KBI says recent career progression changes increased recruiting; requests further funding for CPP, IT and lab staff

Bob Stewart, Executive Officer of the Kansas Bureau of Investigation (KBI), described how the bureau’s CPP for special agents (created in 2016) and a CPP for forensic scientists (added in 2023) are intended to improve recruitment and retention for positions the bureau considers at high risk of private‑sector poaching.

Stewart said the agency’s 2024 CPP increases produced demonstrable recruitment gains: the KBI went from class sizes in the single digits earlier in the decade to a class of 18 new special agents after last year’s CPP increase, the largest class in more than a decade. He said two candidates who previously declined KBI offers accepted after the pay increase and are now on the force.

KBI 2026 requests: Stewart listed three compensation‑related enhancement packages proposed for 2026. First, an ongoing funding request to pay the regular CPP cost of agents and forensic scientists (KBI estimated $239.6 million would be required under current CPP payroll assumptions). Second, an IT package totaling roughly $793,372 (the KBI presentation cited $793,372) intended to reduce a persistent IT vacancy rate (four‑year average vacany ~31%) and to fund Chief Information Security Officer and related roles required by recent legislation (Senate Bill 291). Third, a laboratory package with a request of roughly $132,000 to raise classified forensic laboratory technician pay toward market comparators; the KBI said those roles have run about an 18% gap versus comparable local and state positions and suffer high turnover.

Why it matters: the KBI argued that pay changes are already translating to improved applicant quality and class sizes for agents and that failing to fund ongoing CPP costs, IT staffing and laboratory technician adjustments would worsen operational capacity in investigations and forensic processing.

Questions and follow‑up: lawmakers asked for additional details and cross‑checks: a legislator observed that Department of Administration survey data showed forensic scientists 29% above market, and Stewart said the bureau would reconcile those differences and provide follow‑up. KBI leaders also noted the high cost of training forensic scientists (Stewart cited training and certification costs in the low‑to‑mid hundreds of thousands of dollars per scientist over time) as a rationale for possible service agreements or repayment provisions going forward.

Ending: the KBI asked the panel to consider the three‑part funding package during 2026 budget planning and offered to supply follow‑up data comparing the bureau’s internal market information with the Department of Administration’s statewide results.