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 into our budget." The committee transcript does not record a roll-call vote on the LBC motion.

Why it matters: KCPOST certifies and disciplines peace officers in Kansas. Delays in investigations and certification actions can keep cases pending and slow disciplinary decisions on officers’ licenses.

Schroeder described the investigative bottleneck and why the agency says an additional investigator is needed. "We have several cases that are getting stale because we don't have the investigator manpower to properly investigate those and present them to the commission," he said, adding that KCPOST currently has "one full time and two part time investigators." He warned the delay could mean "we could possibly be letting officers that shouldn't have a license or should have their license revoked, reprimanded, or revoked out on the streets or applying with other agencies longer than what I think is appropriate."

Schroeder told the committee the complexity of modern investigations has increased "mainly due to technology." He described typical evidence sets for excessive-force complaints as including not only the accused officer’s body camera, but other officers’ body cameras, squad-car cameras, street cameras and automated license-plate reader data. "All of this causes us to reach out and get more and more data so that we can give the commission a clear picture," he said, and processing and reviewing that material ‘‘simply takes time.’’

Budget and funding details: KCPOST reported a FY2025 approved appropriation of $1,071,265 and a revised FY2025 estimate of $1,081,476, an increase driven by higher salary and health-benefit employer contributions. The FY2026 agency request of $1,200,000 included the enhancement to fund the investigator position. KCPOST’s revenue sources are the KCPOST fee fund and the local law-enforcement training fund; the agency reported that $5 of a $22.50 docket fee is deposited to KCPOST and $1 to the local training fund. The agency said docket-fee receipts have declined over roughly eight years, falling from a peak funding year of $892,000 (2018) to $620,000 in the last year reported, and KCPOST said it will pursue statutory change to increase the $5 allocation to $10.

KCPOST also told the committee about internal cost savings: requiring law-enforcement agencies to enter training data directly into the central registry saved about 200 staff hours a year, and an ARPA grant funded digitization of past investigative records. Schroeder said a planned office move onto Kansas Highway Patrol-owned property near Wichita State University is expected to save roughly $12,000 annually.

Committee questions and metrics: Committee members pressed on whether the backlog is a systemic, consistent delay; Schroeder replied it is, because the investigative committee for the commission meets quarterly and many cases cannot be processed fast enough to appear at the next quarterly meeting. Representative Howell and others asked whether a single additional FTE would be sufficient; Schroeder said one position would ‘‘make a significant dent’’ and allow the agency to assess whether a second investigator would be needed later. KCPOST said it investigates about 170 cases per year and the commission takes roughly 50–55 actions annually.

Next steps: The committee closed the KCPOST budget hearing and moved to the next agency’s hearing; the transcript shows the LBC initially struck enhancements but does not record a final voted appropriation in the hearing transcript. Any statutory change to the docket fee would require subsequent legislative action.