{"id":676637,"date":"2026-01-14T13:21:14","date_gmt":"2026-01-14T13:21:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/676637\/"},"modified":"2026-01-14T13:21:14","modified_gmt":"2026-01-14T13:21:14","slug":"ks-gov-touts-chiefs-deal-calls-for-banning-phones-in-schools","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/676637\/","title":{"rendered":"KS gov touts Chiefs deal, calls for banning phones in schools"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Stephen Koranda<\/a>\u00a0<\/p>\n

As Democratic Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly starts the final session of her second term as governor, she\u2019s hailing a deal to attract the Kansas City Chiefs and asking people to reject the growing divides and vitriol in American politics.<\/p>\n

During what would be her final State of the State address on Tuesday night in Topeka, Kelly also laid out plans to ban phones in schools, offer more free school lunches and bolster mental health funding. But she wanted to start the speech on a high note.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur beloved Chiefs are coming home to Kansas,\u201d Kelly said. \u201cTheir world-class stadium, which opens five years from now, will make Kansas a sports and entertainment mecca.\u201d<\/p>\n

Kelly hailed the bipartisan deal her office forged with legislative leaders. The\u00a0STAR bonds<\/a>\u00a0used to help finance the project are paid back with sales tax revenue generated after the stadium opens, which Kelly said means it won\u2019t require higher taxes or cuts to other services.<\/p>\n

She argued it took more than the agreement to attract the team across the state line.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve made Kansas a place the Chiefs want to call home \u2014 with a strong economy, a strong workforce, strong communities, and \u2014 of course \u2014 an extraordinary fan base,\u201d Kelly said.<\/p>\n

Warnings of partisan rancor<\/p>\n

But after highlighting that success, she warned about the state of politics in America today.<\/p>\n

Kelly said after a pandemic and a period of rapid technological change, the nation needed leaders who could help navigate the disruption.<\/p>\n

\u201cYet, right when Americans needed leaders they could look to for strength, for resolve, character, and a clear vision, they got the exact opposite at the national level,\u201d Kelly said. \u201cFrom both parties.\u201d<\/p>\n

Kelly said politicians too often use social media to sow discord, and have created a complete lack of civility in politics.<\/p>\n

\u201cTreating their own colleagues in such angry and dehumanizing ways, just because they\u2019re in the other party,\u201d she said. \u201cAnd the most frightening part \u2013 it\u2019s now become the new normal.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI reject it,\u201d Kelly added. \u201cWe must all reject it.\u201d<\/p>\n

She said major accomplishments like attracting the Chiefs and eliminating the state sales tax on groceries were only possible because of bipartisan agreements.<\/p>\n

And Kelly believes voters will reward lawmakers who work to create civility.<\/p>\n

\u201cI did not get elected Governor \u2013 twice \u2013 by screaming the loudest or bullying others to get my way,\u201d Kelly said.<\/p>\n

When it comes to her legislative priorities, Kelly faces a challenge familiar to her. Republicans hold supermajorities in both chambers of the Statehouse that allow them to override her veto if the GOP sticks together.<\/p>\n

Issues that Kelly opposes, such as a ban on\u00a0gender-affirming care for minors<\/a>\u00a0and certain\u00a0tax cuts<\/a>, have become law because Republicans simply overpowered her veto pen.<\/p>\n

She\u2019s asking them to work with her on a few issues she outlined, although she will reveal the specifics of funding and other details with her budget this week.<\/p>\n

Backing a ban on cellphones in K-12 schools<\/p>\n

Kelly told lawmakers to approve bipartisan legislation\u00a0to ban phone use in schools<\/a>, promising to sign the bill into law.<\/p>\n

She said beyond making teaching more difficult, social media has hurt children\u2019s mental health.<\/p>\n

\u201cSmartphones and social media have exposed our children to a world they are not ready for, and to social pressures they don\u2019t need or deserve,\u201d Kelly said.<\/p>\n

To help with mental health issues statewide, Kelly said her budget would create more beds, support and crisis teams. She asked lawmakers to make mental health services a priority this year.<\/p>\n

In addition, Kelly said her budget would allow students eligible for reduced-cost lunches to instead get meals for free.<\/p>\n

\u201cLet\u2019s make it clear: No child in Kansas should ever have to worry about having enough to eat,\u201d Kelly said.<\/p>\n

Kelly notably did not mention Medicaid expansion in her speech.<\/p>\n

Expansion could offer health coverage for\u00a0an estimated 150,000<\/a>\u00a0lower-income Kansans, but despite past pushes, her efforts have\u00a0failed repeatedly<\/a>\u00a0because Republican legislative leaders remain opposed.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"By Stephen Koranda\u00a0 As Democratic Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly starts the final session of her second term as…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":676638,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2063],"tags":[95414,346,82263,7,95415,118,110,2438,2437,6,82264,82265,95416,3444],"class_list":{"0":"post-676637","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-kansas-city-chiefs","8":"tag-blue-valley-area","9":"tag-chiefs","10":"tag-de-soto-area","11":"tag-football","12":"tag-gardner-edgerton-area","13":"tag-kansas-city","14":"tag-kansas-city-chiefs","15":"tag-kansascity","16":"tag-kansascitychiefs","17":"tag-nfl","18":"tag-olathe-area","19":"tag-shawnee-mission-area","20":"tag-spring-hill-area","21":"tag-top"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/115893664782313005","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/676637","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=676637"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/676637\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/676638"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=676637"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=676637"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=676637"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}