Governor and Lieutenant Governor discuss all things “non-covid”
Governor Dan McKee and Lieutenant Governor Sabina Matos held their first weekly non-COVID press conference Tuesday afternoon.
PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WLNE) – Governor Dan McKee and Lieutenant Governor Sabina Matos held their first weekly non-COVID press conference.
Governor McKee said the goal for the press conference is to have the Governor and Lieutenant Governor sitting in the same place discussing things that matter to Rhode Islanders.
The state leaders spoke about several topics including police reform, infrastructure, and re-opening the economy. While COVID is on the top of everyone’s mind, Governor Mckee says there are a lot of important issues going on in the Ocean State.
For Governor McKee, those include a few front and center issues. The first: opening up applications for the state’s small grant program, which would give businesses that qualify $5,000 grants. The Governor says since the program was announced Thursday, more than 3,000 people responded.
The second topic is figuring out where to allocate the money from the federal stimulus package. The Governor says they want to make sure the money benefits all Rhode Islanders and want to hear from residents about where it could be best put to use. Governor McKee says they plan to start a community conversation forum where they are also looking for input on making a 2030 Plan for the Ocean State.
While COVID wasn’t supposed to be a topic for conversation, re-opening was. Governor McKee says he does see most restrictions being lifted before June 5th.
“We’re going to continue to do this incremental flexibility and we’re going to continue to open up our economy based on safety and I think that’s exactly what we’re doing,” Governor McKee said. “I think you’re going to see more movement before the end of the week that will put us ahead of Connecticut.”
The Governor and Lieutenant Governor were also questioned about police reform and potential protests as the verdict comes down in the Derek Chauvin case. The Governor said they plan to talk to State Police about ramping up enforcement, but that they do encourage peaceful protests.
This is a developing story.
