2021 Governor's State of the State speeches


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OnTheIssues.org excerpts:  (click on issues for details)

Abortion     Greg Gianforte: Urges legislature to pass restrictive abortion laws.     Henry McMaster: Send me the heartbeat bill and I will immediately sign it.     Asa Hutchinson: Now we're the number one pro-life state in the nation.     Kristi Noem: Ban abortion of preborn diagnosed with Down syndrome.

Budget & Economy     Mike Parson: Workforce development programs has attracted businesses.     Charlie Baker: Massive transformation of work has wide impact.     John Carney: Proposes fund to convert existing properties for employers.     Eric Holcomb: Infrastructure a priority, complete interstate project.     Steve Sisolak: COVID: Additional $50 million to help small businesses.     Steve Sisolak: Launch State Infrastructure Bank to leverage outside capital.     Tony Evers: $40 million for Rural Innovation Fund.     Henry McMaster: Propose nearly doubling rainy day reserve fund.     Laura Kelly: Funding & assistance to strengthen rural small businesses.     Phil Murphy: COVID: Grants and loans to nearly 55,000 small businesses.     Phil Murphy: Largest investment in infrastructure in New Jersey history.     Andrew Cuomo: COVID: Washington passed the buck without passing the bucks.     Brad Little: $126 million for highways; $80 million for transportation.     Andy Beshear: Better Kentucky Budget: no tax increase, no budget cuts.     Doug Burgum: Investing in infrastructure now will save us millions.

Civil Rights     Jay Inslee: We have work ahead to undo racial inequities.

Crime     Mike Dunleavy: Ramp up prosecution for sexual crimes and domestic violence.     Mike Parson: Require de-escalation and bias recognition police training.     Charlie Baker: Passed one of the most comprehensive police reform laws.     John Carney: We banned chokeholds, now body cameras for every officer.     Peter Ricketts: Build a new, modern correctional facility.     Tony Evers: As long as I'm governor, we back the blue!     Tony Evers: Reform laws to help victims of sex trafficking.     Henry McMaster: Shield companies providing drugs for lethal injection.     Ralph Northam: It's time to end the death penalty in Virginia.     Asa Hutchinson: Let's not be last state to enact hate crimes legislation.     Jay Inslee: Investigations & prosecutions into racial injustice.     Kim Reynolds: There will be no talk of defunding the police here.     Kim Reynolds: Ban racial profiling and other forms of disparate treatment.     Phil Murphy: Eliminate mandatory minimum sentences for nonviolent crimes.     Brad Little: Other places defund the police; Idaho defends the police.

Drugs     Ralph Northam: Time to join 16 others states, make marijuana legal.     Ned Lamont: Work with legislature on legalization of marijuana.

Education     Greg Gianforte: More trade education scholarships; more teacher incentives.     Mike Dunleavy: Increase funding for public homeschooling.     Gretchen Whitmer: Our economy demands every child has a great public education.     Gretchen Whitmer: Tuition-free opportunities for COVID front line workers.     John Carney: Double Opportunity Funding for public schools.     Michelle Lujan-Grisham: Enact an equity-first budget for public education.     Michelle Lujan-Grisham: Supports tuition-free two-year higher education.     David Ige: Maximize school land by building compatible structures.     Spencer Cox: Change the way we fund schools, what's best for entire state.     Eric Holcomb: Parents deserve options but not at expense of public schools.     Eric Holcomb: Help Hoosiers obtain post-secondary education for jobs.     Steve Sisolak: Dollars follow students, not districts nor schools.     Peter Ricketts: Fully fund aid to K-12 education, invest in next generation.     Tony Evers: COVID: Hold schools harmless for enrollment reductions.     Henry McMaster: $13 million to establish Education Scholarship Accounts.     Henry McMaster: Remove outdated "Common Core" textbooks from classrooms.     Asa Hutchinson: Raise average teacher salaries $2,000 over next two years.     Kim Reynolds: $28 million for public-private partnerships for child care.     Kim Reynolds: Make open enrollment available in all school districts.     Kristi Noem: Schools should teach is US is most special nation in history.     Brad Little: Make sure all students can read by end of third grade.     Doug Ducey: Parents have new options, we should empower them.     Andy Beshear: $1000 salary boost for all school workers.     Andy Beshear: $100 million to repair crumbling public schools.     Phil Scott: Investing in childcare a top priority; address inequities.     Doug Burgum: Expand career/technical academies across the state.

