Governor Janet Mills in her State of the State address made mass proposals to invest in education, childcare, and high-speed internet. In the Governor’s address, she also proposed giving 500 dollar checks to over 800,000 Maine taxpayers.
This was Governor Mills’ first in-person State of the State in a joint session since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. In her address, she talked about the success of fighting back against the pandemic but also sent caution to the unknowns that are ahead. The Governor did make it clear in the address they would not be returning to any kind of economic shutdowns.
Governor Mills touted the economic gains and the state’s strong budgetary position, which is in part the result of federal funding and has resulted in a projected surplus of $822 million through mid-2023. However, the Governor noted that many Mainers are still struggling to meet increased costs of food and fuel.
Checks for taxpayers
In her address, she said she wants to return about half of the surplus to roughly 800,000 taxpayers. The checks would be 500 dollars which is nearly double the amount they sent to taxpayers last year. Last year taxpayers in Maine received 285 dollars if their income was less than 75,000 dollars a year if filing single and 150,000 dollars married.
Childcare
Another area Governor Mills addressed was Childcare in the address she introduced a bill that would strengthen oversight of the child protective services by increasing resources and staff for the child welfare ombudsman, who serves as a watchdog for families interacting with the system. She also proposed adding child protection caseworkers to cover overnight, weekend, and holiday shifts, rather than forcing existing staff, already on the brink of burnout, to work overtime.
Education
Governor Janet Mills also has big plans for her education agenda, including tens of millions of dollars in new spending to contain the cost of college education and create new programs for Pre-K through 12th-grade public schools.
Governor Mills’ $20 million proposal is offering Maine high school graduates free tuition at any of the state’s seven community colleges, where 15,000 students are pursuing one-year certificates and two-year associate’s degrees.
Mills is promising members of the classes of 2020 through 2023 who enroll full-time this fall or next the state will pay the annual $3,800 in tuition and fees.
Governor Mills also proposed tapping into this year’s projected $822 million budget surplus to spend $27 million for universal free breakfast and lunch at K-12 schools, no matter a student’s economic status, and $42 million for the Opportunity Maine Tax Credit, offering up to $2,000 in annual income tax credits to help college graduates working in Maine pay off student loans.
High-speed internet
Governor Mills also pledged to make high-speed internet available to anyone who wants it by 2024 through the Maine Connectivity Authority, created by bipartisan legislation, but did not lay out a plan to get there.
Governor Janet Mills is up for re-election this year. Maine voters will head to the polls for the primaries on June 14th.
