

In the northern zone of Maine, the ice fishing season generally closes on March 31, and open water season begins April 1.

Well with northern Maine still firmly in winter’s grip, Maine Department of Inland, Fisheries and Wildlife Commissioner Judy Camuso, I thought, should be able to extend the ice fishing season in northern Maine, and allow anglers to continue fishing and help our local small businesses have a chance to continue operating.

That is why I was pleased to sign an emergency bill, LD 1298, earlier this week and it allows Commissioner Camuso the authority to extend the ice fishing season beyond the traditional closing date and it allows waters that are currently open to ice fishing in Northern Maine to remain open for several more weeks, actually until April 21st under the same rules and regulations.

Extending the ice fishing season in northern Maine not only provides anglers with more opportunities to fish, it also provides continued economic opportunity for the many businesses that anglers support.

So, while this is good news for our fishermen, you know, conditions can change rapidly this time of year, and ice that forms over flowing water, especially near streams, or bridges and culverts, can be very dangerous so be aware.

Anglers should always check the condition of the ice before heading out.

As Cornelia “Fly Rod” Crosby once said, “I would rather fish any day than go to heaven.”

I wish every Maine fisherman good times, tight lines, and never-ending catches.

Stay safe out there.

I am Governor Janet Mills, thank you for listening.

Last December, a federal district court judge in Texas issued a decision that would strike down the entire Affordable Care Act.

The Trump Administration’s Department of Justice didn’t defend key parts of the law, those parts that guarantee that no one should be denied coverage or charged more because of a pre-existing condition.

If that decision is upheld, about 52 million Americans with pre-existing conditions may be denied life-saving health insurance coverage, including 230,000 people in Maine.

Insurance companies might go back to excluding essential health benefits like mental health care coverage, maternity and newborn care to all these small businesses and individuals who buy insurance on their own.

I will not leave critical health care protections for Maine people to the whims of Congress or the whims of the Courts.

Good morning, I am Governor Janet Mills. Thank you for listening.

Well earlier this year I joined Senate President Troy Jackson and Speaker of the House Sara Gideon in support of LD 1, "An Act To Protect Health Care Coverage for Maine Families."

With bipartisan support in both houses, the Legislature enacted the bill and this week, I was proud to sign LD 1 into law.

This new law protects Maine people with pre-existing conditions, regardless of what happens to key insurance reforms in the courts or in Congress.

Maine is the first state in the nation to pass such legislation since the federal court decision in December.

Before the Affordable Care Act was enacted in 2008, the number of uninsured Americans and the cost of health care was skyrocketing.

Insurance companies routinely would refuse to cover anyone with a pre-existing condition or anyone they deemed to be “high risk” or just too costly to cover.

As a result, too many of our loved ones, and neighbors and friends went without care.

People like my friend Patty.

Patty was a vibrant, intelligent, charitable woman, an athlete, a mother of three wise children. She was loved by all… and she was uninsured.

She died needlessly from breast cancer, a disease that could have been diagnosed earlier and treated and probably cured.

Patty’s story is not unique. Many of you people listening have friends like Patty. Their fate is simply unacceptable.

By 2016, because of the Affordable Care Act, the percentage of Americans who had health insurance coverage reached an all-time high of 91 percent and the growth in health care prices slowed to historic lows.

We cannot afford to go back.

In addition to ensuring that no Maine person living with pre-existing conditions is denied coverage by commercial insurers, LD 1 prohibits charging seniors substantially higher rates because of their age.

And LD 1 limits the prices people pay for their health care by restricting cost-sharing so called, you know co-insurance and deductibles, those kind of things that come out of your pocket and it bans lifetime and annual caps on coverage which don’t make sense if you’re sick.

LD 1 allows young adults up to age 26 to remain on their parents’ insurance, and it requires coverage of ten essential health benefits, things such as emergency services, ambulance services, prescription drug coverage, maternity, and pediatric care.

Health care is for everyone, not just for the well to do.

It is for the small businesses struggling to pay high health insurance bills.

It is for the family on the brink of bankruptcy because of one illness, or accident or medical mishap.

It is for the community that takes up collections in a jar at the corner store to pay for a good neighbor’s medical costs.

It is for Patty. It is for every Mainer.

As emergency legislation, LD 1 took effect immediately upon my signature this week.

