Democratic Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly ushered in her final two years in office with a State of the State address that looked to the future of child care, education and water sustainability.
Alluding to her focus on putting the state budget in order after years of fiscal tumult under previous administrations, Kelly likened her hour-long address to a financial “quarterly report.”
“In an era that might be defined for its divisiveness at the national level, we’ve shown that here in Kansas, we can still find common ground and get things done,” Kelly said.
Kelly boasted that during her time in office, the state fully funded public schools, attracted economic development projects and negotiated major tax cuts, including eliminating the state sales tax on food.
But Kelly’s address largely centered around her vision for the state’s future. She pledged to continue focusing on long-standing priorities of her administration: child care, water sustainability and Medicaid expansion.
“Because of the nature of our challenges, we’ve often been so focused on whatever’s needed immediate fixing — our schools, our infrastructure, our foster care system — that we haven’t always spent as much time talking about what lies ahead for Kansas,” she said.
First on the list for Kelly was creating an Office of Early Childhood to streamline regulations and make it easier for child care providers and parents to access services and meet requirements.
“Let’s offer a one-stop-shop for young families, for child care providers, and for businesses to access early childhood services,” she said.
As it stands, Kelly said the burden falls on a handful of separate state agencies, which can be a barrier to child care service providers getting up and running.
But one policy Kelly insisted would not help Kansas children are the GOP-proposed school voucher and related programs.
“I will continue to reject any attempt, no matter what it looks like, to re-route public taxpayer dollars to private schools,” she said.
The state recently started an open-enrollment policy allowing students to apply and attend public schools outside of their district. Some Republicans support programs that would also allow public funds to support Kansas students in alternative education programs, including private academies.
Policies on education funding and tax relief have been argued side-by-side for decades in Kansas. Republican leaders have made cutting property taxes a key part of their agenda this year, maintaining that it can be done without jeopardizing school funding.
While Kelly reiterated her resistance to passing further tax cuts that she argues could threaten funding for social services, she offered to consider other changes to the tax system.
“I will consider proposals to modify our tax structure that pay for themselves and don’t threaten our state’s long-term financial health,” she said.
The governor’s concern for the long-term also encompassed water sustainability. The Ogallala aquifer, a vast underground reservoir that serves as the lifeblood of farms and towns especially in western Kansas, is vanishing.
Kelly suggested making a “multigenerational promise” to preserve the water supply. That includes proposals to create an Office of Natural Resources and bringing yearly investments for water resources up to $90 million.
While talking about the future and working together, Kelly acknowledged her position as a Democratic governor in a chamber dominated by conservative Republicans. For the seventh year running, she asked for Medicaid expansion, which has repeatedly failed because of Republican opposition. She challenged Republicans to work with her on issues including Medicaid.
“I’m not asking you not to love your political party — I’m just asking you to love your state a little more,” Kelly said.
Seated just behind Kelly was Republican Senate President Ty Masterson, who recorded a response to her address. He celebrated the GOP’s victories in last November’s elections, where his party expanded its veto-proof supermajority in the state House and Senate.
That power arrangement will make it even more difficult for Kelly to oppose Republican priorities like banning gender-affirming care for minors.
Masterson said his party intends to revive several bills that came within a few votes of passing via veto override last session. A “foreign adversary bill” would bar citizens of certain countries from owning some types of land within 100 miles of a military installation.
He also said a strict ban on hormone treatments, puberty blockers and other forms of gender-affirming care for minors is on the table.
“We will not allow the extreme trans agenda to impact our kids,” Masterson said.
Words will start translating into action as soon as Thursday morning, when Kelly’s administration presents a budget for the Republican-dominated Legislature to consider.
