House Appropriations panel asks agencies for 7.5% state general fund reduction; HB 2007 set as starting point

The Kansas House Committee on Appropriations heard an overview of an expedited budget process and was asked to use House Bill 2007 as the starting point for deliberations, committee staff said. Committee staff asked state agencies to prepare fiscal 2026 reduced-resource proposals that show a 7.5% decrease to state general fund (SGF) spending, with specific exclusions from that calculation.

Committee members heard the briefing from legislative fiscal staff during a committee meeting. Dylan Deer, assistant director for fiscal affairs, told the committee the legislature will begin budget hearings roughly three weeks earlier than in prior years and said the special legislative committee on budgets had already developed a recommendation that would form a starting point for members' work. "You're gonna start hearing budgets about 3 weeks sooner than you have heard them in the past," Deer said.

Why it matters: the request to prepare a 7.5% reduced-resource proposal affects how agencies present priorities and could influence program funding decisions for FY2026. Steven Wu, manager and fiscal analyst with Legislative Research, said…