I am so proud that our state has taken the important step of strengthening the laws that protect critical coverage for people with pre-existing conditions and so many other essential, basic health benefits.

Maine people can rest assured that, regardless of whatever happens outside of our state, they will not be denied coverage here in Maine.

I am Janet Mills, Governor of the State of Maine and I thank you for listening.

When I was a little girl, I watched my father as he left for the Legion hall every week and as he left to go to his Navy Reserve unit in full uniform.

He was a proud World War II veteran, who served bravely at the Battle of Leyte Gulf in the Pacific and saw kamikaze pilots attack his own ship.

Much later, my own brother served several tours of duty off the shores of Vietnam in the U.S. Navy following my father’s lead.

Both of them became members of the American Legion.

So today, I am talking about how, 100 years ago in Paris, France, a group of World War I U.S. military personnel far from home founded the American Legion. The Legion is an organization dedicated to honoring four pillars of advocacy: veterans, defense, youth, and Americanism.

A century later, the American Legion consists of 55 departments in each of the 50 states as well as the District of Columbia, and France, Mexico, the Philippines, and Puerto Rico. It operates in more than 12,500 local posts worldwide.

The current United States membership of the American Legion is nearly 2 million people, making the American Legion the largest veterans service organization in the nation.

Here in Maine, between 17,000 and 18,000 veterans are proud members of the American Legion.

Good morning, I am Governor Janet Mills, and I thank you for listening.

The American Legion has been at the forefront of the creation of major institutions and public policy in American society, including the institution of the Department of Veterans Affairs, the United States Flag Code and passage of the GI Bill and so much more.

American Legion posts provide more than 3.7 million hours of volunteer service every year in their communities.

They donate more than 80,000 pints of blood to collection centers nationwide - making the Legion the nation’s single largest blood donor.

They award more than 8,000 medals to Junior ROTC students.

They sponsor more than 2,300 Scouting units that serve more than 64,000 people and they award more than $4 million in college scholarships.

The American Legion is the nation’s leading ambassador to honoring and remembering the nation’s military sacrifices through thousands of memorials and monuments all around the world.

And the American Legion brings together our military men and women who share a deep bond built on service and on dedication to our nation.

For these reasons and many more, I am honored to join with the American Legion this week in celebrating its accomplishments and supporting its dedication to our communities, states, and the nation by declaring March 15, 2019 as American Legion Centennial Day.

I am also proud that the 100th Anniversary American Legion Plague is now hung outside my office in Augusta, so that every visitor to the State House will witness and honor the Legion.

I hope on your next visit to the State House you will check out this beautiful plaque and join me in honoring the 100th Anniversary of the American Legion.

I commend the Legion on its 100th Anniversary, and I thank all of its members for their dedicated service to our country.

I am Janet Mills, Governor of the State of Maine, and I thank you for listening.

In response to reports nationwide regarding the prevalence of chemicals known as PFAS, earlier this week I signed an Executive Order creating a Governor’s Task Force to mobilize state agencies and other stakeholders to review the prevalence of PFAS in Maine and to put forward a plan to address these dangerous chemicals.

Good morning, I am Governor Janet Mills. Thank you for listening.

While PFAS was once a common chemical used in products ranging from clothing to cookware, scientific studies reveal that these chemicals could pose a danger to the health of people, which is why it has been phased out of use over the past several decades. But because of its frequent use since the 1950s, contaminated sites have been identified across the country, including some here in Maine.

Traces of PFAS have been detected at the former Brunswick Naval Air Station and the former Loring Air Force Base for instance, and they’re working to determine just the extent of PFAS in the surrounding environment.

This should not be a cause for alarm, but it is important for the state to identify any locations in Maine where PFAS are prevalent and to examine their effects on drinking water supplies, freshwater fish and marine resources; and to take steps to create and implement treatment and disposal options.

Back in May, 2016 when the hazards of these chemicals first became evident, the federal EPA actually issued a drinking water Health Advisory for PFAS. But, when the EPA released its Action Plan last month it failed to include any commitment to setting a drinking water standard for those chemicals and, instead, it simply delayed evaluating that issue for at least another year. That’s disappointing. As a result, there is Congressional action pending and other states such as New Hampshire are taking steps to create drinking water standards relating to PFAS on their own. Now Maine is following suit.

The Task Force established by my Executive Order will be chaired by a public health expert who will mobilize state government and experts across Maine to ensure that we all have accurate information about this issue and that we have the tools we need to address it.

