Twenty years ago, in the wake of an unimaginable attack on our nation, Americans from all over, of all backgrounds, all political parties, stood together, united not only in our grief, but in our firm resolve to persevere.

While terrorists that day took from us loved ones, including cherished members of our Maine community, they also revealed the unshakable strength of the American spirit.

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

In honor of the victims and survivors of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, I have directed that the United States and State of Maine flags be lowered to half-staff statewide Saturday, September 11th.

This weekend, we all pause in solemn remembrance of those tragically lost twenty years ago, and we pay unending gratitude to our heroic first responders who saved so many lives that day, and the many first responders who died as a result of the attacks on our mainland.

We also remember the courage and conviction that carried us through those difficult moments, and we know that it continues to live on in us all these years later.

These are difficult times too, with the dangerous Delta variant spreading across the globe and here in Maine, threatening the health and well-being of our friends, our family, and our fellow citizens.

But we have met enemies before as one people. We have put aside politics in the past to protect each other and to preserve this place we all call home. We must do that again.

As we confront this new and very different enemy twenty years after 9/11, let us remember the spirit of unity and common purpose that bound us together through those difficult times.

Let us remember what it means to put aside our differences and stand together to defeat the things that threaten our shared future.

This weekend, as we mourn and honor the victims of 9/11, as we pay tribute to the remarkable bravery we all witnessed, and as we reflect on this difficult part of our history, let us remember that through the division and rancor that often dominates the headlines, we are still one nation.

We are one people united by our collective devotion to this land and to its promise of freedom and opportunity, and, regardless of the depths of our despair, that we have the strength to rise up a stronger nation and a stronger people. 

Today, I say a prayer for those we lost, and I say a prayer for our future. With resilience and resolve, let us show the world the spirit and strength of Maine people. Let us show the world what it means to be an American.

This is Governor Janet Mills. Please stay safe and thank you for listening.

Hello, this is Governor Janet Mills.

Every day, working people across our state keep the state moving strong — the people who plow the roads before sunrise in winter; people who protect our public safety; the people who stock the grocery stores and those who grow the food that’s on those shelves; the people who care for our children and our most vulnerable citizens; the people who preserve our clean drinking water and clean air and so many many more unsung heroes— you are the people who make this state the best state in the nation.

This Labor Day, I want to recognize the contributions of all Maine working people to our State, especially during the challenges of this COVID-19 pandemic.

We know how difficult these times have been on hardworking Maine families, which is why we have made investments that we know you need to succeed.

This summer for instance, I signed into law a bipartisan budget that will provide nearly $300 in hazard pay for Maine people who stayed on the job during the pandemic. The budget also fully funds public education for the first time in history and it fully restores revenue sharing to the towns to help hold down your property taxes and put money back in your pocket.

I signed into law the Maine Jobs and Recovery Plan, my bill to use federal funds from the American Rescue Plan to make historic investments in Maine’s workforce. Under the Maine Jobs and Recovery Plan, we will build more affordable housing and access to child care especially in rural areas, but all to help people get back to work. The Maine Jobs and Recovery Plan also invests heavily in skills development, training, and apprenticeship programs to give people the skills they need to be fully and productively employed.

These steps build on other actions we are taking to support working people in Maine.

We enacted one of the most progressive paid leave policies in the country, and we enacted a law to examine how to expand benefits to more families, working families, in Maine.

We expanded health and safety training for Maine’s construction workforce to protect people on the job. In 2019, we successfully negotiated seven new contracts for state employees. Those included pay raises and a first-time provision for parental leave. This year, we’ve worked hard to reach fair agreements that raise pay for state employees who provide such critical services to all Maine people.

We are working directly with employees and employers to match Maine people with good-paying jobs and to support businesses who are looking to hire now. We are encouraging employers to re-evaluate their hiring procedures, their benefit packages and hybrid work options to reach and retain more staff. And we are modernizing state government so that’ll be easier for people to access services, including resources that assist people in overcoming barriers that prevent them from working full time.

Maine people have adapted throughout our history to provide for their families, to contribute to our economy, and to shape the foundation of our state, perhaps no more so than during the COVID-19 pandemic. And Maine people deserve a lot of credit.

The Mills Administration is adapting too to build a stronger economy where every working person can succeed. This Labor Day let’s reflect on the many contributions of working men and women to our state and commit to rebuilding a bright future and opportunity for all Maine families.

Thank you.

