Topeka Buzz 🐝
Wednesday, February 25, 2026

• Senate Ways and Means Advances 359-Page Omnibus Bu …

• New Bills Introduced

  • Senate

• Committee Actions

  • Ways and Means

    • Bills Referred

    • Bills Reported Out

    • Bills Re-referred

Senate Ways and Means Advances 359-Page Omnibus Budget With Abortion Restrictions, Hospital Assessment Overhaul, and New Nonprofit Oversight Rules

The Senate Ways and Means Committee, chaired by Sen. Rick Billinger (R), reported out Sub. SB 315 as a substitute bill—a sprawling, 359-page omnibus appropriations package that sets state spending for FY2027 and touches nearly every corner of Kansas government. The bill funds Medicaid and public health, higher education, the judiciary, water infrastructure, and capital projects while embedding several policy provisions that are likely to draw sharp debate when it reaches the Senate floor.

Three provisions stand out. First, the bill bars the Division of Health Care Finance (DHCF)—the state's Medicaid agency—from contracting with or granting funds to any organization that provides or refers for abortions during FY2027. Separately, a $3 million Pregnancy Compassion Awareness Program housed at the State Treasurer's office carries the same restriction: contractors cannot use the funds for abortion services or referrals, and the program includes fines for violations. Together, these riders attach abortion-related conditions to a must-pass budget vehicle…a process choice that limits standalone debate on the policy.

Second, the bill directs DHCF to ask the federal Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to approve a revamped hospital provider assessment. The current assessment applies only to inpatient revenue. Sub. SB 315 would expand the base to include both inpatient and outpatient net operating revenue, set the rate between 5% and 6%, and calculate each hospital's assessment from its fiscal year 2022 financials. If CMS approves, the change takes effect on the next January 1 or July 1 after the approval is published in the Kansas Register. Here's the trade-off: the expanded assessment would unlock federal matching dollars that could boost hospital reimbursement rates, but the bill also cuts off State General Fund (SGF) money for rate enhancements once the new assessment is in place. For hospitals, it's potentially more total revenue through the federal match; for the state, it's a way to shift rate support off the SGF and onto the federal-state assessment mechanism.

Third, the bill creates new transparency and performance rules for nonprofits and nongovernmental organizations that receive $50,000 or more in state funds. The Department of Administration must build a searchable public website listing all such recipients from FY2026. Starting in FY2027, applicants must submit measurable outcomes, and many contracts will shift to a 50% upfront / 50% performance-based payment model—a significant change in how the state manages grant relationships. Organizations that depend on state funding will need to build reporting infrastructure or risk losing the second half of their payments.

The bill's fiscal footprint is enormous. Among the largest line items: $770 million for Medicaid medical assistance, $716 million for KanCare caseloads through the Kansas Department for Aging and Disability Services (KDADS), $232 million for judiciary operations, $167 million for KU operations, and a $100 million bond cap for a KU Medical Center cancer center. Multi-year transfers include $35 million to the State Water Plan Fund on July 1, 2026, part of a four-year commitment totaling $150 million. The bill also suspends several recurring statutory transfers through FY2028 to free up resources for current priorities---a short-term fix that shifts costs into future budgets.

Sub. SB 315 now sits on the Senate's General Orders calendar below the anticipated end-of-debate line, meaning Senate leadership has not yet prioritized it for floor debate. As a substitute bill, it will move through Committee of the Whole before reaching final action. Given its size and the policy riders attached, floor amendments are all but guaranteed---particularly on the abortion provisions, the hospital assessment, and the nonprofit oversight rules. How much of this 359-page package survives intact will say a lot about the Senate's spending priorities for the year ahead.

New Bills Introduced

Senate

• 🐝🐝🐝 SB 517: SB 517 requires Kansas schools to make K-3 literacy plans for students labeled "high-risk," provide at least 90 minutes/week of targeted interventions, hire a reading specialist for each elementary by 2029-30, and expand statewide literacy reporting.

• 🐝🐝 SB 516: Clarifies that some skill-based arcade machines and live, in-person esports contests aren’t unlawful gambling if they meet prize and device rules. Keeps the core gambling crime and penalties but narrows what counts as a gambling device.

Committee Actions

Ways and Means

Bills Referred

• SB 304: Uses birth records to mail savings-account info

• SB 404: Tie personalized plate term to issue date; allow higher fees

• SB 263: Sets standards for school active-shooter drills

• SB 339: Require 30 Minutes Daily Recess for K-5

• SB 415: Links landlord habitability breaches to consumer law

• SB 382: Virtual schools may proctor statewide tests

Bills Reported Out

• SB 315 (substitute bill be passed): State budget sets FY2027 spending, transfers, and rules

Bills Re-referred

• SB 496: Mandates annual speech, association, and religion training

• SB 497: Adds kratom alkaloids to Schedule I

• SB 491: Creates Education Inspector General to Protect Students

• SB 363: Tightens benefit verification, expands SNAP work rules

• SB 458: Freeze state test cut scores at 2024 levels

• SB 441: Allows private ABA therapy in schools

• SB 438: Boards must consider CEP for free school meals

• SB 440: Authorizes private special education training pilot

• SB 417: Gives counties veto power; SCC permits for large renewables

• SB 437: Creates task force to design outcomes-based funding

• SB 385: Require K-12 abuse prevention lessons and teacher training

• SB 324: Ban hand-held phone use in school & work zones

• SB 478: Raises penalties for assaulting utility and telecom workers

• SB 350: Limits school device use by grade; adds parent opt-outs

• SB 343: Bans state and local funds for low-earning programs

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