2017 Governor's State of the State speeches

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

Abortion     Greg Abbott: Protect unborn children and promote a culture of life.

Budget & Economy     Chris Sununu: Increase Rainy Day Fund to $100M; start Infrastructure Fund.     Doug Burgum: Right-size government: cutting $1.2B is a great start.     Jim Justice: Cut Rainy Day fund by $123M for WV's biggest depression ever.     Bruce Rauner: Reduce regulatory costs & economy will take off like rocket.     Steve Bullock: Veto any budget in the red.     Bill Walker: With oil prices low, we have made cuts & must cut more.     Phil Bryant: Implement a state lottery; Arkansas got $80M last year.     Matt Mead: We used rainy day fund for rainy days; now make guidelines.     Sam Brownback: The days of "tax first, cut never" have come to an end.     Tom Wolf: Grow paltry rainy day fund from $245,000 to $500M by 2022.

Civil Rights     Roy Cooper: Repeal the "Bathroom Bill"; it's a dark cloud over NC.     Phil Scott: Support peaceful march against bias & discrimination.

Corporations     John Bel Edwards: 80% of C-corps pay no state tax; that's just not right.     John Kasich: Businesses are job creators, the engines of job growth.     Rick Scott: Fighting for Florida's Future: cut the commercial lease tax.     Chris Sununu: New department of Business and Economic Affairs.     Jim Justice: Raise business B&O tax, sales tax, state fees, & gas tax.     Phil Scott: Agency of Economic Opportunity: help find qualified workers.

Crime     John Bel Edwards: Reduce incarceration rate of non-violent offenders.     Jim Justice: Stiffer laws for drug pushers; treatment for addicts.     Larry Hogan: Justice for Victims Initiative: protect vulnerable citizens.     Greg Abbott: Make it a hate crime to target uniformed police officers.     Bruce Rauner: Close outdated prisons; focus on reducing recidivism.     Bruce Rauner: Police trooper surge to counter Chicago violence.     Phil Scott: Close Windsor prison; expand home detention monitoring.     Brian Sandoval: Reform juvenile justice system to reduce recidivism.     Eric Greitens: Fight Ferguson Effect with Blue Alert to empower police.     Phil Bryant: More Highway Patrol troopers on the road.     Susana Martinez: Collect DNA from felons.     Peter Ricketts: Automated sentence calculation for Department of Corrections.     Nathan Deal: 20% pay raise for state-level law enforcement.     Terry McAuliffe: Lowest adult recidivism rate in America.     Asa Hutchinson: Balance public safety with giving a second chance in life.     Chris Christie: Ban the box: don't ask job applicants about criminal record.     Dennis Daugaard: Make mugshots and pardon process open to the public.     Doug Ducey: Fully fund rape test kits, to finally ensure justice.     Dan Malloy: Prison population has dropped AND recidivism has declined.     Doug Burgum: Jail time without rehab is not a cure for addiction.

Drugs     John Kasich: Shut down the pill mills; put crooked doctors in jail.     John Kasich: StartTalking! Talk to kids to say no to opiates.     John Carney: Impose new protections for the safe prescribing of opioids.     Roy Cooper: Eliminate stigma & encourage opioid addicts to get treatment.     Jim Justice: We have to have stiffer laws to fix the drug problem.     Matt Bevin: Crack down on drug dealers and others who abuse the system.     Larry Hogan: Created the Heroin and Opioid Emergency Task Force.     Brian Sandoval: Rid the state of the scourge of opioid abuse.     Brian Sandoval: I opposed legalization, but let's make pot market work well.     Eric Holcomb: Attack epidemic with prevention, treatment & enforcement.     Rick Snyder: Enforce prescription law, but Good Samaritans get treatment.     Terry McAuliffe: Second chance at citizenship for recovering addicts.     Chris Christie: Jailing & stigmatizing addiction victims won't help.     Doug Ducey: Drug addiction is an epidemic plaguing our entire country.     Robert Bentley: Fight opioid addiction and fight drug abuse.     Tom Wolf: Opioid epidemic has stolen the futures of far too many.