Earlier this week, we welcomed a new milestone in the battle against the pandemic: the FDA’s full approval of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine.

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

In case you didn’t hear it, last Monday, the FDA granted full approval of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine for people 16 years of age and older.

This action reinforces the robust and rigorous scientific evidence that says that this vaccine is safe and effective, and, of course, unquestionably the vaccine is far better than running the risk of getting COVID-19, especially while the more dangerous and much more transmissible Delta variant drives a surge in cases and hospitalizations around the globe. This Delta variant is threatening the lives of people right here in Maine.

As of right now, there are more than 110 people in hospitals in our state, about half of whom are in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) and seriously ill with this deadly virus. Nearly a quarter of the people in hospitals right now with COVID are on ventilators helping them breathe.

The Maine CDC reports that about 75 percent of the people hospitalized for COVID are unvaccinated.

Please don’t let this be you.

Getting vaccinated may save your life. It may also save the life of a family member or a friend, or the life of a child whose not yet eligible for a vaccine.

COVID-19 vaccines are available at no charge at sites all across the state. For information on getting a vaccine, just visit Maine.gov/covid19/vaccines or call the Community Vaccination Line at 1-888-445-4111.

Maine people’s adherence to the science throughout this pandemic has kept our rate of COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations and deaths fairly low compared to almost all other states, and its kept our vaccination rate high too. But we can’t let up now. We can’t let down our guard. Please, I urge everyone who has not yet been vaccinated — get your shot as soon as possible.

This is Governor Janet Mills. Thank you for listening.

Maine’s border businesses rely so much on tourism from Canadian neighbors to make ends meet, but with the federal government’s unfortunate decision to keep the border closed at least until August 21st, traffic from Canada has been very limited.

I keep calling on the U.S. government to safely reopen the border, but in the meantime, our border businesses need our support.

Last week, I announced a $10 million economic recovery grant program to provide direct financial relief to Maine transportation and border businesses that have been so impacted by the border closure with Canada.

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

My Administration is committed to providing financial relief for small businesses that incur business disruptions and added expenses as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

In August 2020, we launched the Maine Economic Recovery Grant Program and we provided $174 million in grants to nearly 4,000 businesses and non-profits across the State of Maine.

Then in December last year, we launched the Tourism, Hospitality & Retail Recovery Grant program and provided nearly 2,000 tourism, retail and hospitality businesses with about $53 million in additional support.

In July of this year, I signed legislation to implement the Maine Jobs & Recovery Plan which includes an additional $66 million in economic recovery grants, backed entirely by federal funding allocated to Maine by the American Rescue Plan.

Last week, after drawing on the recommendations from the tourism, hospitality and retail industries, I announced our newest grant program for Maine businesses — the Charter Transportation and Border Business Assistance Grant Program.

Using $10 million in federal Cares Act funds, these grants will help sustain charter transportation businesses statewide and public facing businesses and organizations within 25 driving miles of the US-Canada border with up to $100,000 each.

Priority will be given to businesses who have not received other relief funds to date.

Businesses can apply right now for these grants on the Department of Economic and Community Development website at maine.gov/decd.

The application portal will be open until midnight September 13th. Applications will be reviewed, and final determinations made after that date. If you’re selected for a grant, a notice of grant amount will be sent via e-mail.

As with other economic recovery grants, these funds will be used to cover expenses of a variety of sorts: including rent or mortgage payments; utilities; operating expenses; expenses to replenish inventory or other re-opening costs; or the purchase of personal protective equipment, for instance. Funds are to be spent on operations that are strictly within Maine. And the grants of course are subject to audit.

My Administration is committed to supporting the sectors of our economy that have been hardest hit by the pandemic. Along with this latest grant program, we look forward to distributing additional federal funds under the Maine Jobs & Recovery Plan once that takes effect in October to support the economic recovery of small businesses statewide, as well as working families, childcare agencies, broadband, and so many initiatives that will jumpstart our economy and help us recover from this pandemic.

This is Governor Janet Mills. Thank you for listening.

Earlier this week, I was pleased to announce that the State of Maine has achieved another vaccination milestone: 80 percent of adults in Maine have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine. That’s everybody over the age of 18.

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

According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 80.2 percent of adults aged 18 and older in Maine have received a COVID-19 vaccination. We are one of only six states in the nation so far to reach this milestone.

