On the eve of Election Day, Gov. Janet Mills said that the lack of coronavirus relief funds from the federal government could be a significant issue on voters’ minds as they cast their ballots.
“I think the people voting tomorrow, and the people whose voices are being heard this week and every week, are very anxious for a positive result from Washington. And it’s been very frustrating not to have that positive result in recent weeks and months from the United States Senate and from the administration. And it’s a frustration that I think is showing in some of the polling we’ve read about,” Mills said during a virtual media briefing Monday, likely referring to recent polling that showed voters want Congress to prioritize covid relief measures over other issues.
Talks between the Trump administration and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi over a coronavirus relief bill seemed to stall last week. The Democratic-led House passed its own aid package in October, but that bill has not been taken up by the Senate.
Mills said the federal government’s response to the pandemic has not been “uniform” and has often shifted too much of the burden for dealing with the pandemic to states, especially when a more national strategy would have been more efficient.
She added that, as negotiations in Congress have stalled, the National Governors Association has called for action.
“Businesses are still suffering, people are still suffering,” Mills said. “These are American people who need aid from the American government.”
If no additional aid comes from the federal government, Mills said people who have lost jobs and businesses that have lost revenue should make their voices heard.
“It’s vital that we all speak up, that we all do our part, that we all lobby the United States Senate and administration for immediate aid as soon as possible — to help not only businesses but help schools stay open, to help states and local governments and to give us flexibility for funds that have already been distributed,” she said, noting that many of the relief measures passed by Congress earlier in the pandemic will expire at the end of the year.
Mills added that the state’s budget plans will be based on the situation at the federal level.
“We’re prepared to develop budget estimates based on what we know now, not on what we hope for, not on what we aspire to, not on what we think Congress must [and] should do,” Mills said.
Mills remarks on Monday came as the U.S. is experiencing a renewed surge of COVID-19 cases while also preparing for a national election.
Dr. Nirav Shah, director of the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention, said the state’s seven-day positivity rate is over one percent for the first time since late July. That positivity rate has roughly doubled in the last two weeks, Shah added.
The recent rise in cases spurred Mills to take action over the weekend, including extending funds through December that municipalities have been receiving for developing their own COVID-19 mitigation plans.
Mills also reduced the indoor gathering limit to a maximum of 50 people, postponed the reopening of bars and tasting rooms, and announced that travelers from New York, New Jersey and Connecticut are no longer exempt from requirements to quarantine or obtain a negative COVID-19 test.
Shah said the surge in COVID-19 cases in Maine is extremely troubling.
“It’s rapid, recent and deeply concerning because now we’ve seen it translate into hospitalizations and, sadly, deaths,” he said.
Photo: Mills at a media briefing in May.
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