This week I had a great discussion up at Blair Hill Inn and Restaurant in Greenville with business owners, residents, development leaders and local lawmakers. We focused on ideas and strategies for economic growth in rural Maine, particularly Western Maine. 

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

You know diversifying our economy, empowering innovators and attracting young, talented people to live and work in Maine is crucial to the future of our state.

That’s why earlier this year, I directed the Department of Economic and Community Development to create the very first long-term statewide economic development plan in decades.

That plan, which will be finalized in the coming weeks, is being written with input from government agencies, business leaders, educational institutions, private organizations and individuals like yourselves. It will focus on strategies to enhance economic growth, particularly in rural Maine, and address Maine’s workforce challenges.

As we finalize that plan, I think it’s important for me to hear the voices of business leaders and residents all over Maine, to understand their challenges and to learn how state government can help. 

So during our discussion up in Greenville, I heard about the issues that town faces, from funding local schools without increasing property taxes to repairing aging roads and bridges to health care and energy costs. I listened and I shared what my Administration has done to date to address those challenges.

In the biennial budget for instance, we invested $115 million in K-12 education, we began raising the minimum teacher salary to $40,000, and we allocated $18 million to repair aging school infrastructure. 

We also invested $75 million in property tax relief for Maine seniors, families, and small businesses. That’s money going back to you.

We fully funded the Medicaid expansion program and we restored Maine’s Low-Cost Drugs for the Elderly and Disabled Program. We enacted legislation to help lower the cost of prescription drugs, and we told the federal government that Maine will pursue its own state-based exchange to put us in the driver’s seat when it comes to health care.

And don’t forget to check www.CoverME.gov this week to find out what health insurance is available to you at the lowest cost and best coverage.

We also enacted — with the voters’ approval — a $105 million transportation bond to repair roads, highways and bridges, and to protect working waterfronts, and to restore commercial fishing wharfs.

Of course we still have a lot to do.

Every rural community has its strengths. 

For example, besides Greenville, I also visited Monson and Monson Arts which is located in downtown Monson and which offers four-week residencies to artists and writers from all over the place as well as intensive workshops and programs for local school kids and community members.

I met resident artists and writers and learned about the program’s work to spark educational growth, to attract people to rural Maine, and reinvigorate the economy of that town. I also visited Jemma Gascoine Pottery and Monson General Store on Main Street in Monson and talked about their experiences and their excitement about the future.

Undoubtedly the strategy to growing our rural economy will be multi-faceted, but one thing is clear. Supporting these rural communities as they build on their own strengths — as Monson and Greenville are doing — is critical.

Backing local businesses and organizations to attract talented people to live and work in rural Maine will expand our workforce, which is a key aspect of growing our economy statewide.

There is a spot for everyone in Maine’s economy, and we need everyone to participate.

I want innovators and entrepreneurs, families, and business owners to know that Maine has not only an unmatched quality of life, but also unmatched opportunity in new industries across our state.

I look forward to visiting more communities and hearing your thoughts on how we can foster economic growth in Maine in the coming months.

I am Governor Janet Mills.

Thank you for listening.

Maine is at an economic crossroads.

For generations, our forests, farmlands and waters have created economic opportunity all over this state.

Furs, fisheries, timber and land made fortunes for many until the late 1800s, and then large-scale production of lumber, granite, ice and lime, fishing and shipbuilding drove success in our coastal communities and resulted in a network of railroads. Textiles and paper products drove the work of mills across the state and put food on the table for thousands.

But recent decades have showed us the dangers of over-reliance on any one industry. Market demand for paper products has dwindled and foreign competition has caused some mills to shutter, putting thousands of Maine people out of work.

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

Well in recent decades we’ve learned to adjust and change our economy and now it’s time for a long-range economic plan – the first time in decades that we’ve done one! 

While our aging population has left many employers across the state seeking a qualified, ready, and able workforce our children and grandchildren are leaving Maine unfortunately to find jobs in other states.

We’ve been digging deep to form a plan to redevelop our workforce in so many ways.

The strategic plan we’re unveiling this week creates a roadmap to foster innovation, to drive collaboration, to help jump-start economic growth in our state to achieve a diverse, forward-looking economy that will offer everyone the opportunity to succeed.

