However, the state is on path to have about $2.8 billion in budget surplus next summer. That provision would have cut $330 million from the state budget.īut Kelly vetoed that plan, arguing it mostly helped the wealthiest Kansans and would cause budget concerns down the road. Last year, Republican leaders pushed a flat-tax bill that would have set a 5.15% income tax rate for the vast majority of Kansans. “So we've taken a much more political approach to getting it passed.” Taxes “Their opposition is strictly political,” Kelly said. Kelly has taken a more offensive approach by campaigning around the state in recent months to drum up support from voters and build pressure on lawmakers. “While I appreciate the Governor’s newly found support for work requirements for welfare benefits,” Hawkins said, “this is nothing more than smoke and mirrors.” He said federal officials would need to sign off on a work-requirement provision for Medicaid and that is very unlikely. House Speaker Dan Hawkins also criticized Kelly’s work requirement proposal. Republican leaders rejected the plan almost immediately. Laura Kelly unveiled her new Medicaid expansion proposal during a news conference Thursday, Dec. Republican leaders have already said it is a non-starter, despite nearly 70% of Kansans saying they support expansion. The attempt to meet Republicans in the middle is not likely to work. In her latest pitch, Kelly proposed adding work requirements to the program, which Republicans have wanted to add to other state welfare programs. That could be important for rural hospitals that are struggling to stay open. Kansas is now one of only 10 states that has not expanded Medicaid.Īlong with providing health care to thousands of Kansans, expanding Medicaid would come with about $700 million of federal funding. While some of those attempts failed last year - notably falling just short of enacting a flat-rate income tax that would have cut hundreds of millions from the state budget - Republican leaders and conservative advocacy groups may try to pressure holdouts with the specter of a difficult reelection campaign. Some of the party’s top priorities are likely to be vetoed by Kelly, requiring an override attempt by lawmakers to enact their conservative agenda. Republican leaders have different ideas they want to focus on in 2024, including cutting taxes amid a massive budget surplus and expanding school choice options.Īnd Republican leaders may also try to use the upcoming election to benefit their own agenda. I'm hoping they'll turn that pressure into action.” “And I think they will feel that pressure. “They need to be responsive to their constituents,” Kelly said in an interview.
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