This Task Force will include the Commissioners of the Departments of Environmental Protection (DEP); Health and Human Services (DHHS); Agriculture Conservation and Forestry (DACF); and Defense, Veterans and Emergency Management in addition to other nonprofit and industry experts.

The Task Force will issue a report to my office with findings and recommendations to address PFAS exposure and contamination in Maine.

My Administration will move swiftly to address this public health concern, but while the Task Force begins its work, I invite any individual or organization who may be concerned about PFAS or who is seeking additional information to call the Maine Department of Environmental Protection at 207–215–1894.

I am Janet Mills, Governor of the State of Maine, and I thank you for listening.

Last night, thousands of Maine households turned up their thermostats to keep their families warm as cold weather engulfed us. At $2.90 a gallon, many households are spending their precious savings on heating oil.
 
The State of Maine sends five billion dollars out of state every year to pay for our use of nonrenewable fossil fuels. We’re the most dependent on heating oil of any state in the country with nearly 70 percent of Maine homeowners relying on oil for heat.
 
Our high costs of energy and electricity are a barrier to our health and a deterrent to our economy, and our cars and trucks account for more than half of our carbon dioxide emissions.
 
I ran for the office of Governor with a promise to reduce this dangerous reliance on fossil fuels, to address our carbon footprint, and to accept the challenge of preventing and mitigating climate change.
 
We simply cannot afford to do nothing.
 
Good morning, I am Governor Janet Mills, and thank you for listening.
 
This week I announced that Maine would become part of the bipartisan United States Climate Alliance, with the goal of reducing our state’s greenhouse gas emissions by 80 percent by the year 2050 and achieving 100 percent renewable generation of electricity by that same year.
 
Consistent with these goals, I authorized the Governor’s Office of Energy to sign onto a Stipulation before the Public Utilities Commission with a number of added provisions regarding the transmission line proposal in western Maine. These added provisions will help us wean ourselves off of fossil fuels.
 
Many parties now agree that the project should go through. These parties include the Conservation Law Foundation, the  Acadia Center, electrical union IBEW, the Maine Public Advocate, the Passamaquoddy Tribe, the nonprofit Western Mountains & Rivers Corporation, the City of Lewiston and the Industrial Energy Consumers Group.
 
You know I expect – and I welcome – a robust and truthful discussion regarding this New England Clean Energy Connect project, a discussion that should be based on facts, not speculation and fear.
 
But you may have seen the campaign on Facebook and TV this week funded by someone who refuses to be identified -- maybe it’s one of those big oil or gas companies wanting to continue taking money out of your pocket. But here is what is clear: that ad misrepresents my position and the process that resulted in this stipulation.
 
I want you to hear the facts directly from me.
 
During my campaign for Governor I said I had serious  concerns about the transmission line proposal. I questioned whether it offered concrete benefits to Maine people. I always said that I wanted to see substantial benefits for Maine people before I could support it.
 
Well, once I took office, I dug in to the file and I consulted with people I trust on all sides. I asked HydroQuebec to come to the table and I insisted that the project, if it were to go forward, include electric vehicle charging stations, provisions to support solar and other renewables, broadband access, heat pumps and similar non- fossil fuel heating mechanisms, as well as cash relief for ratepayers over and above the benefits to Maine electricity consumers of lower prices for all of New England.
 
I consulted with outside experts and I relied on the objective report of those experts hired by the staff of the PUC to analyze the price benefits of this project and its real impact on reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
 
As a result, the stipulation I authorized the Governor’s Energy Office to sign onto last week is markedly different from where things had stood at the end of last year.
 
So, here is the truth.
 
This project, if further permitted, will put our state and our region on the road to a zero-carbon economy by 2050. This isn’t CMP saying this; it’s the experts. And, it’s me.
 
The stipulation will allow thousands of Maine low and middle-income families to shut off the furnace and heat their homes in the winter and cool them in the summer with modern heat pumps.
 
It will put our state in the lead nationally, per capita, in electric vehicle usage, creating a network of charging stations that will enable us to travel anywhere across the state.
 
By all objective analyses, it will suppress the price of electricity in Maine and across the region, saving Maine residents alone millions of dollars each year in electricity costs. In addition, there is that $50 million Low Income Customer Benefits Fund that will be administered by the Office of Public Advocate and a $140 million fund to further reduce electricity rates for Maine consumers.
 
