Maine’s “Rainy Day” Fund, otherwise known as the Budget Stabilization Fund, is our state’s savings account to prepare for the possibility of an economic downturn sometime in the future.
As a result of the most recent budget I signed on July 20,th we deposited another $223.6 million in the Rainy Day Fund. Since my first day in office two and a half years ago, my Administration has worked in bipartisan fashion with the Legislature to more than double — that’s right, more than double — the Rainy Day Fund to bring it to an historic high of nearly $500 million.
Hello, this is Governor Janet Mills and thank you for listening.
When I came into office, I made it a priority to continue building up the Rainy Day Fund. I’ve had experience with downturns in the economy and I know that we have to save for a rainy day.
Boy then the coronavirus pandemic hit, and we knew the shock to our economy — and to state revenues — was likely to be serious.
So at the beginning of the pandemic, my administration worked with the Legislature to take the surplus state government had and save part of it for the emergency we knew was on the horizon. In the weeks that followed, I also instructed State government to be thrifty and we implemented a curtailment order. Those fiscally responsible decisions, plus prudent management of Departmental spending throughout the pandemic and some significant federal support, allowed us to maintain critical government services for Maine people — and rather than take away from the Rainy Day Fund, like many other states had to do, we added to ours. We needed to be prepared.
As we emerge from the pandemic, this sound fiscal management has positioned us well to continue our economic recovery and to send a strong message to bond rating agencies about our financial stability — in fact, Moody’s and Standard & Poor’s credit rating agencies have cited Maine’s governance practices and its reserves in the Budget Stabilization Fund as grounds for reaffirming Maine’s Aa2 and AA bond ratings, respectively, and for rating Maine’s debt as being stable, even during the pandemic, even while they’ve downgraded ratings of other states.
Well, I am proud of the progress my Administration and the Legislature have made together on this important front.
As we continue our economic recovery from the coronavirus pandemic, we’ll keep working with the Legislature to make methodical, rational deposits into the Rainy Day Fund to combat any unforeseen economic changes in the years to come.
The pandemic has taught us how important it is to be prepared for whatever challenge Maine may face.
Downpour or drizzle, we now have a strong umbrella for the next rainy day.
This is Governor Janet Mills. Thank you for listening.