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Committee hears testimony on making first-offense buyers felony and mandating AG-approved treatment
Summary
Senate Bill 71 would make a first offense of "buying sexual relations" a severity level 9 person felony, raise the minimum fine and require completion of Attorney General-approved education or treatment programs for convictions and diversions under a phased timetable.
Senate Bill 71 would reclassify the crime commonly referred to in committee as "buying sexual relations" so that a first offense becomes a severity level 9 person felony, increase the minimum fine to $2,000, and require offenders to complete an educational or treatment program approved by the Attorney General in certain cases.
Under the bill as described by the committee reviser, section 1 would direct the Attorney General to consult with the Office of Judicial Administration and adopt rules to evaluate and approve one or more educational or treatment programs regarding commercial sexual exploitation; the AG would adopt rules and regulations by Jan. 1, 2026. Sections amending chapter 12 statutes would remove references to municipal ordinances for the offense. For the buying-sexual-relations offense, the bill would change the penalty structure: all violations would be a severity level 9 person felony (eliminating the current first-offense misdemeanor), increase the statutory fine minimum from $1,200 to $2,000, and require courts to order completion of the AG-approved program for convictions that occur on or after July 1, 2026. The diversion statute (KSA 22-2909) would be amended so that diversions after July 1, 2026 must include the AG-approved program. The reviser stated the bill takes effect July 1, 2025 to permit rulemaking, with some sentencing provisions delayed until July 1, 2026; the bill passed the Senate 40-0 before reaching the House committee.
Proponents framed the bill as a demand-reduction measure. Mike Kagay (testifying as Shawnee County District Attorney Mike Kahe) said Kansas should target the demand side of commercial sexual exploitation because "human trafficking is modern day slavery." He and other prosecution and law enforcement witnesses emphasized that buyers fuel the market for traffickers and that moving cases out of municipal court into state felony court ensures centralized records and better visibility for prosecutors and law enforcement. Testifying for the Kansas Sheriffs Association and allied groups, Ed Klump said taking the offense out of municipal court would ensure records enter the central state court database and aid prosecutors in tracking prior diversions or dispositions.
Service providers and survivor advocates described the harms they see and urged felony penalties and mandatory programming. Terry Hund, program director for Project to Restore, said most survivors the program serves were coerced or trafficked and that buyers have a choice while victims do not: "Buyers have a choice," she said, "and it's clear the only way we are going to stop this crime is by making buying a felony." Lucy Bloom of Impact Strategies cited evidence and programs used elsewhere — including a Kansas-Missouri education program called Stop Sexual Exploitation — and said studies and program results support both criminal deterrence and behavioral change through education. Emma Markowitz, a human trafficking intelligence analyst with the Shawnee County District Attorney's office, described the prevalence of online advertisements and provided counts of local and statewide postings to illustrate scale.
Committee members pressed for clarification on timing and implementation. Representative John Carmichael asked whether parts of the bill take effect July 1, 2025 and whether program requirements are delayed until 2026; the reviser confirmed the bill's effective date starts the rulemaking process in 2025 and most AG-approved-program sentencing requirements apply July 1, 2026. Members asked proponents about program effectiveness, enforcement discretion and recordkeeping if cases remain in municipal court; proponents said centralized state felony records and a mandatory AG-approved diversion or sentencing program would increase accountability and support victim-centered outcomes.
No opponents spoke in person; neutral/written testimony was filed by some groups according to the committee record. The committee did not take a vote during the hearing.
