Gov. Janet Mills signs budget making free community college permanent; proposes $300 relief checks

Governor Janet Mills said she signed a state budget last week that makes free community college permanent, sends one-time $300 relief payments to residents, and increases investments in housing, healthcare and veterans' services.

Mills said the changes are designed to keep Maine competitive, build a skilled workforce and help families manage rising costs. "To keep Maine competitive and to create a skilled workforce and to build a diverse economy that attracts new businesses and provides good paying jobs, we have got to invest in our people and in our public education system," she said.

The budget permanently extends a program first enacted in 2022 that made community college free for recent high school graduates. "The free community college program has made a life changing difference for thousands of Maine young people," Mills said, noting that "more than 23,000 students have taken advantage of this free community college program to date." She said lawmakers agreed to make the change permanent and that she was "proud to sign that budget into law."

Mills also highlighted tax relief for people with student loans, saying Maine offers "a full tax credit of $2,500 a year for paying those loans and paying taxes in the state of Maine." She framed that credit as part of broader efforts to reduce the cost barriers to postsecondary education.

Addressing the immediate cost-of-living squeeze, Mills said the budget includes direct relief in the form of $300 checks to residents to "help offset in some small way the cost of gas, goods, and groceries." The numeric eligibility figure cited in the recorded remarks is unclear in the transcript; Mills emphasized the payment, but did not in the recorded text provide a clear, verifiable count of recipients.

The budget also targets housing and local education funding. Mills said it "increases funding for our already successful housing programs, creating 500 new affordable homes for families all across Maine," and "maintains the state's obligation to pay 55% of local education costs to help hold down property tax increases."

Mills said the budget "protects affordable health care and reproductive health care," maintains support for seniors' prescription drug costs, provides funding for Maine veterans' homes, and increases property tax relief. She also announced ongoing and permanent funding to track forensic assault examination kits and to support domestic violence and sexual assault services after several years of federal support.

The address closed with Mills reiterating the administration's guiding belief that the state's strongest asset is its people and that the budget "invests in you and supports you and your families." Mills concluded the message by thanking listeners.

The budget was described in this recorded statement; the speech did not include legislative vote tallies or further implementation dates. Additional details about eligibility, administrative timelines and specific program rollouts were not provided in the recorded remarks and would be available from state budget documentation or agency announcements.