This plan synthesizes the views and opinions of thousands of people across the state and across the political spectrum, private and public sector, and is grounded in one overall mission:

That by 2030, our state will be an international leader and will have a vibrant and environmentally-sustainable economy.

The plan establishes three overarching goals for the next ten years in Maine:

1. Grow our average annual wage – what people make for a living – by 10 percent;
2. Increase the value of the products we sell by 10 percent;
3. Attract 75,000 people to Maine’s talent pool.

To accomplish these goals, our plan establishes seven key strategies: growing talent in Maine; attracting new talent to the state; promoting innovation; improving connectivity; bolstering infrastructure; maintaining a stable business environment, and promoting hubs of excellence.

Within each of these strategies, our plan offers concrete action steps that will be taken.

For example, we’re talking about a Maine Career Exploration Program to allow internships for high-school age students and to work with them throughout their young years to determine their interests and identify their passions and allow them to connect to the resources, and skills, and employers that can prepare them and put them on a career path whether that’s in trades, or tech or academics.

The plan creates a Welcome Home Program to welcome employers, entrepreneurs, and innovators to our state, enticing those who have grown up here and left, and those who are interested in moving here, to come to Maine. 

The plan also recommends common-sense ideas like simplifying the Education Opportunity Tax Credit to help motivate people to stay in Maine after their college education by helping them pay off their student debt. And it recommends expanding the Maine Seed Capital Tax Credit.

Importantly, it identifies other things like critical infrastructure - expanding broadband with loan guarantees to those providers wanting to invest in internet expansion, particularly in rural Maine. And it calls for a more stable business environment and streamlining of government processes.

While, just like any other state, we have our challenges, we are extraordinary in so many ways.

In a world that is seeking clean, renewable resources, we have abundant forests, wind, water, and sun. We’ve got world-class researchers at the University, at Jackson Labs, at Bigelow, MDI, the Gulf of Maine Research Institute, and so many more. And innovative companies like Atlantic Sea Farms developing new ways to grow kelp.

We have challenges – but we have a lot going for us, too. With this new economic plan, it is my goal that the State of Maine will be known as a place of innovation and excellence – where people can establish their roots and live happy and fulfilling lives, and where entrepreneurs and innovators start and scale their businesses and create jobs.

I love our state. I love Maine people – and because of them I have such great hope for our future. As we approach Maine’s bicentennial, it is time to build on the foundation of our past two hundred years to create a forward-looking economy for the next two hundred years.

Let’s get moving.

Thank you for listening.

This is Janet Mills, Governor of the great State of Maine.

This is Governor Janet Mills and thank you for listening.

This week, the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 to be a pandemic. The President announced some extraordinary measures to minimize travel and encourage “social distancing.” The NBA suspended games for the rest of its season. So did the Maine Red Claws.

At the time of this recording Friday afternoon, Maine CDC has confirmed two presumptive positive tests for the 2019 novel coronavirus (COVID-19): one woman in her 50s from Androscoggin County who is in self-isolation at her home; and a man in his 50s who was screened at a MaineHealth outpatient clinic and is in self-isolation at home.

I know this news can be concerning, but the Maine CDC has been preparing for COVID-19 cases in our state since the end of last year.

Dr. Nirav Shah, Director of the Maine CDC, has assigned more than 30 of his staff to work on preparedness and response. I have convened a Coronavirus Response Team, composed of key department heads headed by Dr. Shah, to coordinate our state’s preparedness and response efforts. Our Administration has been in constant contact with public health and medical professionals, federal and state, hospital systems, long-term care folks, school officials, EMS, county and local governments, tribal governments, and many others to provide guidance and recommendations.

We are running the tests for this virus through our State laboratory and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services this week awarded Maine $4.6 million to help us protect the health of Maine people and our communities. 

This week I also announced other steps.

1. I proclaimed an insurance emergency to improve access to care and to require private health insurance plans to cover costs related to coronavirus testing;
2. I have suspended all non-essential out-of-state work-related travel by State employees; and
3. I have recommended, on the advice of Maine CDC, that non-essential large, indoor gatherings of 250 people or more be postponed in order to delay a potential coronavirus outbreak and to substantially reduce its spread. 

I want to be clear we are not recommending to close Maine schools, although Maine communities may prepare for that possibility. This is a rapidly changing situation and I am continuing to consult with experts at every level on the next best course of action.

