KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly used her daily news conference Friday to sound the alarm on the state’s budget situation, which she says has deteriorated “rapidly.”
“If we want to protect all the progress we’ve made in recent years — in our schools, in our corrections systems and in our infrastructure — we’ll need help to make it through this,” Kelly said.
The governor said she was appreciative of the work done by the state’s federal delegation so far in passing two federal aid packages, but said lawmakers will either have to change the rules in one of the existing packages or pass a new bill that would give states direct aid that they could use with flexibility.
READ: Kelly letter to the Kansas federal delegation
“If the federal government fails to act, we will be forced to make very deep cuts to critical services,” Kelly said.
She pushed back against remarks made by U.S. Sen. Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, a Kentucky Republican, who said states should consider filing for bankruptcy rather than receive additional federal aid.
“I became alarmed and frustrated by recent suggestions at the federal level that states simply file for bankruptcy,” Kelly said. “I don’t even know what that means.”
As for working with local legislators to help solve the projected $1.27 billion budget shortfall, Kelly said she would have a better idea after the Legislative Coordinating Committee meets on May 6.