Education     Roy Cooper: 4,700 additional Pre-K slots for at-risk 4-year olds.     Roy Cooper: NC GROW: Getting Ready for Opportunities in the Workforce.     Chris Sununu: Increase operating budget $10M of Community College System.     Doug Burgum: Kids can't prepare for 21st century using 19th-century model.     Jim Justice: Return education back from bureaucracies to local level.     Jim Justice: Replace Smarter Balance with ACT testing.     Jim Justice: We're dead last: 2% teacher raise; and dump state testing.     Larry Hogan: $7M for student scholarships to attend a private school.     Larry Hogan: Tuition relief for state colleges: 2% growth cap.     Larry Hogan: More charter school choice; more P-TECH schools.     Greg Abbott: Fully fund GURI: Governor's University Research Initiative.     Bill Haslam: Narrow score gaps for minority and female students.     Bill Haslam: STRONG Act: tuition-free public college for veterans.     Bruce Rauner: $100M for early education; close district funding gaps.     Phil Scott: Realign funding toward early care and trades training.     Phil Scott: $4M to state colleges; low tuition increases thru 2021.     Steve Bullock: Increase funding for higher education.     Steve Bullock: Invest in publicly funded early childhood education.     Brian Sandoval: $115 million in new investments for higher education.     Gina Raimondo: PrepareRI Dual Enrollment: free tuition for high schoolers.     Gina Raimondo: All-day kindergarten for all; computers in every school.     Rick Snyder: CCSTEP: capital equipment for training in community colleges.     Asa Hutchinson: ArFuture Grants: pay tuition & stay in state for 3 years.     Kim Reynolds: Future Ready Iowa: 70% of Iowans beyond high school.     Sam Brownback: TeachersKan: scholarship program for Kansas college students.     Scott Walker: Private refinancing options for student loan debt.     Terry Branstad: Future Ready Iowa: 70% of Iowans beyond high school.     Terry Branstad: Teacher Leadership System for every public school.     Butch Otter: $58M to make public school teacher pay competitive.     Doug Ducey: Lead the nation on school choice and charters.     Doug Ducey: Invest in public school teachers with tuition & bonuses.     Kate Brown: Oregon Promise: community college access program.

Energy & Oil     Jim Christiana: Cut spending, cut taxes.     Doug Burgum: Protest campers at Dakota Access Pipeline should leave.     Jim Justice: Lower the severance tax on coal and gas.     Jim Justice: Lower, and then tier, the severance tax on coal and gas.     Larry Hogan: Clean Cars Act: invest in electric cars & charging stations.     Phil Scott: Tax holiday on hybrids, electric vehicles, & green products.     Charlie Baker: Reduce carbon footprint while maintaining supply of energy.     Jerry Brown: No climate deniers: the science is clear; the danger is real.     David Ige: 100% of our electricity from renewable sources by 2045.     Rick Snyder: Protect our environment while meeting our energy needs.     Susana Martinez: Diversify so we're not at mercy of federal government.     Matt Mead: $10M prize for making a useful product from captured CO2.

Environment     John Kasich: $2.5B invested in cleaning Lake Erie, and keep it clean.     Chris Sununu: Fund asbestos cleanup, and clean water infrastructure.     Jim Justice: I love the outdoors, but regulatory agencies tell you no.     Larry Hogan: Reduce nitrogen, phosphorus, and sediment in Chesapeake Bay.     Bruce Rauner: Test drinking water for lead, as social justice issue.     Phil Scott: $50M for clean-up of our impaired waterways.     Rick Snyder: Pure Michigan: promote tourism like U.P. and brewery trail.     Rick Snyder: More resources to fight invasive species in Great Lakes.     Rick Snyder: Work tirelessly, plus $27M, to make Flint's water safe.     Matt Mead: Improve Endangered Species Act: only 1% ever got delisted.     Gary Herbert: Re-opened National Parks during 2013 shutdown.     Robert Bentley: Gulf State Park: economically & environmentally sustainable.