Our approach is based on science and fact, not fear. On compassion and caution and the hope that we can as a community limit the impact of COVID-19 on the people of Maine.

Finally,  I want to emphasize the basics once again. 

• Wash your hands often with soap and water for 20 seconds and, if they are not available, soap and water, then use alcohol-based hand sanitizer.
• Avoid shaking hands as a greeting. I’ve tried to do that myself and it’s not easy, but I am.
• Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth with unwashed hands.
• Avoid close contact with people who are sick, and stay at home if you are sick.
• Avoid visiting older people or those with chronic health conditions in person to protect their health and safety.
• Cover your cough or sneeze with a tissue and throw that tissue in the trash. Wipe down the things you touch often like door handles and phone screens, and cellphones, and home and workplace equipment with those disinfecting wipes.
• If you have a fever, cough, or shortness of breath – which are symptoms of a virus – please stay home and call your doctor’s office. Maine CDC is in touch with medical providers across the state, and they are ready to advise you on the phone about what you might do.
• And if you have recently traveled to Italy, South Korea, China or Iran or have symptoms, stay at home and avoid social contact for 14 days.

If you have general questions about the virus, call 211 or email info@211maine.org to get information at any time of day.

We have planned and prepared for all eventualities and are now focusing on reducing the opportunity for this virus to spread. In the meantime, I ask the people of Maine to continue to do what Maine people have always done: calmly prepare, take care of yourselves, be patient, be cautious and be diligent.

We love you all. Please stay safe. Stay healthy. We will get through this. 

This is Governor Janet Mills. Thank you for listening.

This is the first weekend of our state’s reopening.

This is Governor Janet Mills and thank you for listening.

Now many people will be able to get health care for the first time in weeks, such important procedures that have been long postponed, a critical change.

Now Maine people can also worship with members of their faith under new guidelines.

These are meaningful first steps towards creating a new normal – a different way of doing business, of shopping, traveling, of worshipping and enjoying the Maine outdoors in ways that will keep us all safe, if we all pull together and follow the rules that are based on fact and science.

We will keep working to answer questions about the plan, and to address especially the needs of small businesses striving to survive in this new pandemic-driven economy.

Our plan is a flexible one and we are always open to constructive dialogue from workers and businesses and members of the public.

Meanwhile, some people say they are frustrated that the State is moving too slowly; they worry about the toll on the summer tourist season.

Others say they want to go back to work but are afraid of having contact with the public, including the people who come here every summer, from Boston, New York, New Jersey and other dangerous hot spots.

Some are engaging in partisan political chatter over this pandemic; but we know this virus plays no favorites: it doesn’t care whether you’re a Republican or a Democrat, a Green or an Independent. It does not take political sides; it is an equal opportunity destroyer.

Others still are frustrated that we are opening up any businesses at all, because so many people in our state are older or have an underlying condition that puts them greatly at risk.

They know that more than 3,500 people have died in Massachusetts from this painful virus; more than 18,000 New Yorkers; more than 7,000 New Jersey people; more than 2,200 in Connecticut.

In one day this week, one day alone, 252 people died in Massachusetts – a state that is only fifteen miles from our border.

And in just the last 24 hours, the State of Georgia reported more than one thousand new cases.

That’s why, with every order I have issued and every action I have taken, I have thought long and hard about how Maine people – and Maine businesses -- may be impacted.

The challenges this pandemic poses to us and to our state are unlike anything we have seen in a hundred years.

We can’t simply flip a switch and open up all the restaurants, and bars, and businesses and do business as usual and risk a more aggressive resurgence of this deadly virus that will devastate our entire economy for years to come.

So, let’s continue talking, continue listening, continue being part of the solution.

We continue to collaborate with people from all economic sectors across the state to prepare them to open as soon as they can and as safely as they can. And every day, we are working on that testing capacity issue that is so critical to opening our economy.

This virus sometimes tests the limits of our patience and the limits of our economic stability. Let us show the world who we are. Let us show them that, no matter what the challenge, no matter the difficulty, we will persevere. 

Let’s keep talking.

The last thing any of us want to do is to overwhelm our health care system and put the lives of our brave health care workers and first responders in jeopardy.

But it is because of your actions – and solely because of your actions – that the virus has not destroyed us, that we have kept a measured lid on this insidious disease.

