Kansas Gov. Kelly vetoes new work requirements for older adults on food assistance
For the second year in a row, Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly vetoed legislation that would increase work requirements for food stamps Monday.
Kelly rejected a bill that imposed new work requirements on Kansans aged 50-59 in order to receive food assistance. A year after lawmakers imposed increased work requirements for younger recipients over her veto, Kelly said the requirements were over burdensome.
“Leaders from both parties should be looking for ways to help people afford the basics, not burdening our hardworking Kansans who are just trying to get by,” Kelly said in a statement. “With inflation causing the prices of goods and services to skyrocket, Kansans need relief, not further barriers.”
Republicans in the House and Senate just missed the needed votes for an override indicating leadership may be able to find enough support to override the veto when lawmakers return to Topeka for their wrap-up session later this week. However, Kelly has sent more than a dozen bills back to lawmakers, forcing legislative leaders to choose which bills to prioritize as they expend political capital on override votes.
The Senate approved the welfare bill 26-12, one vote shy of a two-thirds majority. The House approved it 80-42, missing a veto-proof majority by four votes.
House Speaker Dan Hawkins, a Wichita Republican, pointed to Kansas’ ongoing workforce shortage in criticizing Kelly’s decision. However, he stopped short of promising to override her veto.
“There are plenty of jobs available and if someone is able bodied they should either be working or receiving the necessary training to fill one of these open jobs. It’s disappointing, but not surprising, that Governor Kelly would veto this commonsense legislation that will help working age Kansans rejoin the workforce and rebuild their lives,” Hawkins said in a statement.
Supporters of the bill argued the bills would ensure recipients of food stamps take advantage of work search programs. If lawmakers successfully override Kelly’s veto, all adults under the age of 60 receiving benefits would be required to use the work search programs if they do not work at least 30 hours a week.
But Kelly and others in opposition argued the legislation would create an unnecessary barrier to food for adults who were already struggling.
Nearly 1,700 able-bodied adults without dependents have stopped receiving food assistance since the Legislature overrode the veto and the work requirements became law in July 2022, according to data from the Kansas Department for Children and Families.
Kansas has been reducing the number of people receiving food assistance for years. The average monthly food assistance caseload has fallen every year since 2014 with the single exception of 2021 amid the pandemic.
The proposal has been championed by the Florida-based Opportunity Solutions Project, a conservative think tank that serves as a lobbying arm of the Foundation for Government Accountability, which has received funding from Wichita’s billionaire Koch family. It has argued in favor of the work requirements bill by pointing to Kansas’ critical worker shortage.
The Star’s Jonathan Shorman contributed to this report.
