Thursday night will be an important one for the state of Kansas.
Governor Laura Kelly will have a special address to the state at 6:30 pm, where she plans to unveil the official plan to reopen Kansas after a month-plus of being under a stay-home order due to coronavirus. The governor has not given specifics ahead of time, including her daily news briefing Wednesday, but she said expanded testing is the big key to reopening the state and rebuilding the economy. She says more testing is now on hand with additional tests on the way, thanks to unspecified partnerships with the private sector.
A series of related executive orders will be extended to May 31 or whenever a new emergency declaration expires, whichever comes first:
*20-03 – Extending states of local disaster emergency
*20-05 – Temporarily prohibit utility disconnects
*20-07 – Temporarily closing K-12 schools to slow the spread of COVID-19
*20-08 – Temporarily expanding telemedicine and addressing certain licensing requirements to combat the effects of COVID-19
*20-10 – Temporarily prohibiting certain foreclosures and evictions
*20-11 – Temporarily requiring continuation of waste removal and recycling services
*20-12 – Driver’s license and vehicle registration and regulation during public health emergency
*20-13 – Allowing certain deferred tax deadlines and payments during the COVID-19 pandemic
*20-15 – Establishing the KEFF for COVID-19 response efforts
*20-16 – Establishing a statewide “stay home” order in conjunction with the KEFF for COVID-19 response efforts, to expire at 11:59 p.m. on May 3.
*20-17 – Temporary relief from certain unemployment insurance requirements in response to the COVID-19 pandemic
*20-19 – Extending professional and occupational licenses during the COVID-19 pandemic
*20-20 – Temporarily allowing notaries and witnesses to act via audio-video communication technology
*20-21 – Suspending the issuance of general nonresident spring 2020 turkey permits
*20-22 – Extending conditional and temporary relief from certain motor carrier rules and regulations in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, to expire at 11:59 p.m. on May 15, 2020
*20-23 – Licensure, Certification, and Registration for persons and Licensure of “Adult Care Homes” during public health emergency
*20-24 – Extending Executive Order 20-16 to 11:59 p.m. May 3, 2020.
*20-25 – Temporarily prohibiting mass gatherings of more than 10 people to limit the spread of COVID-19, to expire at 11:59 p.m. on May 3.
*20-26 – Temporary relief from certain restrictions and requirements governing the provision of medical services
*20-27 – Temporarily suspending certain rules relating to sale of alcoholic beverages
3:40 pm Wednesday: Governor announces plan to sign new state of emergency disaster declaration
A new state of emergency disaster declaration will be coming from Governor Laura Kelly Thursday.
The Governor announced her plans during her daily news briefing Wednesday afternoon. The new emergency declaration is set to run through May 14.
The original declaration was set to expire on Friday. In order to replace the declaration, Governor Kelly must also reissue current executive orders. Kelly says she will be issuing a new executive order Thursday that will extend all current executive orders under the new declaration.
Governor Kelly assures all Kansas counties the new declaration will require no additional actions on their ends and the new declaration will have no impact on federal resources including funding. The Governor is also set to unveil her plans for reopening the state economy on Thursday as well. During Wednesday’s conference, Governor Kelly stated again that the key to reopening the state and rebuilding the economy is expanded testing.
To that end, Kelly reported Wednesday the state has received 500,000 USDA and FDA approved test collection kits from overseas providers the first 5,000 of which have cleared customs and should be in the state “soon.” The state will continue to receive an additional 10,000 kits weekly until the order has been fulfilled.
The state will also be receiving 25,000 kits this week from federal partners with an additional 25,000 kits next week. Governor Kelly says these appropriations will expand the state’s ability to test more Kansans, specifically those in rural areas, which will lend further assistance to the Governor and her administration as they continue the decision-making process on recovery efforts moving forward.
Governor Kelly will not hold her regular news briefing Thursday and will instead address the state in a special broadcast at 6:30 pm. You can tune into the broadcast on KVOE 1400 am and 96.9 FM.
