Senate committee continues confirmation hearing for acting Wildlife and Parks secretary; presses on budget, parks and hatchery water use

Acting Secretary Kennedy appeared before the Kansas Senate Committee on Agriculture and Natural Resources for a continuation of his confirmation hearing, where senators pressed him on agency budgeting, staffing and infrastructure needs and questioned water use at a proposed Mead Lake fish hatchery.

The committee focused on three priorities Kennedy said he set when he took leadership of the Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks: fiscal responsibility, public engagement and improved communication within the agency. Kennedy told senators he had “held back 20% across the agency within our budget” to avoid overspending while staff adapt to new internal scrutiny and procurement controls.

Why it matters: the department manages state parks, fish and wildlife programs and millions of dollars in federal and state funding. Senators said infrastructure and staffing shortfalls — and how the agency spends fee revenue — directly affect public access and safety in parks and the department’s ability to maintain fish and wildlife resources.

Kennedy described immediate budget problems he found on arriving: multiple, inconsistent answers from staff about the department’s total funding across eight or nine divisions. “That gave me immediate concern,” he said, and led to a review of capital improvement projects and procurement practices. He said the goal is processes that “would stand up to public scrutiny” and that staff now must justify expenditures to the executive team.

On procurement and contracting, Kennedy cited prior work in Missouri that increased participation by minority- and women-owned businesses. He said that effort was driven by state procurement statute and by outreach to ensure businesses knew of bidding opportunities; he told the committee the initiative produced about an 8% increase in such firms winning state contracts and that the recognition he received came from the governor’s cabinet in Missouri. When asked whether diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) considerations appear on Kansas hiring forms, Kennedy replied, “Absolutely not,” and said he would hire “the most qualified individual” for positions.

Senators repeatedly raised parks infrastructure and staffing. Kennedy said he has focused his initial review on parks because their needs are visible during travel, but that problems exist across both parks and wildlife divisions. He identified about $9,000,000 in needed repairs and said the agency’s engineering staff is beginning work, with a full asset and infrastructure assessment planned to triage and prioritize projects.

On park safety and homelessness, Kennedy said the issue mirrors trends across cities nationwide and must be addressed collaboratively across agencies. He said park rangers and park staff are the first line of response and can call game wardens, sheriff’s departments or other law enforcement as needed. “I feel like the homeless have a right to enjoy parks as well. But I also have to maintain safety for... all of our citizens,” he said.

Committee members pressed Kennedy about the Mead Lake hatchery in southwest Kansas, which is in the department’s five-year capital improvement plan. Senators asked whether the hatchery would increase water use in an area with limited water supplies. Kennedy said staff are studying ways to save and recirculate water and are reconsidering which species to propagate to reduce water demand: “It takes a lot of water to raise walleye... Should we look at propagating other species that require less water?” he asked. He said the project is being advanced “very critically.”

On the department’s use of KDOT funds and fee revenue, Kennedy said some past decisions routed KDOT funding to operating expenses rather than road repairs around parks; he described that as “a mistake” he did not make. He also said the agency has not raised many user fees in 10–15 years and supports examining fee increases as part of a broader revenue strategy.

Kennedy addressed statutory powers and land acquisition: asked whether he would use the department’s eminent domain authority to expand public hunting land, he said he would not. “I would absolutely not invoke that privilege of eminent domain,” he said, continuing that he prefers to acquire land from willing sellers or accept donations but acknowledged the state has “limited number of acres for public hunting” and low public land per capita.

On consolidation of natural-resources agencies, Kennedy said he favors continued cooperation with other agencies on issues such as water but, given the workload of managing fish, forests, wildlife and parks, he did not advocate consolidation while he is in office.

The committee chair said the panel will act on the appointment next week; no vote was recorded at this hearing. The hearing concluded after senators exhausted questions.

Quotes used in this article come from the hearing transcript and are attributed to the speakers listed in the article’s speaker roster.