Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly this week signed an executive order to create a child advocate office.
The Topeka Capital-Journal’s Jason Tidd reported the independent Division of the Child Advocate will be focused on child welfare oversight, investigate complaints from families, recommend structural changes, help people navigate the child welfare system and expand coordination among interested groups.
Upon signing, Kelly called the order “a true victory for Kansas kids and families.” We agree. Thank you, Governor, for working to ensure Kansas children and their families are safe and get the help and services they may need.
We think it’s a needed office, and this executive order was acceptable in the light of the Legislature not taking action.
For years, the Legislature has known about the problems plaguing the system. They’ve had plenty of opportunities to do something about it. During the last session, bills in the House and Senate stalled after debates over who the advocates’ office should report to.
“As often happens, however, during the legislative process, reaching consensus was difficult and time ran out,” Kelly said. “Knowing how important this child advocate position is, I directed my team to explore every possible solution to get this done.”
The governor’s actions seem like a fair approach.
Kelly told The Capital-Journal the advocate’s office is structured in a way to give it independence from the governor. While she will appoint the officeholders, they will serve for set terms instead of at the pleasure of the governor. Neither she nor the Legislature can fire the appointees.
We’ll see in coming months how this plays out, but from the looks of it, we’re seeing positive momentum.
There are still some questions that come about from this order, such as how many people will work in the office. To do this job effectively, the office will need adequate staffing, and one or two people won’t cut it.
Additionally, will this office outlast Gov. Kelly?
At the moment, a new governor could come in and dissolve it as easily as she created it. In doing so, they’d only be hurting at-risk children and Kansas families.
For that reason and others, we hope the Legislature will pass a bill to make this executive order a permanent office that wouldn’t be able to be undone by another executive order.
Kansas’ children are counting on it.
