2026 Statehouse Snapshot: Session Preview
Kansas Action for Children | January 9, 2026
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Legislative Priorities This Session
This coming Monday, the 2026 legislative session will kick off in Topeka. Based on what we know of their legislative deadlines, lawmakers will hit the ground running when they come back to Topeka. Things will move fast – and we’ll all need to respond quickly to policies affecting kids and families.
With Kansans already feeling the pressure due to the current economic landscape and federal changes flowing down to our communities, there’s a lot at stake. Stay up to date this session through this email series of weekly legislative updates, participating in action alerts, following us on Facebook, or donating to support our team.
Thanks again for following our work and helping us advocate for Kansas kids! Below are a few of the issues we plan to spend much of our time on this session.
SAFE, AFFORDABLE HOUSING
When families fall behind on rent or live in poor quality housing, kids are more likely to experience food insecurity, depression, anxiety, aggression, and substance use. Housing insecure children are also more likely to be absent from school, have lower test scores, slower grade progression, and drop out of school. Read more about the cost of childhood housing insecurity – and solutions the Legislature can implement.
PARENTS ARE FEELING THE PINCH
As the cost of everything from food and shelter to health care and child care continues to climb higher, Kansas families are forced to spread their budgets thinner than ever. In an economy where costs are top of mind, putting money back in the pockets of these families can make a world of difference.
Lawmakers should pass a state child tax credit (CTC), which is the one of the most effective tools for lifting children out of poverty, with research showing the extra funds are mostly used for routine expenses, essential items, and groceries. Read more.
PROTECT THE CHILDREN’S INITIATIVES FUND
The Children’s Initiatives Fund (CIF) supports programs geared toward our youngest Kansans. CIF-funded programs have a wide reach. They support children with identified risk factors, ensuring that more than 8,000 children receive services like preschool, home visiting, literacy aids, and parent education.
Unfortunately, the Kansas Endowment for Youth (KEY) Fund, which financially supports the CIF, is experiencing diminishing revenues and can’t fully fund the normal CIF expenditures, putting Kansas communities at risk of losing important children’s programs. There’s more the state can do to bolster the CIF and ensure kids can continue to access these programs.
ROBUST K-12 SCHOOL FUNDING
The education of children today will determine the skillsets of the state’s future workforce. An equitable K-12 school finance formula is what makes this possible, leading to strong communities and a prosperous state.
As the state envisions its goals for K-12 students in its next school funding formula, the Kansas Legislature must strive to:
- Fully fund Special Education excess costs at 92%.
- Fund early literacy programs to bolster grade-level reading.
- Use the 2026 session and interim season to understand reasonable finance formula adjustments to maximize student learning outcomes.
HEALTH COVERAGE IS CRITICAL FOR CHILDREN’S HEALTH
Health insurance coverage is a major component of ensuring families can afford and access medical care and treatments in a timely fashion, including children’s well-child appointments and emergency care. Yet, too many Kansas families face barriers to access or afford these options. In 2024, more than 51,000 Kansas kids went uninsured.
To support healthier outcomes for children, the 2026 Kansas Legislature should:
- Update the eligibility statute for CHIP.
- Improve maternal care access for healthier beginnings.
- Incentivize accessible health insurance that works for everyone
DISTRACTION-FREE LEARNING ENVIRONMENTS
Childhood has changed significantly in the past two decades because of easy access to digital content, screens, and devices. While access to technology can offer many benefits, too few boundaries have been set to protect children’s focus and safety. A consistent expectation should be set that personal devices are limited while in a school setting so that children and teachers can have more meaningful educational interactions.
The Kansas Legislature should consider a bell-to-bell phone restriction in K-12 public schools to improve students’ focus, learning outcomes, mental health, and safety.
Refresh Yourself on Legislative Basics
There’s still time to prepare yourself to lend your voice this legislative session! Check out our resources on legislative basics to learn more:
Federal News
While we’ll be focusing on sending you updates about the Kansas legislative session, we still want to keep you informed about federal issues we’re tracking. Here’s some recent federal news to learn about.
Where Is Congress on ACA Tax Credits?
While Congress failed to renew the ACA Enhanced Premium Tax Credits before the end of the year, there’s still a possibility that they could renew them very soon to keep health care coverage costs down in 2026.
Just yesterday, enough U.S. House Republicans joined Democrats in passing a plan that extends these tax credits for three years. However, the measure still needs to get through the U.S. Senate; bipartisan talks are underway to negotiate a deal. Read more here.
We still have our action alert open for you to send a note to the full Kansas congressional delegation urging them to renew the tax credits. Take action here.
Child Care Funding Freezes
Based on allegations of fraud in child care centers, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) sent letters to five states – California, Colorado, Illinois, Minnesota, and New York – informing them that certain child care and family assistance funds had been frozen. HHS also activated their Defend the Spend initiative for all Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF) grantees. The initiative requires information that they are implementing strategies to identify fraud and provide strong justifications for the use of funds.
CCDF benefited roughly 14,000 children in Kansas in FY 2025 and already implements measures to identify and address fraud. The program increases access to high-quality child care while parents work or pursue their education and improves child care affordability. We’ll keep you up to date if this federal change creates any significant disruptions for Kansas families and providers.
CDC Changes Childhood Vaccination Schedule
Earlier this week the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) narrowed the recommended childhood vaccine schedule. Here’s what is no longer broadly recommended:
- Flu and COVID vaccines
- Hep A and Hep B
- Meningococcal vaccine (meningitis)
- RV vaccine (rotavirus)
- Three doses of HPV (now, only one dose is recommended)
This is an evolving situation, but these significant changes to the vaccine schedule prompt several questions, including if insurance carriers will still cover the impacted vaccines or how the federal government will handle coverage for children enrolled in Medicaid and CHIP coverage. See the changes from the CDC here.
What to Expect in Week 1 of the Legislative Session
We are expecting a busy start to the 2026 legislative session and have even heard that some committees will quickly hold hearings on some bills.
Governor Kelly is scheduled to present her State of the State address on Tuesday evening, laying out her policy agenda and recommendations for the state’s budget. We expect to hear her speak about water issues, balancing the state budget, and economic development within the state.
We plan to continue providing updates throughout the week on our Facebook, @KsAction.
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