With an investment of more than $30 million in broadband, in education and scholarships, and other community benefits, this project will boost, not diminish, the Maine economy. In the first ten years, the project will provide nearly $1 billion in economic benefits to the state, including several thousand jobs in western Maine during the peak of construction -- jobs sorely needed in rural areas of our state.
 
Finally, while enhancing the reliability of the New England grid to avoid blackouts and brownouts, the project will reduce carbon dioxide emissions in New England by 3.6 million metric tons per year — that is the equivalent of removing 767,000 passenger vehicles from our roads.
 
Importantly, the stipulation creates a new special purpose entity -- not Central Maine Power -- to build and operate this transmission line.
 
And guess what. It will cost Maine ratepayers nothing. Massachusetts will foot the bill.
 
Now I recognize the concerns of those who oppose the project, many of whom are worried about the environmental impacts. Western Maine you know is where I live. Where I was born and grew up, it will always be my home. No one loves western Maine more than I do. No one cares about this state more than I do. 
 
So, I know that this project will now undergo a rigorous environmental review, with public input and comment, at the DEP, at the Land Use Planning Commission, the Army Corps of Engineers and the Presidential Permitting authorities.
 
Already, however, I know that the project has changed a lot to accommodate specific environmental and sportsmen’s’ concerns. The path of the line has been changed for instance to minimize environmental impact. The line will now run under the scenic Kennebec Gorge instead of over it. And there are proposals to preserve deer wintering areas, revegetate cut-over areas and retain the canopy of tall trees wherever it can.
 
To put things in context, though, 411,000 acres of trees are cut in Maine every year- 411,000 acres. The number of acres that would be felled as a result of this project would equal two tenths of a percent of what we already cut. And while we also want to encourage solar and other renewables, to create a comparable amount of electricity with solar — even if we could make that into a consistent and reliable source — we would have to clear about 34,000 areas of land, or fifty-five square miles of land
 
Well as your Governor, it is my responsibility to study this hard and to weigh the broad ramifications of proposals like this and judge whether it moves us forward. It’s so important to look at all sides of the matter.
 
The transmission line project, substantially enhanced by this Stipulation, now is poised to benefit Maine people, to inject millions into our economy, to create jobs, to fund electric vehicles, to reduce electricity costs, to expand broadband, and substantially reduce our carbon footprint. Now then, I believe that this is a project, on balance, that is worth pursuing
 
I am Governor Janet Mills and I thank you for listening.

Last night, thousands of Maine households turned up their thermostats to keep their families warm as cold weather engulfed us. At $2.90 a gallon, many households are spending their precious savings on heating oil.
 
The State of Maine sends five billion dollars out of state every year to pay for our use of nonrenewable fossil fuels. We’re the most dependent on heating oil of any state in the country with nearly 70 percent of Maine homeowners relying on oil for heat.
 
Our high costs of energy and electricity are a barrier to our health and a deterrent to our economy, and our cars and trucks account for more than half of our carbon dioxide emissions.
 
I ran for the office of Governor with a promise to reduce this dangerous reliance on fossil fuels, to address our carbon footprint, and to accept the challenge of preventing and mitigating climate change.
 
We simply cannot afford to do nothing.
 
Good morning, I am Governor Janet Mills, and thank you for listening.
 
This week I announced that Maine would become part of the bipartisan United States Climate Alliance, with the goal of reducing our state’s greenhouse gas emissions by 80 percent by the year 2050 and achieving 100 percent renewable generation of electricity by that same year.
 
Consistent with these goals, I authorized the Governor’s Office of Energy to sign onto a Stipulation before the Public Utilities Commission with a number of added provisions regarding the transmission line proposal in western Maine. These added provisions will help us wean ourselves off of fossil fuels.
 
Many parties now agree that the project should go through. These parties include the Conservation Law Foundation, the  Acadia Center, electrical union IBEW, the Maine Public Advocate, the Passamaquoddy Tribe, the nonprofit Western Mountains & Rivers Corporation, the City of Lewiston and the Industrial Energy Consumers Group.
 
You know I expect – and I welcome – a robust and truthful discussion regarding this New England Clean Energy Connect project, a discussion that should be based on facts, not speculation and fear.
 
