Issue Position: Building a Mobile State Government

Issue Position

For generations, rural Kansans have been able to access core government services relatively close to home: renewing drivers' licenses; applying for food benefits; even talking to a local KDOT official about snow removal on the highway. Brownback-Colyer cut Kansans off from THEIR state government by closing KDOT offices, DMV stations, and DCF offices across rural Kansas. These closures not only make life difficult for residents needing to access key government services, but they have devastated rural economies--and families--with unnecessary layoffs of dedicated public servants. The Kelly Administration will reconnect rural communities to their state government by:

Restoring key government services in rural communities impacted by Brownback-Colyer cuts. Wherever possible the Kelly Administration will restore rural DCF and KDOT services in rural communities. If possible, they will re-open shuttered offices. If it is not possible, the Administration will focus on creating partnerships with local communities so staff from state agencies can hold regular office hours through office sharing or a mobile office approach to government services.

Establishing the Office of Rural Prosperity (ORP). The severity of the challenges facing rural Kansas, and the magnitude of the opportunity in these communities, demands a major overhaul of the way state government serves rural areas. The ORP would be charged with ensuring that investments by state agencies are aligned with the needs of rural communities; marketing and promoting rural Kansas as a place to live, work and visit; and developing ongoing policy priorities to ensure that rural Kansans are served by their state government.

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