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Kansas House passes budget (Substitute HB 2,007) after contested amendments on special education, school meals and other priorities
Summary
After multi-hour debate and a series of floor amendments, the Kansas House approved substitute HB 2,007 — the fiscal 2026 appropriations bill — sending the measure out of the chamber as amended. Key debates centered on special‑education funding, school meal co‑pays and one‑time allocations for volunteer fire equipment and technology projects.
Substitute House Bill 2,007, the Legislature’s fiscal‑year 2026 appropriation bill, was reported favorably and adopted by the House after several hours of debate and multiple floor amendments on Feb. 18.
The bill, introduced on the House floor by Appropriations Chair Sherman Waymaster as the chamber’s legislative budget, sets the main state spending priorities for the next fiscal year. The session’s budget debate focused on how to allocate constrained resources amid projected shortfalls and on whether the House should supplement school districts’ special‑education costs.
Why it matters: The budget determines state funding for education, health and human services, corrections, infrastructure and other priorities. This year’s process included several significant policy debates — notably special‑education aid, school meal co‑pays for students with reduced-price eligibility, and one‑time grants for volunteer fire departments.
Major amendments and votes - Fairchild amendment (passed): Representative Fairchild offered an amendment to add $500,000 in one‑time grants to local volunteer fire departments for equipment; the amendment reduced an appropriation in the judiciary budget by $500,000 to pay for the grants. The amendment passed on the floor and was incorporated into the bill.
- School‑meal co‑pay amendment (failed): Representative Hoye proposed an amendment to remove co‑pays for students eligible for reduced‑price school meals by appropriating $3 million (cutting funds from a proposed AI‑based weapons‑detection initiative). The amendment failed on a floor vote, 40–77.
- Medicaid expansion / waiver language (failed): Representative Weichel offered an amendment that would have added language to begin the state application/approval process to expand Medicaid eligibility for adults at up to 38% of federal poverty guidelines. The amendment failed on a floor roll call, 34–82.
- Commerce reporting amendment (passed): Representative Christy Williams’ amendment returned $1,000,000 to the Department of Commerce and added a proviso requiring a report on economic‑development incentives by program (including estimated fiscal impact). The amendment passed and was added to the bill.
Appropriations chair’s summary and final action Chairman Waymaster described the bill as the product of an earlier, extended legislative budgeting process and said the House tried to prioritize state general‑fund spending while identifying possible one‑time ARPA interest uses to cover limited items. He emphasized efforts to address long‑standing issues including IDD waiting lists, nursing home rates and employees’ market pay adjustments.
After the floor amendments, the Committee of the Whole report recommending passage as amended was adopted; the House then moved to adopt substitute HB 2,007 as amended.
What lawmakers said Representative Waymaster said the budget was the product of a longer-than-usual process intended to get the binding budget through the Legislature before turnaround. He highlighted one‑time uses of ARPA interest for capital and water projects and noted efforts to limit reappropriations carried forward from prior years.
Several members spoke in favor of increased special‑education funding and said district budgets are strained by shifting local dollars to cover mandated excess costs. Supporters of the school‑meal co‑pay amendment emphasized the immediate relief that removing a cents‑per‑meal copay would give to families; opponents said the proposed funding source and timing were not sustainable.
Ending: With the Committee of the Whole report adopted and House approval of the substitute, HB 2,007 advances to the next stage of the legislative process; the bill will be compared with the Senate version in conference where additional adjustments are possible.
