KCPOST asks for new investigator to reduce 6–10 month backlog as docket-fee revenue falls

The Kansas Commission on Peace Officers Standards and Training asked the Legislative Budget Committee to fund a supervisory investigator position in its fiscal year 2026 request, citing a persistent 6–10 month backlog in presenting investigative cases to the commission.

Nicole Rincher, fiscal analyst with the Kansas Legislative Research Department, told the committee that the agency’s FY2026 request totals $1,200,000, an 11.6% increase from the FY2025 approved amount, and that the agency identified a $103,364 enhancement, all from special revenue funds, "to add a supervisory investigator position to address the increased workload involved in investigating claims." Rincher also said KCPOST has no state general fund appropriation and is funded through two fee-related funds listed on the packet’s page 5.

The request comes after the LBC initially "made a motion to delete all supplementals and enhancements," Rincher said; that deletion was the committee’s only change to KCPOST’s request as recorded in the hearing. KCPOST’s executive director, Doug Schroeder, told committee members he appealed that removal to the governor’s office and "just this morning, I saw it was included back…