Let’s work harder than ever in these next few months to keep this thing at bay and keep our people – and our economy – safe.

We can do this. I believe in you, in the faith, ingenuity and willpower of the people of Maine. 

Maine people are not quitters.

People may angry and frustrated, some losing patience. But no matter what, we will listen to each other. We will work with each other. We will do everything in our power to keep each other safe. We will never give up on each other, never quit each other.

And I will never quit you.

This is Governor Janet Mills. Thank you for listening.

This week I shared some great news – we have secured a new partnership with IDEXX in Westbrook to provide enough COVID-19 test supplies to more than triple our current testing capacity. 

With this additional capacity the Maine CDC will be able to better gauge the prevalence of the virus throughout the state and, in turn, it opens a new set of possibilities as we examine how to safely restart Maine’s economy. 

That is why this week, I also announced a rural reopening plan aimed at reopening certain additional businesses in more rural parts of our state in the next couple of weeks. 

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

I am referring to counties where community spread is not present and where there are significantly fewer cases — Aroostook, Piscataquis, Washington, Hancock, Somerset, Franklin, Oxford, Kennebec, Waldo, Knox, Lincoln, and Sagadahoc counties. 

In these counties only, starting next Monday, May 11^th, retail stores may open for in-store customers with new health and safety precautions. 

Also in those same twelve counties, beginning Monday, May 18^th, restaurants may open for outdoor dining and for limited dine-in service, also with strict health and safety precautions 

In those same counties as well, beginning Monday, May 18^th, remote campsites and sporting camps are permitted to reopen with certain public health safeguards. 

We are also making small adjustments to the plan statewide as well. 

Fitness and exercise centers will now be allowed open on May 11^th for outdoor classes  of 10 people or less or for one-on-one personal training instruction inside a gym.  

All our health and safety guidelines, formed with consultations with the industries, are found on the Department of Economic and Community Development website at www.maine.gov/decd. 

With these changes, we letting these establishments reopen but not requiring them to. And if you are immuno-compromised, or if you care for someone who is, you should not feel compelled to go back to work or to patronize the businesses. And I urge employers to be flexible with their people when considering reopening.  

For now, retail stores and restaurants in York, Cumberland, Androscoggin, and Penobscot counties – where community transmission of the COVID-19 virus is established – they will not be permitted to reopen to in-store shopping or dine-in service until June 1, the tentative start date for Stage 2.    

These establishments can continue to provide telephone order, curbside pick-up, take-out, and home delivery though. 

Maine CDC will continue to monitor case trends and hospitalization rates, and health care capacity, to inform our decisions on the safety of lifting or reinstating restrictions. 

Ultimately, the success of this rural reopening plan depends on the ability of these businesses to conscientiously follow these health and safety precautions; and the ability of Maine people to strictly adhere to physical distancing, and wear face coverings to protect others, and to continue to practice good hygiene, including washing your hands often with soap and warm water. 

If you are an older Mainer, or someone with an underlying health condition, please continue to stay home as much as possible, regardless of where you live. 

My Administration will continue to work with businesses and various sectors of the economy, solicit feedback, consult with public health experts, and move forward in a thoughtful and deliberate way with public health always as our number one priority. 

I feel like we are seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. But that tunnel is surely a long one and there are still dark corners before we get to the end.  Let’s take it one step at a time and navigate this storm together.  

On this Mother’s Day weekend, I thank everyone who is listening who is a mother, or a stepmother, or grandmother, thank you for what you do for your families and for all of our communities across the state.

This is Governor Janet Mills. Thank you for listening.

Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic and during our gradual reopening process, the Maine CDC has been monitoring epidemiological data, like case trends and hospitalization rates, health care readiness and capacity, all of these things to inform our decisions on lifting restrictions and revitalizing our economy.

We look at these metrics every day. We look at them in their totality and look at them in context, as opposed to looking at daily changes of a single metric itself to inform our decisions.

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

Last month, the number of COVID-19 cases and the number of hospitalizations rose, particularly in southern Maine.

In light of that, we postponed the reopening of restaurants for dine-in service in York, Cumberland, and Androscoggin counties.

Instead, these restaurants were able to continue pickup and delivery food service and outside dining service, but not indoor dining, and that was a change, while it was dramatic and hard, we believed it was safer for the health of Maine people but still helping restaurants do business in at least one way.

