As the Kansas Legislature reconvenes, Republican leaders unveil their 2023 agenda, offering “A Better Way: Our Commitment to Kansas”
The eight-point plan ranges from a simpler tax code, more parental control of education, and free market health care solutions to expanding job opportunities, making Kansans safer, and protecting constitutional rights.
Incoming House Speaker Dan Hawkins says the GOP agenda rose from the grassroots:
“We asked people all over the state what’s important to them, and this is what they told us. We’re committed to those concerns – taxes and the economy, law and order, education, health care, and individual liberties. A Better Way is our commitment to Kansans that we’re listening and we have a path forward.”
On the wide-ranging agenda:
For taxpayers:
- A balanced budget that cuts wasteful spending, pays down debt, and increases the state “rainy day fund”
- Make the state tax code flatter and simpler to help families and businesses.
- Reduce the tax burden on both retirees and families
For health care:
- End costly mandates that drive up costs
- Free-market solutions to high costs by promoting Health Savings Accounts
For students:
- Expand educational opportunities beyond economic status or zip code
- Pass Fairness in Women’s Sports, and Parents’ Bill of Rights
- Focus on academic achievement, not radical ideology
For the economy:
- Support and protect the fossil fuel industry
- Enact reforms to lower energy rates
- Prohibit state investment in entities owned or operated by hostile foreign governments
For jobseekers:
- Make college more affordable, promote technical education
- Support apprenticeship-to-licensure training and lower the cost of licensing fees.
- Tighten eligibility for unemployment benefits
Preserving the safety net:
- Enforce eligibility requirements for government assistance
- Reject expansion of welfare to able-bodied adults until waiver waiting lists are eliminated
- Protect children in the foster care system and invest in alternatives
Law-and-order:
- Protect Kansas families and businesses from cyber-attacks and intellectual property theft by China
- Strengthen Kansas laws that protect Kansans from violent and repeat offenders
- Support Kansas Highway Patrol troopers and ensure the KHP is fully staffed and competently managed
Constitutional rights:
- Safeguard elections
- Respect and promote constitutional rights of all Kansans
- Support a culture of life in Kansas and reduce abortions through support for crisis pregnancy centers and preserving protections
Senate President Ty Masterson summarizes the “Better Way”:
“Republicans are committed to a policy agenda that puts Kansans first by protecting our communities, honoring the value of work, and ensuring our children have a bright future. While the governor’s party desires to expand government and impede freedom, our commitment to Kansans is truly a better way by expanding freedom and making Kansas a land of opportunity for all.”
