More welcoming? Yes.
Any less conservative than his predecessor? Not so much.
Those are the most common themes you will hear about Kansas Gov. Jeff Colyer after his first 100 days as chief executive and with his first legislative session under his belt.
From the outset, Colyer promised to bring a new, approachable style to the governor’s office after serving seven years as former Gov. Sam Brownback’s lieutenant.
While skeptics wonder if that will change should he get elected to a full, four-year term this fall, Colyer gets good reviews from Democrats and Republicans.
Inside the statehouse, lawmakers say they get the sense that Colyer’s administration has been less ideological than his predecessor’s although there are questions about his willingness to be out front on major policy issues.
They praise his hiring decisions, especially making former Budget Director Shawn Sullivan the administration’s chief operating officer and appointing Jeff Andersen as the secretary at the Kansas Department of Health and Environment.
“They are people who have the skill set that are suited for the job,” said Senate Vice President Jeff Longbine. “I don’t know that the previous administration looked at skill sets as much as ideology.”
While the Overland Park plastic surgeon exudes a soft bedside manner at the Capitol, his conservative ideals are firm with, perhaps, his views on education a little more moderated.
“I think he’s a conservative, but he’s going to do what he can to get moderate support,” said state Rep. Scott Schwab, who as speaker pro tem holds the second-highest position in the House.
Already, Colyer has established his conservative leadership credentials in different ways, even as his chief Republican rival in the governor’s race — Secretary of State Kris Kobach — has suggested he’s not conservative enough. But consider what Colyer’s done in his first 100 days:
- The Colyer administration supported a bill allowing adoption agencies contracting with the state to refuse placements based on religious grounds. Opponents charge it is state-sanctioned discrimination because it allows agencies to turn away LGBT parents.
- The Colyer administration fought for a work requirement for the state’s Medicaid program known as KanCare. He also backed a cap on lifetime benefits for Medicaid patients, but that was rejected by the federal government just last week.
- The Colyer administration wants the U.S. Supreme Court to take up a lower court decision ruling against the state’s effort to cut off Planned Parenthood from Medicaid funding. He also has called for a constitutional amendment on abortion if the Kansas Supreme Court rules that abortion rights are embedded in the Kansas Constitution.
- And just last week, Colyer told a group of Olathe Republicans that he wants to rework the state tax code, but he only spoke in broad terms. He said more specific proposals were forthcoming.
“To me, Colyer seems very similar to Brownback in terms of policy, but more different in style,” said University of Kansas political scientist Patrick Miller.
“Colyer does not seem as openly disdainful of Democrats as Brownback did and generally seems less combative with those who disagree with him, at least in how he’s portrayed in the media.”
Senate Minority Leader Anthony Hensley said he senses Colyer’s effort to get along with lawmakers, even those he might disagree with philosophically.
Compared to his predecessor, Colyer has made a more concerted effort to reach out to Democrats even if they didn’t agree on policy matters, Hensley said.
“He’s put a lot of effort into reaching out to Democrats,” Hensley said. “I think Colyer’s sincere about trying to keep the lines of communications open. But in terms of his agenda, I don’t see much difference between his agenda and Brownback’s agenda. He’s still very conservative on social issues.”
The Colyer administration, for its part, is focused more on accomplishments as it turns its eyes to the heat of a primary campaign that will start unfolding in the coming weeks.
Last week, Colyer’s team distributed a list of 100 achievements to celebrate his first 100 days.
They included installing a new secretary at the Kansas Department for Children and Families, making free the first 100 pages of open-records requests and barring state agencies from immediately disqualifying jobs applicants with criminal histories. In a brief interview, he also cited the recent credit outlook upgrade from Stand & Poor’s, calling it “a huge thing.”
“In my first 100 days, I have assembled a team that is dedicated to making our state government more transparent and efficient, and making Kansas a place that our children see their future,” Colyer said in a statement. “We cannot settle and we cannot go backwards. We are going to keep up the momentum of these first 100 days as we continue to grow our state for the future.”
Emporia State University political scientist Michael Smith said he sees a real difference between Colyer and Brownback, even though Colyer was at the former governor’s side for seven years.
“When you talk to legislators, they say the attitude is very different,” Smith said. “Brownback was very aloof, and Colyer’s engaged and he talks to legislators.”
The one area where Colyer seemed to be out of step with conservatives was the education plan that narrowly passed the Legislature this year.
He advocated for a five-year, $525 million plan that was opposed by conservatives in the House and the Senate. He signed the bill in the face of opposition from Kobach, who said it was too much and was playing into the hands of plaintiffs who will never be satisfied.
While conservative Republican state Sen. Steve Fitzgerald opposed the education bill, he still gives Colyer high marks for his approach to dealing with the Legislature.
“Jeff’s a very open, personable guy,” Fitzgerald said. “I think he’s worked well with the Legislature.”
Asked if Colyer was too moderate on education, Fitzgerald said, “I would not want to spend that much money. My votes prove where I am on that. I think we need more accountability. We need to see the money being spent better. We need to see better results.”
Schwab said Colyer could have shown bolder leadership on education. He said the governor’s primary goal was to satisfy the Kansas Supreme Court, which had found that the state was not adequately funding education. The Legislature was under court orders to remedy the problem this session.
“I am not sure if it’s leadership or capitulation. It depends on who you talk to,” he said.
Schwab credited Colyer for trying to root out problems at the Department for Children and Families, however. “I am very encouraged by that.”
Some lawmakers believe that Colyer — while conservative — is willing to hear out all sides.
“I have found him to be much more communicative with legislative leadership,” Longbine said.
“He seems to be very willing to listen to alternative ideas, alternative thoughts from his own and consider the merit of those, which is something different from what I’ve experienced in previous administrations.”