Families & Children     John Bel Edwards: Family Services placed 735 kids in foster homes despite cuts.     John Kasich: CATCH court: prostitutes are victims of human trafficking.     John Carney: Re-establish the Family Services Cabinet Council.     Matt Bevin: Czar to overhaul state foster care and adoption programs.     Larry Hogan: Pass the Common Sense Paid Sick Leave Act.     Greg Abbott: Reform Child Protective System or more children will die.     Bruce Rauner: Created the Governor's Cabinet on Children and Youth.     Phil Scott: $800,000 for Guardians ad Litem for kids of drug addicts.     Phil Scott: $7.5 million for Child Care Financial Assistance.     Steve Bullock: Don't cut workers from Child and Family Services Division.     Eric Greitens: Let parents decide how to spend special needs funding.     Gina Raimondo: Pass modern, common-sense paid sick leave laws.     Phil Bryant: $34M for new Department of Child Protection Services.     Peter Ricketts: More resources for Child and Family Services.     Nathan Deal: 19% pay raise for Family and Children Services.     Asa Hutchinson: More funding for foster children.     Andrew Cuomo: Middle Class Child Care Tax Credit for 200,000 families.     Doug Ducey: Automatically screen all babies for SCID.     Doug Ducey: Grandmother Stipend: fund foster care for relatives.     Robert Bentley: Fund treatment for low-income children with Autism Spectrum.     Tom Wolf: Improve home-based & community-based senior care services.

Foreign Policy     Greg Abbott: Texas is exceptional; we'd be world's 10th largest economy.

Free Trade     Jim Justice: Bring manufacturing back from Vietnam, China and Mexico.     David Ige: Hawaii dominated world trade via entrepreneurial innovation.     Eric Holcomb: We're as likely to trade with Germany as with Georgia.

Government Reform     Jim Justice: Appoint a Waste Czar to root out agency excess.     Larry Hogan: Disallow legislators from drawing their own district lines.     Bruce Rauner: The people demanded fair districting; judges denied them.     Terry McAuliffe: Photo ID law made it significantly harder to vote.     Dennis Daugaard: Red Tape Repeal: remove 4,000 obsolete laws & rules.     Dan Malloy: Cut state agencies by 28% and cut state workforce by 9%.

Gun Control     Matt Mead: New initiative for public shooting ranges.     Terry McAuliffe: Keep guns out of the hands of domestic abusers.

Health Care     John Bel Edwards: Medicaid expansion reduced uninsured by 43% & saved $200M.     John Kasich: Medicaid expansion brought health care to 700,000 people.     Chris Sununu: Push for a true accounting of our Medicaid program.     Mark Dayton: Preserve successes like Medicaid expansion & MinnesotaCare.     John Hickenlooper: Basic health care is a right, not a privilege.     Asa Hutchinson: $5M for Mental Health Stabilization Centers.     Sam Brownback: Refusing ObamaCare like declining a discount on the Titanic.     Terry Branstad: Transform mental health system to community-based model.

Homeland Security     Rick Scott: $6 million for counterterrorism and police equipment.     Phil Scott: $500,000 for college scholarships for veterans at UVM.     Charlie Baker: $4,000 tax credit for hiring unemployed veterans.     Matt Mead: Long-term commitment for veteran's tuition waiver.     Terry McAuliffe: Expand Virginia Values Veterans program: help vets find work.

Immigration     Greg Abbott: Enforce against sanctuary cities or more Texans will die.     Jay Inslee: Stand up proudly for DREAMers.

Jobs     John Bel Edwards: Close gender wage gap by ending corporate "pay secrecy".     John Bel Edwards: Meaningful increase to the minimum wage.     Roy Cooper: Grow out Unemployment Trust Fund to more than $2 billion.     Larry Hogan: New jobs in manufacturing led to low unemployment.     Greg Abbott: No state deductions of union dues on paychecks.     Phil Scott: Deal with Vermont's shrinking workforce population.     Jerry Brown: Raised minimum wage and reduced unemployment.     Mark Dayton: Unemployment is down, but average family is poorer.     Eric Greitens: Right to Work instead of Project Labor Agreements.     Eric Holcomb: Five pillars: 21st century workforce is magnet for jobs.     Gina Raimondo: Give everyone chance for dignified work at a decent wage.     Rick Snyder: People now moving to Michigan for good jobs.     Kate Brown: Raised minimum wage for struggling Oregon families.     Dan Malloy: Pushed bill to protect advanced manufacturing jobs.