Maine is also the third best in the nation in the percentage of people who are fully vaccinated, with more than 64 percent – including children under 12 who are not even yet eligible for a vaccine – fully vaccinated against COVID-19.

That’s third best in the nation, more than 64 percent of our entire population, fully vaccinated.

Maine also continues to make progress in vaccinating younger people, with more than 50 percent of young people ages 12 to 19 fully vaccinated.

I applaud Maine people for their willingness to roll up their sleeves and get their shot. But we’re not letting down our guard, we have not quit yet, people are still getting sick and there are many people who still haven’t gotten vaccinated.

We know that vaccinations are the best tool to protect the health of all Maine people, including children who aren’t yet eligible for the vaccine. Let’s not put them at risk. That’s unfair. It’s the best tool to protect them, and your family and your friends, and your coworkers from COVID-19 and from the more contagious and the deadly Delta variant that is spreading across Maine and across the nation right now. 

It is just crucial that we continue to make progress and keep fighting back against this pandemic. We can do it.

If you haven’t had your shot, please, talk to your doctor if you feel uncomfortable about it, about getting vaccinated and how it can protect your health and potentially save your life. If you know anybody who is not yet vaccinated, encourage them to get vaccinated.

It’s simple, it’s accessible, it doesn’t cost anything, it’s available in every community.

All three of the authorized COVID-19 vaccines have proven extremely effective. They are safe and they save lives.

COVID-19 vaccines are available at no charge at sites across the state. For information on getting a vaccine, please visit Maine.gov/covid19/vaccines or call the Community Vaccination Line at 1-888-445-4111.

Please, get your shot today. It’s critical.

This is Governor Janet Mills and thank you for listening.

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. 

The US CDC recently reported that more than 93,000 people died from drug overdoses nationwide last year, a staggering record reflecting the coronavirus pandemic’s toll on efforts to quell the opioid crisis and the continued spread of illegal fentanyl in the narcotic supply.

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

Here in Maine, the Attorney General’s Office disclosed that 504 people died from opioid overdose in 2020, a 33 percent increase over the year before. More than 300 of those deaths were due to fentanyl, a 30 percent increase over the year before. Sadly, those numbers have not improved to date this year.

The pandemic has been difficult in so many ways, but this increase in drug overdose deaths is another example of how it has hurt our state and our entire nation.

My heart breaks for the friends, family, and community members we have lost – people who had meaningful lives.

Our state is diminished by their loss. Our nation is diminished by these deaths.

There is no simple solution to ending substance use disorder and these overdoses, but at my third annual overdose response summit, we rededicated ourselves to preventing addiction, persevering through this opioid epidemic, and achieving our full promise as a people and a place.

To prevent early use of addictive substances by children and young people, we will increase the number of children’s behavioral health counselors, promote healthy outdoor afterschool programs, and leverage funds from the private sector and the federal government to sustain successful prevention efforts led by community members across Maine.

And to reduce the number of prescribed and illegally obtained opioids, we will use the Prescription Monitoring Program to identify and educate physicians and others who overprescribe opioids and we will strengthen law enforcement’s efforts to prosecute drug traffickers who are bringing these substances to our streets.

Just in the last few months, in several different incidents, our Department of Public Safety seized more than four pounds of fentanyl from the streets of Augusta, Bangor, Portland, Old Orchard Beach and across the state. Four pounds! When a tiny amount will kill somebody. Four pounds!

And to ensure that treatment for substance use disorder is affordable and accessible, we will work to expand medication assisted treatment and to educate people with substance use disorders on different treatment options so they can find the best program for their needs.

And to support life-long successful recovery, especially for young Mainers, we are increasing the number of recovery coaches and expanding and broadening the StrengthenME program, a coalition of community organizations and agencies providing free resiliency resources to anyone experiencing hardships caused by the pandemic.

We have a long way to go towards healing our state, but there is always hope and the hard work of Maine people which has seen us through hard times before.

We survived the last sixteen months not just by staying apart to stay safe, but by treating each other with compassion and care, connecting in different ways to those who need it most. That’s at the heart of who we are. It is also at the heart of our perseverance through this pandemic.

With one crisis waning, we now redouble our efforts to reach every person struggling with substance use disorder. We say, with one voice, your home is here. We promise to never lose hope. We are ready to help.

If anyone listening right now needs support, or knows someone who does, please call 207-221-8198, seven days a week, from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. You can find resources online at knowyouroptions.me.

This is Governor Janet Mills. Thank you for listening.