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Ways and Means adopts 1.5% operating reduction for most executive agencies, excludes corrections and public-safety entities; fiscal note about $19.1M
Summary
The committee accepted the House's 1.5% operating reduction for fiscal 2026-27 applied to most executive-branch agencies while excluding several public-safety and corrections agencies, recorded an estimated State Funds (SF-only) fiscal impact of about $19.1 million and accepted a state employee pay plan funded at roughly $40 million SGF.
The Ways and Means committee agreed to apply a 1.5% operating reduction to executive-branch agencies for fiscal 2026-27, adopting the House position with specific agency exclusions, and recorded a State Funds (SF-only) fiscal impact of about $19.1 million, committee members said at the meeting.
Committee members described the reduction as "executive branch only" and listed exclusions that will not be subject to the cut, including the Kansas Department of Corrections, the Kansas Bureau of Investigation, the Sentencing Commission, the veterans' homes, the Attorney General's Office and the state hospitals. A committee member said the excluded agencies have limited options to realize operating reductions without cutting staff.
Steven Wu, who provided the committee's fiscal calculation, said, "SF only would come to about 19,000,000 and 19.1. Let's round up to say 19.1." The committee also accepted a state employee pay plan on the House modified terms; Dylan, speaking for budget personnel, said a full limitation of the House plan with implementation safeguards would be about $40,000,000 in state general fund (SGF) cost and that unused funds could lapse back to the SGF.
Members discussed other pending bills and references: staff identified a Senate measure related to return-to-work policy and a separate bill the committee received information on as the "Back to Work Act," identified in committee discussion as Senate Bill 256, which remains in the Senate committee referenced by staff.
The committee recorded decisions to accept the House approach to the operating reduction with stated exclusions, accept the House-modified employee pay plan (estimated at $40 million SGF), and to follow up at a reconvened meeting the next morning to finalize technical details; members arranged to meet at 9 a.m. in room 112 North.
Action records: committee accepted House position for operating reduction with specified exclusions, recorded SF-only fiscal estimate of about $19.1 million, and accepted the House-modified state employee pay plan with an estimated $40,000,000 SGF cost.