Local Issues     John Carney: Develop incubators like DTP @ STAR, full on Day 1.     Larry Hogan: Repeal the misguided Road Kill Bill.     Andrew Cuomo: Buffalo Billion: make up for 50 years of state inattention.     Robert Bentley: Fix the fatally-dangerous Redmill Bridge, despite obstacles.

Principles & Values     John Carney: Delawareans are willing to chip in and help, if all do.     Roy Cooper: Common Ground Solutions instead of either/or choices.     Bill Walker: Cancer survivor after routine prostrate cancer screening.     Nikki Haley: State workers all say "It's a Great Day in South Carolina".     Robert Bentley: Great State 2019 Plan: purpose by the One who ordained us.

Social Security     Matt Bevin: Increase taxes to fund Kentucky Retirement Systems.     Larry Hogan: Eliminate all taxes on retirement income.     Gina Raimondo: Get most state retirees a cost of living increase.     Dan Malloy: 78% of our state pension fund is making up for past mistakes.

Tax Reform     John Bel Edwards: Reform tax structure or face $1.3B fiscal cliff in 2018.     John Bel Edwards: Reduce sales tax; eliminate federal income tax deductibility.     John Carney: Share sacrifice of budget cuts and tax hikes.     Jim Justice: Increase fees, gas tax, and business tax to close deficit.     Greg Abbott: The only good tax is a dead tax.     Mark Dayton: Tax cuts for the wealthy do not lead to economic growth.     Gina Raimondo: Reduced the corporate minimum tax.     Gina Raimondo: Cut car tax by at least 30%.     Chris Christie: Put the death tax on life support.

Technology     John Bel Edwards: Gas tax to pay for transportation and coastal infrastructure.     Roy Cooper: Rural high-speed broadband access, and technical training.     Chris Sununu: Double infrastructure grants to towns for roads and bridges.     Doug Burgum: Main Street Initiative: use existing infrastructure fully.     Jim Justice: Bid all road jobs, with 5% construction severance.     Larry Hogan: Fix all 69 structurally deficient bridges that we inherited.     Greg Abbott: Innovation renaissance: biotech, wearable tech, clean tech.     Bill Haslam: Tools to be successful: good roads and broadband access.     Bruce Rauner: Increase state transparency: millions of documents online.     Charlie Baker: Last Mile program: high-speed internet for rural communities.     Mark Dayton: $6B investment in highway projects & infrastructure.     Brian Sandoval: $3.5M for cyberdefense against unprecedented threats.     Eric Greitens: Replace 1959 COBOL systems with online government.     Eric Holcomb: High-tech is key to unlocking 21st century economy.     Eric Holcomb: Invest a little more to keep the Crossroads of America.     Gina Raimondo: RhodeWorks: fix highways ad 12n0 bridges.     Rick Snyder: Invest billions to address risk of aging infrastructure.     Nathan Deal: Make GA the Silicon Valley of the South via cyber security.     Dennis Daugaard: Online retailers should voluntarily remit sales tax.     Kim Reynolds: STEM initiative to prepare for a 21st century economy.     Scott Walker: $35 million to expand broadband access grant program.     Butch Otter: Support STEM Action Center and Computer Science Initiative.     Dan Malloy: On-time on-budget completion of Q Bridge project & CTfastrak.

War & Peace     Rick Scott: $1M for Homes for Heroes; $102M for active military & vets.     Brian Sandoval: Inspired by Nevadans serving in 5 middle eastern countries.

Welfare & Poverty     John Kasich: Welfare without a path to work doesn't work.     Roy Cooper: Create affordable, available housing for disaster recovery.     Phil Scott: $35 million housing bond for full spectrum of housing.     Brian Sandoval: $1.5M more for Meals-on-Wheels for seniors.     Phil Bryant: Create the Mississippi Faith-Based Advisory Council.     John Hickenlooper: Use marijuana tax revenue to address chronic homelessness.     John Hickenlooper: More affordable housing via construction defects legislation.     Doug Ducey: 12 months extra food stamps if you're looking for a job.

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