Gina Raimondo in 2018 Governor's State of the State speeches


On Drugs: Jobs and insurance, to combat addiction

If we're going to save lives, we have to support people's recovery. This year, we're going to create a new job training program for people in recovery. There is no silver bullet in our fight against addiction, but helping Rhode Islanders in recovery to get a good job will save lives. In the coming weeks, I'll propose legislation to make health insurance companies cover addiction and mental health treatment just like they cover diabetes or other chronic conditions.
Source: 2018 Rhode Island State of the State address Jan 16, 2018

On Education: More pre-K classrooms; free community college

We've made record investments in education, and we're committed to ensuring that everyone has a shot to continue their education past high school: Today, there are three times as many public pre-K classrooms as there were four years ago. We've guaranteed all-day kindergarten for every child in Rhode Island. And more than 1,500 Rhode Islanders are getting a shot at a career because we made community college tuition-free. But there's so much left to do. So let's keep going.
Source: 2018 Rhode Island State of the State address Jan 16, 2018

On Education: Major investment to repair crumbling schools

Let's make a once-in-a-generation investment in our schools. Together with our cities and towns, let's commit to investing $1 billion over the next five years to fix our public schools. Don't let anyone tell you we can't afford to do this. We can. We have a detailed plan that outlines how we can invest more and do it smarter so that we protect taxpayers at the same time. Every year we wait, we waste millions of dollars putting band aids on our crumbling schools. So let's act now.
Source: 2018 Rhode Island State of the State address Jan 16, 2018

On Energy & Oil: Green energy means jobs

We've proven that you can grow the economy and protect the environment at the same time: We're the only state in America with an off-shore wind farm. We're on track to make our energy system 10 times cleaner by 2020. Since 2014, we've added more than 5,000 green jobs--a 66 percent increase. Let's keep going.
Source: 2018 Rhode Island State of the State address Jan 16, 2018

On Immigration: Opposes deporting DREAMers

When politicians in Washington took aim at our Dreamers we stood with them because in Rhode Island we don't just tolerate diversity; we celebrate it.
Source: 2018 Rhode Island State of the State address Jan 16, 2018

On Social Security: Cut tax on Social Security payments

We've listened to Rhode Islanders who felt like their leaders weren't doing enough to support them: We raised the minimum wage; we passed paid sick leave, because no Rhode Islander should have to choose between a paycheck and taking care of a sick child at home; we've improved the quality of child care so parents can have peace of mind while they're at work. And we listened to seniors who say it's too hard to live on a fixed income, and we cut the tax on their social security.
Source: 2018 Rhode Island State of the State address Jan 16, 2018

The above quotations are from 2018 Governor's State of the State speeches.
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Page last updated: Apr 07, 2019