Sedgwick County officials say KDOC funding formula would cut community corrections grant by about $2.1 million; commissioners plan appeal

Sedgwick County commissioners and corrections officials told the county’s staff meeting that a newly applied Kansas Department of Corrections (KDOC) funding formula would reduce the county’s adult community corrections grant by about 37 percent — roughly $2.1 million — and sharply cut behavioral-health grant money the county has used to pay for programs and staff.

The cuts, described by KDOC as a reallocation of existing grant dollars rather than a reduction in the statewide pot, would hit Sedgwick County despite the county’s larger caseload and local funding for correctional services. County leaders directed staff to draft a letter to KDOC and state legislative leaders and to plan public outreach to press for reconsideration or a legislative fix.

Why it matters: County officials say the proposed reductions would force cuts to evidence-based programs, reduce staff who coach and supervise high‑risk clients, increase caseloads for remaining workers and could eliminate residential and behavioral‑health services that county leaders say have lowered recidivism. Steve Stonehouse, a Sedgwick County Department of Corrections official, told commissioners the county’s current mix of programs and local funding make the proposed reduction…