But you may have seen the campaign on Facebook and TV this week funded by someone who refuses to be identified -- maybe it’s one of those big oil or gas companies wanting to continue taking money out of your pocket. But here is what is clear: that ad misrepresents my position and the process that resulted in this stipulation.
 
I want you to hear the facts directly from me.
 
During my campaign for Governor I said I had serious  concerns about the transmission line proposal. I questioned whether it offered concrete benefits to Maine people. I always said that I wanted to see substantial benefits for Maine people before I could support it.
 
Well, once I took office, I dug in to the file and I consulted with people I trust on all sides. I asked HydroQuebec to come to the table and I insisted that the project, if it were to go forward, include electric vehicle charging stations, provisions to support solar and other renewables, broadband access, heat pumps and similar non- fossil fuel heating mechanisms, as well as cash relief for ratepayers over and above the benefits to Maine electricity consumers of lower prices for all of New England.
 
I consulted with outside experts and I relied on the objective report of those experts hired by the staff of the PUC to analyze the price benefits of this project and its real impact on reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
 
As a result, the stipulation I authorized the Governor’s Energy Office to sign onto last week is markedly different from where things had stood at the end of last year.
 
So, here is the truth.
 
This project, if further permitted, will put our state and our region on the road to a zero-carbon economy by 2050. This isn’t CMP saying this; it’s the experts. And, it’s me.
 
The stipulation will allow thousands of Maine low and middle-income families to shut off the furnace and heat their homes in the winter and cool them in the summer with modern heat pumps.
 
It will put our state in the lead nationally, per capita, in electric vehicle usage, creating a network of charging stations that will enable us to travel anywhere across the state.
 
By all objective analyses, it will suppress the price of electricity in Maine and across the region, saving Maine residents alone millions of dollars each year in electricity costs. In addition, there is that $50 million Low Income Customer Benefits Fund that will be administered by the Office of Public Advocate and a $140 million fund to further reduce electricity rates for Maine consumers.
 
With an investment of more than $30 million in broadband, in education and scholarships, and other community benefits, this project will boost, not diminish, the Maine economy. In the first ten years, the project will provide nearly $1 billion in economic benefits to the state, including several thousand jobs in western Maine during the peak of construction -- jobs sorely needed in rural areas of our state.
 
Finally, while enhancing the reliability of the New England grid to avoid blackouts and brownouts, the project will reduce carbon dioxide emissions in New England by 3.6 million metric tons per year — that is the equivalent of removing 767,000 passenger vehicles from our roads.
 
Importantly, the stipulation creates a new special purpose entity -- not Central Maine Power -- to build and operate this transmission line.
 
And guess what. It will cost Maine ratepayers nothing. Massachusetts will foot the bill.
 
Now I recognize the concerns of those who oppose the project, many of whom are worried about the environmental impacts. Western Maine you know is where I live. Where I was born and grew up, it will always be my home. No one loves western Maine more than I do. No one cares about this state more than I do. 
 
So, I know that this project will now undergo a rigorous environmental review, with public input and comment, at the DEP, at the Land Use Planning Commission, the Army Corps of Engineers and the Presidential Permitting authorities.
 
Already, however, I know that the project has changed a lot to accommodate specific environmental and sportsmen’s’ concerns. The path of the line has been changed for instance to minimize environmental impact. The line will now run under the scenic Kennebec Gorge instead of over it. And there are proposals to preserve deer wintering areas, revegetate cut-over areas and retain the canopy of tall trees wherever it can.
 
To put things in context, though, 411,000 acres of trees are cut in Maine every year- 411,000 acres. The number of acres that would be felled as a result of this project would equal two tenths of a percent of what we already cut. And while we also want to encourage solar and other renewables, to create a comparable amount of electricity with solar — even if we could make that into a consistent and reliable source — we would have to clear about 34,000 areas of land, or fifty-five square miles of land
 
Well as your Governor, it is my responsibility to study this hard and to weigh the broad ramifications of proposals like this and judge whether it moves us forward. It’s so important to look at all sides of the matter.
 
The transmission line project, substantially enhanced by this Stipulation, now is poised to benefit Maine people, to inject millions into our economy, to create jobs, to fund electric vehicles, to reduce electricity costs, to expand broadband, and substantially reduce our carbon footprint. Now then, I believe that this is a project, on balance, that is worth pursuing
 
I am Governor Janet Mills and I thank you for listening.