Kelly lays out highway funding strategy

Governor's highway plan is more modest than her predecessors'. She promises funding it will not require a tax hike, while also noting she will not raid the highway funds to pay for other budget items.

February 19, 2020 - 10:25 AM

U.S. 69 in Overland Park at dawn, as traffic quickly fills up a highway that clogs nearly every rush hour. KANSAS NEWS SERVICE/SCOTT CANON/KCUR.ORG

TOPEKA — Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly’s transportation plan isn’t as bold as those that came before it.

Since the 1990s, Kansas has spent tens of billions of dollars on three successive 10-year programs. Each required a tax increase and launched with a commitment to complete a long list of new building projects.

But Kelly, a Democrat who won election on a promise to restore the state’s finances, isn’t proposing a bunch of new projects. And she isn’t seeking a tax increase to help pay for her plan.

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