That was a difficult decision – something that frustrated many restaurant owners, understandably so.

We also moved ahead with restaurant reopenings for dine-in and outdoor dining in the rest of Maine’s counties as scheduled, including Penobscot County, and we became the first state in New England to allow indoor dining at all.

Since then, the average number of cases in these three counties -Androscoggin, Cumberland and York - has plateaued, and hospitalization rates have stabilized.

In light of those encouraging trends, this week I announced that indoor dining in Androscoggin, Cumberland, and York Counties may voluntarily resume, with the safety and health protocols outlined in the COVID-19 Prevention Checklist.

I also announced that bars, breweries, and tasting rooms may open in Cumberland, York and Androscoggin Counties for outdoor, seated service. Gyms, nail salons, and tattoo parlors can also reopen in those counties, all with health and safety protocols that must be strictly adhered to. Those businesses were already open in the rest of Maine’s 13 counties.

We also expanded capacity limits at retail establishments all across the state, allowing up to 5 people per 1,000 square feet, given the decreasing risk associated with retail shopping and the assumption that stores will follow strict public health precautions, such as keeping six foot distances in lines outside the stores. Stores being places where you move around, it doesn’t pose quite the same risk as indoor dining for instance.   

Well with all these changes, reopenings across the state are aligned in all counties. We have now reopened our economy either on a par or ahead of other northeastern states.

We look at Arizona, Texas and Florida however, and as they report their highest case numbers yet and 22 other states are seeing climbing COVID-19 cases, as we reopen restaurants for indoor dining and other businesses in these areas, we have to remain very careful. We don’t want to make the same mistakes those other states have made.

The experiences in those states are a cautionary tale for Maine.

It is possible, if not likely even, that the changes we made will result in an uptick in cases and we will be keeping a close eye on epidemiological data as we have from the very start.

We’ll look at the data in our state, and the data in our neighboring states, and states like New York and Connecticut where people come from to visit Maine in the summer.

If a review of the data concerning Maine finds evidence of an increase in COVID-19 or a risk to the capacity of our health care system, we will have to move forward to protect Maine people again.

But the most effective way to make sure that we don’t have to put on restrictions again is to practice good hygiene and take care of yourself.

So, I ask you as your Governor– please – if you own or work at a public-facing business, please strictly adhere to all health and safety protocols. Don’t let down your guard. Protecting your customers protects your business as well.

I ask all Maine people, please remember to wash your hands frequently, please maintain six feet of distance between yourself and others no matter where you are, stay home when you can, especially if you are older or have an underlying health condition, and wear a cloth face covering when you are out in public.

Recent studies show that those face coverings work.

If we protect ourselves and protect one another by taking these steps, we can continue to reopen our economy in a safe way and limit the spread of this dangerous virus as we welcome tourist season in Maine.

It is all up to every one of us.

This is Governor Janet Mills. Thank you for listening and please stay safe.

As the daughter of a woman who taught in the public schools in Maine for nearly thirty-seven years, and as someone who brought up five daughters who attended and graduated from public schools in Maine, I am very sensitive to the needs of families and faculty and staff in our schools in this extraordinary time.

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

For the sake of Maine children, and our families and our futures, and for the livelihoods of Maine families, a safe return to classroom instruction must be our goal. Like many parents and teachers, I worry in particular about the kids who are being left behind and the inequities that have been exacerbated during this pandemic.

But the goal of returning to classroom instruction cannot come at the expense of peoples’ health and safety either, regardless of what the President says.

I believe strongly that decisions about returning to the classrooms must be based on public health data and not on politics. That is why my Administration is providing public health guidance and financial support to help local officials as they determine what is best for their communities, students, and staff.

The Maine Department of Education, along with Maine CDC, has updated our “Framework for Returning to Classroom Instruction” to include health and safety precautions that have been developed by public health experts.

These science-based protocols, which follow national best practices, include the use of face coverings and physical distancing, and they’ll be supported by up to $165 million in Federal CARES Act funding to be distributed to school systems across Maine.

I recognize that more is needed, but this is just a start-up amount – funding to help them get going for planning for the fall - and I am certainly hopeful that Congress will support additional funding to support the safe-operations of our schools.

