Kansas 2025-2026 Regular Session

Kansas Senate Bill SB450

Introduced
2/3/26  
Refer
2/4/26  
Report Pass
2/16/26  
Engrossed
2/25/26  

Caption

Authorizing the secretary of administration to grant a monetary award to a state employee who reports activity that constitutes fraud, waste or abuse of funds in any program administered by a state agency.

Summary

SB 450 revises Kansas law governing state employee awards and recognition programs. It keeps the existing framework for monetary and non-monetary awards for distinguished service, innovation, volunteerism, and length of service, but adds a new whistleblower-style incentive for state employees who report fraud, waste, or abuse in programs administered by a state agency. The secretary of administration would be authorized to grant a monetary award when a report leads to savings of state funds, in consultation with the Office of Inspector General or the attorney general. The bill also strengthens and reorganizes the administration of employee award programs. It directs the secretary of administration to adopt rules for oversight and safeguards against abuse, establishes a state employee suggestion program for cost-saving ideas, and sets a formula for innovation awards tied to documented savings. Under the suggestion program, agencies would retain a portion of savings, with the remainder reverting to the state general fund, and agencies would report suggestions and awards to the budget director, legislative research, and legislative committees. The bill further excludes elected or appointed officials from receiving monetary awards and revokes existing employee award board regulations.

Impact

SB 450 would amend and then repeal K.S.A. 75-37,105, replacing the current employee award structure with a more detailed statutory scheme for state employee recognition, cost-saving suggestions, and fraud/waste/abuse reporting incentives. It would affect state agencies, the secretary of administration, the division of the budget, the legislative research department, the Office of Inspector General, and the attorney general by creating new reporting, oversight, and award-administration duties. It also affects state employees by creating potential monetary awards tied to savings and by clarifying that such awards are not retirement compensation and are subject to tax treatment and reporting requirements.

Sentiment

The bill appears to have generally favorable support, as reflected by its Senate Emergency Final Action passage on a 33-6 vote. The broad vote margin suggests lawmakers were receptive to the idea of rewarding employees for identifying savings and exposing misuse of public funds. No committee transcript was provided, so the available record does not show detailed debate, but the vote history indicates overall approval rather than strong opposition.

Contention

The main points of contention likely center on how awards are determined, how much discretion the secretary of administration and agency heads would have, and whether the program could create disputes over originality, eligibility, or the size of payouts. The bill limits awards when allegations are already known to oversight bodies, in open investigations, or already public, which suggests concern about duplicate claims and windfalls. Another possible issue is the balance between incentivizing reporting and protecting employees from retaliation, though the bill references existing disciplinary protections. The allocation of savings between employee awards, agency retention, and the general fund may also be a point of fiscal interest.

Companion Bills

No companion bills found.

Previously Filed As

KS HB2001

Authorizing the secretary of commerce to enter into agreements with major professional sports franchises to establish STAR bond projects for a major professional sports complex, providing for additional revenue sources, expanding the powers and discretion of the secretary and making other changes to the STAR bonds financing act to facilitate such projects, limiting the secretary’s authority to approve such projects to one year unless extended by the legislative coordinating council, authorizing the Kansas development finance authority to issue STAR bonds for such projects, transferring funds under certain circumstances from the state gaming revenues fund to the attracting professional sports to Kansas fund for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2025, and, if approved by the legislative coordinating council, for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2026.

KS SB2

Eliminating the income limit to qualify for the subtraction modification exempting social security benefits, increasing the income tax credit amount for household and dependent care expenses, establishing the veterans' valor property tax relief act providing for an income tax credit or refund for eligible individuals, citing the increased property tax homestead refund claim section as the homeowners' property tax freeze program, decreasing the normal privilege tax rate, increasing the extent of property tax exemption for residential property from the statewide school levy, decreasing the rate of ad valorem tax imposed by a school district; providing for certain transfers to the state school district finance fund, reducing the state rate of tax on sales of food and food ingredients and modifying the percent credited to the state highway fund from revenue collected.

KS SB7

Authorizing federally licensed firearm dealers, in addition to county sheriffs, to receive applications for concealed carry licenses and forward such applications to the attorney general, prohibiting sheriffs from assessing any fee related to application services and allowing dealers to assess a fee related to application services not to exceed $20.

KS SB5

Authorizing counties to impose an earnings tax.

KS SB1

Modifying income tax rates for individuals, exempting all social security benefits from Kansas income tax, increasing the Kansas standard deduction and the Kansas personal exemption, increasing the income tax credit amount for household and dependent care expenses, decreasing the privilege tax normal tax, excluding internal revenue code section 1031 exchange transactions as indicators of fair market value for property tax valuation purposes, increasing the extent of property tax exemption for residential property from the statewide school levy, providing for certain transfers to the state school district finance fund and abolishing the local ad valorem tax reduction fund and the county and city revenue sharing fund.

KS HB2004

Authorizing counties to propose an earnings tax for ballot question.

KS SCR1603

Proposing to amend section 1 of article 11 of the constitution of the state of Kansas to limit property tax valuation increases for residential property.

KS SCR1604

Proposing to amend section 1 of article 11 of the constitution of the state of Kansas to limit property tax valuation increases for real property and personal property mobile homes.

KS HB2003

Establishing the veterans' valor property tax relief act providing for an income tax credit or refund for eligible individuals, modifying the definition of household income and increasing the appraised value threshold for eligibility of seniors and disabled veterans related to increased property tax claims and citing the section as the homeowners' property tax freeze program, providing property tax exemptions for certain personal property including watercraft, marine equipment, off-road vehicles, motorized bicycles and certain trailers, excluding internal revenue code section 1031 exchange transactions as indicators of fair market value, providing for certain exclusions from the prohibition of paying taxes under protest after a valuation notice appeal and providing four prior years' values on the annual valuation notice.

KS SB6

Providing a sales tax exemption for sales of electricity to residential premises by municipally owned or operated utilities.

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