Kansas governor vetoes most bills in 17 years as Republicans push aggressive agenda

TOPEKA -- Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly’s veto pen moved swiftly last week.

Transgender athlete ban? Civics and financial literacy requirements for high schoolers? Gun safety education for students using NRA materials? All vetoed. Kelly has rejected eight non-budget bills this year, more than any Kansas governor in the past 17 years.

On Monday, she added to her streak, vetoing 18 provisions in the proposed budget. They include items that would give legislative committees more power over allocation of federal relief funds and ban use of state dollars to enforce mask mandates.

In a statement, Kelly said she supported the majority of the budget but that some pieces were unnecessary or had been resolved in other bills. Others provisions should have been vetted more thoroughly, she said.

Relations between between the first-term Democrat and the Republican-dominated Legislature had already been strained by the COVID-19 pandemic. Over the past year, Kelly and GOP leaders clashed repeatedly over gathering restrictions and mask mandates.

Read more: https://www.kansascity.com/news/politics-government/article250957954.html