Energy & Oil     Mike Dunleavy: Harness renewable energy resources: wind, tidal, hydro.     Mike Dunleavy: False premise: protect environment or economic development.     Charlie Baker: Roadmap to reach net zero emissions by 2050.     Michelle Lujan-Grisham: New Mexico to have nation's largest single wind complex.     Steve Sisolak: We're poised to lead the world on clean energy storage.     Doug Burgum: Clean coal will allow us to shape global energy policy.

Environment     Gretchen Whitmer: It's time to rebuild Michigan's water infrastructure.     John Carney: $50 million investment in new Clean Water Trust Fund.     Michelle Lujan-Grisham: State recovered over $1 million from corporate polluters.     Eric Holcomb: Investing in community trails, planting a million new trees.     Brad Little: Wildfires are about land management, not climate change.

Families & Children     Mike Parson: Consolidate several programs into new Office of Childhood.     Ralph Northam: Fund doula services for pregnant women.     Phil Murphy: Make New Jersey safest place to deliver and raise babies.     Phil Murphy: Committed to more robust child-care support system.

Free Trade     Laura Kelly: First Democratic governor for US/Canada/Mexico trade deal.

Government Reform     Greg Gianforte: Red Tape Relief Task Force to review all regulations.     Mike Dunleavy: Strengthen agricultural sector with fewer regulations.     John Carney: Make mail-in voting a permanent feature of our elections.     Henry McMaster: Magistrate judges should be lawyers, publicly screened.     Ralph Northam: $12 million into natural resources agencies.     Ralph Northam: Amend constitution so that ex-cons can vote automatically.     Tony Evers: Fixing broken unemployment system is a priority.     Tony Evers: End gerrymandering, stop legislature from destroying records.     Brad Little: Idaho is now the least regulated state in the nation.     Ned Lamont: Easier absentee ballots, early voting should be permanent.     Doug Burgum: One-stop reporting for hazardous spills helps state respond.

Health Care     Mike Parson: Will expand Medicaid but be vigilant against fraud and waste.     Charlie Baker: Emergency telehealth order worked, now it's permanent.     Michelle Lujan-Grisham: Mental health care is health care, we must meet those needs.     Eric Holcomb: Now is the time to implement a managed care system.     Tony Evers: Fund state alternatives to ObamaCare.     Kim Reynolds: $30 million over two years to fund mental health reform.     Kristi Noem: Make pandemic rules for telehealth permanent.     Andrew Cuomo: Telehealth invaluable, but must ensure accessibility to all.     Brad Little: Expanded telehealth access, let's make changes permanent.     Doug Ducey: Once we're all vaccinated we can get on with life.     Andy Beshear: COVID: Troubling that a public health crisis was politicized.     Phil Scott: Time to cap annual increases, prioritize prevention.

Homeland Security     Peter Ricketts: Working to bring Space Command to the Heartland.     Kristi Noem: Tax exemptions for veterans with disabilities.     Andy Beshear: Full exclusion of military pensions from state income tax.

Immigration     Greg Gianforte: Ban sanctuary cities in Montana to maintain rule of law.

Jobs     Mike Dunleavy: Bring gaming to Alaska: create hundreds of high-paying jobs.     Mike Parson: Expand programs to link high school graduates with jobs.     Spencer Cox: Funding for job training, not everyone needs a degree.     Eric Holcomb: Pass pregnancy accommodations bill for women on the job.     Peter Ricketts: We've been cutting red tape to keep Nebraskans working.     Laura Kelly: Rebuilding crumbling infrastructure means jobs.

