TOPEKA - Gov. Laura Kelly ordered Kansas state agencies on Tuesday to again prohibit on-the-job discrimination against gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender state employees.

And the first openly gay state representatives in Kansas history said they will introduce a bill to extend non-discrimination protections to all LGBT people in the state. Kelly said she would sign such a bill.

In her first official act, Kelly signed an executive order reinstating the protections for LGBT workers that were eliminated by Gov. Sam Brownback in 2015.

The order, issued on her full first day as governor, came after she urged elected leaders to lift up all Kansans, whether or not they “love like us,” during her inaugural address Monday.

“As I have said numerous times before, discrimination of any kind has no place in Kansas and it will not be tolerated in this administration,” Kelly said. “We will ensure that state workers feel safe and supported in their working environment.”

The order, first put in place by Democratic Gov. Kathleen Sebelius in 2007, prohibited harassment, firing or discrimination against state workers based on sexual orientation or gender identity.

Brownback removed the protections the same year the U.S. Supreme Court legalized same-sex marriage nationwide. At the time, Brownback said the order had created “a new protected class” through executive action and that any change should be made by the Legislature. Read more via Wichita Eagle