This week I also announced we will provide schools with public health guidance in the form of a three-tiered health advisory system, helping them make decisions about when, whether and how to bring students back to the classroom. 

This new tiered system will take into account public health metrics on a county by county basis and it will translate them into three color-based categories: red, yellow, and green. This is what several other states have also done.

A red category says that a county has a high risk of COVID-19 spread and that remote learning, rather than in-person learning, is preferred.

A yellow category indicates that a county has an elevated risk of COVID-19 spread and that hybrid learning models should be adopted, so some at home and some in classroom.

A green category indicates that a county has a relatively low risk of COVID-19 spread so in-person learning can fully be adopted.

This public health status of each county will be updated biweekly starting July 31 and will be available publicly.

Support for child care is also important along with school support. That is why we have also targeted another $8.4 million in federal CARES Act funding — on top of $11 million we previously announced — to child care providers, making sure that parents can go to work, and make sure they know their kids are safe. That funding will support our youngest children and their working parents, and the dedicated providers and their staff.

We know that in order for our economy to fully recover, Maine parents need to be able to return to work when they feel comfortable and knowing that their children are safe.

The actions we took this week are a big step in that direction.

This is Governor Janet Mills. Thank you for listening and please stay safe.

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

First off I want to thank people all across the state. You all have turned to and taken the steps to protect the health and safety of all of us: by wearing face coverings; by keeping your distance; by adapting your businesses and safely serving customers and keeping staff and visitors safe; by encouraging friends and family to get tested or quarantine if come here from another state. All these actions have contributed to our low positivity rate and they’ve allowed our economy to reopen gradually, but safely so far and these actions will enable our schools to open safely in the coming weeks.

But we won’t stop. This deadly virus does not take time off and while we’re proud of our progress, we are not immune from the surges we’ve seen in other states.

We all want Maine people to be healthy. We want the economy to become strong and to expand.

It’s not easy –

The best thing we can do for economic health is to protect public health.

Many people in Maine are still experiencing significant financial hardship too as a result of COVID-19.

The last thing people need to worry about in the middle of a pandemic is losing their home.

So back in April, we established a rent relief program, with non-taxpayer dollars, to help keep people in their homes.

Under that program, each eligible household got up to $500 in rental assistance paid directly to their landlord, and in exchange, the landlord would agree not to bring eviction proceedings for that month. 

As of July 16^th, nearly 7,000 applications were approved and more than $3.3 million in direct relief was provided to Maine people.

I also signed an Executive Order back then that prevented the immediate eviction of tenants who were unable to pay their rent due to COVID-19 financial issues.

As the Maine Supreme Judicial Court is reopening the courts this coming week, and as the federal government appears poised to reduce unemployment benefits, I am now concerned that many Maine people may face a housing cliff.

So, I am dedicating $5 million in federal Covid Relief Funds to expand our rental assistance programs starting Monday, August 3^rd. MaineHousing then will double the rental assistance payment we have from $500 to $1,000 a month. 

Eligible households may receive up to $1,000 in rental assistance for up to three months and that assistance may also be used to pay arrearages. In accepting these payments, the landlord will agree not to evict the tenant for the month the payment was issued.

I have also signed a new Executive Order that expands the timeframes for notice to quit in eviction proceedings.

So when the Court system reopens, this Order will continue a certain measure of protection for “at will,” or month to month, renters. The Order requires a landlord to provide at least 45 days’ notice to a person with a tenancy “at will” or month to month, rather than 30 days under law. If the landlord is attempting to evict a residential tenant for nonpayment, the Order increases an eviction notice time from 7 days to 30 days.

This Order also maintains some strengthened penalties for landlords who might try to evict tenants by unlawful means, self-help you know, like turning off utilities - prohibited.

We hope this expanded rental relief program and continued protections in the Executive Order will help renters and landlords alike.

Finally, we’re also expanding education, prevention, and wraparound services that will reduce the disproportionate racial and ethnic COVID disparities in Maine. This funding will go directly to community-based organizations – those who have “boots on the ground” – who are protecting and assisting people now in their communities and encouraging testing and prevention measures.

More information about the COVID-19 Rental Relief Program, including frequently asked questions, are found at www.mainehousing.org/covidrent.

That’s http://www.mainehousing.org/covidrent

I urge anyone struggling to pay their rent to apply for these funds.