Principles & Values     Mike Dunleavy: Alaskans are a different breed: we don't run and hide.     Charlie Baker: More important to ask questions than be judgmental.     Spencer Cox: We are friends; we must always be friends.     Henry McMaster: COVID: We slowed down, but safely remained open.     Laura Kelly: Leaders must set an example that we share a common bond.     Ralph Northam: Voters deserve the truth, even when it's hard to hear.     Asa Hutchinson: When the election is over we need to come together.     Kristi Noem: COVID: no shutdowns, we stayed open the entire time.     Phil Murphy: New Jerseyans need to know government has their backs.     Brad Little: Our statehouse demonstrates openness of political process.     Doug Ducey: Condemns violence & destructive rioting at US Capitol.     Ned Lamont: Important to reset relationships with regional states.

Tax Reform     Greg Gianforte: Lowering top tax rate will make Montana more competitive.     Mike Dunleavy: Any new broad-base tax must be approved by Alaska people.     Mike Parson: For lower taxes, but online retailers hurt local business.     Tony Evers: Incentivize in-state pharmaceutical, medical equipment.     Henry McMaster: 15% across-the-board reduction for all personal brackets.     Asa Hutchinson: Lower tax rate for new residents to 4.9% for five years.     Jay Inslee: Reduce increases in unemployment tax.     Kim Reynolds: We need to continue the conversation about cutting taxes.     Kristi Noem: The taxes we have are stable and predictable, no increases.     Andrew Cuomo: COVID: Raise taxes on the wealthy to help states.     Brad Little: Proposes the single largest tax cuts in Idaho history.     Doug Ducey: Haven't raised taxes, on tax reform let's think big.     Phil Scott: Reduce unemployment payroll tax without impacting benefits.

Technology     Mike Parson: $5 million investment to expand and improve broadband.     John Carney: Provided 25,000 low-income students with internet access.     Michelle Lujan-Grisham: $200 million for high-speed internet is urgently needed.     David Ige: Hawai'i 2.0: we must pivot to a digital economy.     Eric Holcomb: Additional $100 million to boost broadband connectivity.     Peter Ricketts: Bring broadband coverage to every corner of the state.     Tony Evers: Ongoing investment in rural broadband expansion.     Laura Kelly: Established Kansas's Office of Broadband Development.     Ralph Northam: Broadband is as critical now as electricity in 1900s.     Asa Hutchinson: $30 million to expand high-speed internet into rural areas.     Kim Reynolds: $450 million for statewide high-speed broadband by 2025.     Kristi Noem: Finish connecting the state with broadband.     Phil Murphy: We're closing the digital divide for schoolchildren.     Tony Evers: Declares 2021 to be Year of Broadband Access.     Andrew Cuomo: Broadband internet must be accessible and affordable.     Doug Burgum: Essential to invest in protecting the data of our citizens.

Welfare & Poverty     David Ige: Affordable housing: 10,000 homes built, 3000 more by 2022.     Ralph Northam: $25 million new dollars to housing trust fund.

Click for quotations from other sources by: Andrew Cuomo New York Democratic Governor Andy Beshear Kentucky Democratic Gubernatorial Challenger Asa Hutchinson Arkansas Republican Governor Brad Little Idaho Republican Charlie Baker Massachusetts Republican Governor David Ige Hawaii Democratic Governor Doug Burgum North Dakota Republican candidate for Governor Doug Ducey Arizona Republican Governor Eric Holcomb Indiana Republican candidate for Governor Greg Gianforte Montana Republican Gubernatorial Challenger Gretchen Whitmer Michigan Democratic Governor Henry McMaster South Carolina Republican Jay Inslee Washington Democratic Washington Governor John Carney Delaware Democratic candidate for Governor Kim Reynolds Iowa Republican Kristi Noem South Dakota Republican Laura Kelly Kansas Democratic candidate for governor of Kansas Michelle Lujan-Grisham New Mexico Democrat Mike Dunleavy Alaska Republican candidate for governor of Alaska Mike Parson Missouri Republican governor of Missouri Ned Lamont Connecticut Democratic Candidate for governor Peter Ricketts Nebraska Republican Governor Phil Murphy New Jersey Democratic 2021 Gubernatorial contender Phil Scott Vermont Republican challenger for Governor Ralph Northam Virginia Democratic Governor Spencer Cox Utah Republican Gubernatorial Challenger Steve Sisolak Nevada Democratic candidate for Nevada Governor Tony Evers Wisconsin Democratic candidate for governor of Wisconsin