Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly will outline agenda for state Legislature in tonight’s State of the State address

Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly is preparing to outline what she is likely to call a middle-of-the-road agenda for a Republican-controlled Kansas Legislature that already expects to ditch much of what she’ll propose in favor of more conservative ideas on taxes and education.

Kelly was scheduled to give the annual State of the State address Tuesday evening to a joint session of the state House and Senate. She previously outlined several proposals for cutting taxes that include eliminating the state’s 4% sales tax on groceries by April 1.

Other proposals, including expansion of the state’s Medicaid coverage for the needy and elderly, previously have been blocked by GOP lawmakers.

Top Republican legislators have outlined their own agenda with ideas in vogue in other GOP-led states. They include allowing parents to claim tax dollars previously earmarked for public schools to cover private or home schooling costs and restricting how public schools discuss gender and sexuality, like what critics call Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” law. Kelly and GOP leaders also differ strongly on tax cuts.

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Kelly had been scheduled to give the State of the State on Jan. 11 but tested positive for COVID-19 the day before, only to learn later it was a false positive. Her office went ahead with releasing her proposed $24.1 billion state budget for the 2024 fiscal year beginning July 1.

Kelly narrowly won reelection in November and opened her second term earlier this month by saying in her inaugural address that it’s best to govern Kansas from “where the left and right come together.” She has repeatedly touched on that theme in major speeches.

But the Democratic governor also has previously vetoed GOP proposals on education and banning transgender athletes from girls’ and women’s K-12, club and college sports. Earlier this month, she dismissed the idea of restricting what schools teach about gender and sexuality.

Asked Monday about the possibility she’ll embrace an aggressive conservative school choice or “voucher” program, she said, “That’s not going to happen.”

The governor also was cold Monday to a tax-cutting proposal from Republicans and the powerful Kansas Chamber…