This is Governor Janet Mills and thank you so much for listening.

Stay safe.

Since the beginning of the pandemic, people have written hundreds of cards and letters and emails to me, all filled with hope and heartbreak in equal measure. 

Many come from small business owners and local nonprofits who have faced unprecedented challenges from this pandemic, from the heartbreak of temporarily closing to the herculean task of reopening to the public in a new and innovative way.

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

This pandemic has drastically changed the global business environment. It has disrupted supply chains, and reduced consumer spending and caused severe losses across all sectors. In Maine, the closure of the Canadian border, the stoppage of cruise ships, and the reluctance of people generally to travel have impacted our economy inevitably, from farms and fisheries to retail and recreation, service and hospitality sectors.

“We are stronger, we are smarter, and we do not cave in hard times,” one business owner wrote to me. “We are smarter than this virus and we are ready to do what we need in order to protect our family, and everyone else’s family."

I appreciate the great cooperation of Maine’s small businesses in protecting the people of Maine, often while often sacrificing substantial market share, and my Administration will do whatever we can to support them through these tough times.

Some small businesses and non-profits have not been able to access federal relief funds and have fallen through the cracks. Others have exhausted the funds they received and need something more to get through the coming months. 

This week we launched the “Maine Economic Recovery Grant Program” to support Maine businesses and nonprofits as they grapple with the economic hardship caused by COVID-19.  

This program is backed by $200 million of Federal Coronavirus Relief Funds (CRF) and it will provide financial relief for entities that incurred business disruptions caused by the pandemic.

The business or organization must have its base in Maine, meaning it is headquartered here or has at least half its employees and contract employees based here, and it must employ less than a total of 50 employees and contract employees. And it must demonstrate a need for financial relief due to the virus.

Grants may be used to cover expenses like payroll; rent or mortgage; utility; expenses in replenishing inventory or other re-opening costs; purchase of personal protective equipment, that kind of thing.

Small businesses and nonprofit organizations can apply for grants now through September 9, 2020, and the awards will be made in early October based on need, not on a first-come, first served basis.

The small amount of money available for these grants compared to the need can never replace or repair the extraordinary damage this pandemic has caused.

More support is desperately needed, and I really hope that Congress and the Administration in Washington will step up to the plate soon and provide meaningful relief to the small farms, the fishermen, the Mom & Pop stores, the diners, the B ‘N B’s, the motels, stores and local family businesses across this state and across this nation – those that are the backbone of our economy and the lifeblood of our communities.

To learn more, please visit the Department of Economic and Community Development website at maine.gov/decd. Small businesses can begin applying now.

If we continue to protect ourselves and one another by keeping our distance, washing our hands and wearing face coverings, remember we can keep our small businesses open, we can reopen our schools and we can limit the spread of this dangerous virus.

We will get through this.

It is up to all of us.

This is Governor Janet Mills.

Thank you for listening.

Cold weather heralds more than just autumn in Maine and the turning of leaves and beautiful scenery across our state. As we approach the flu season and cold season during this unprecedented COVID-19 pandemic, it’s going to be more important than ever to take steps that are backed by science to protect our health, the health of our families, our communities and our loved ones. 

Things like getting your annual flu shot. 

This is Governor Janet Mills and thank you for listening today.

The Maine CDC recommends that all people six months and older get a yearly flu vaccine before the end of October, when flu activity really increases.

While getting a flu shot helps reduce your risk of getting the flu and spreading it to others, this year it will also lessen the burden on Maine’s health care system during this pandemic, by reducing the number of people who are sick and seek medical care. It is also possible to have the flu and COVID-19 at the same time. Experts are studying this, but you know having the flu could reduce your body’s ability to respond to a COVID-19 infection if you are exposed.  

While we don’t know when a safe vaccine for COVID-19 may be widely available for Maine people and others, getting a flu vaccine today is one way to keep yourself, your loved ones and our state healthy this fall. 

It takes about two weeks after getting vaccinated for that flu shot to take full effect, but the flu is here now. So get a shot today. To find a flu clinic, search your zip code on flushot.healthmap.org or cdc.gov/flu or search the listings on 211maine.org.

Join me in getting a flu shot this fall. Stay healthy, stay safe.

This is Governor Janet Mills and thank you for listening.