23 January 2026 | Health Economic Security Tax and Budget Federal Education and Early Learning

2026 Statehouse Snapshot: Week 2

Kansas Action for Children | January 23, 2026

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Come See the Process for Yourself

This legislative session kicked off quickly, with the budget committees hearing agency budgets at record speed and committees scheduling hearings for bills that don’t even have bill numbers yet.

Be it related to how the state spends its limited resources or proposed restrictions on public assistance programs, a common theme we’re noticing is that what the Legislature might view as efficiency is actually cutting out regular, everyday people from having a voice in how state laws are created.

Even though this legislative process might not be as conducive to letting Kansans from across the state weigh in on issues they might care about, that doesn’t mean people who care can’t find other ways to be heard. Right now is the best time to reach out to lawmakers before they get too deep into committee hearings and share your unique experiences with them.

As you’ll see in this newsletter, the Legislature is going back to old, bad habits that double down on deciding who actually needs a hand up. As more and more Kansas families live paycheck to paycheck, lawmakers need to hear how you or people you know have to make hard choices to make ends meet. Our Advocacy Guide provides helpful tips on getting started – and how to find who you should be in contact with.

Budget Process – and What’s at Stake

The budget process is still moving at light speed with committee budget hearings being scheduled with very little notice or being shuffled around last minute. This makes it difficult for nonprofits and other invested stakeholders to weigh in on important decisions by attending committee meetings or providing testimony.

This week and next, both the House and the Senate are planning to make decisions on the Kansas Department of Health and Environment, Department for Children and Families, and the Kansas State Department of Education, all of which contain funding for programs many families rely on to have enough to eat, access health care, or access early childhood services.

As legislators weigh in on the funding for the entire state, it’s important to remember that the state’s current spending plan for FY 2026 exceeds revenue by about $402 million, and FY 2027 spending is currently estimated to exceed revenue by $262 million. As lawmakers work to create a balanced budget as required by the Kansas Constitution, they have two choices: raise revenue through taxes or cut spending.

As the Legislature usually turns to cutting spending to make the state budget balance, we’re monitoring what they’ll prioritize – and whether they’ll have enough budget wiggle room to add some crucial funding for critical programs like SNAP or Medicaid. As lawmakers make their difficult choices over the next several weeks, we’ll be monitoring and weighing in where we can.

Senate Committee on Government Efficiency to Consider Free Lunch Program Eligibility Checks

Earlier this week, a bill was introduced into the Senate Committee on Government Efficiency that would make it more difficult for kids to qualify for free (and perhaps reduced-price) lunches at school. We are ending the week without a bill number or bill text on the Kansas Legislature’s website, even though a hearing is still scheduled for next Tuesday.

The bill would make it more difficult for kids to access free lunches at school in two ways.

It requires schools to verify the income of each student who applies for free lunches via application through the child’s school. As it stands today, in accordance with federal law, schools are required to accept the self-reported income as stated by the family. This shift would create administrative burdens for schools and cause some families on the margins to lose access to free meals.
It requires legislative approval for school districts to participate in the Community Eligibility Provision (CEP). For schools with high rates of students directly certified for free meals, CEP allows those schools to offer free meals to every student. Many districts around the state are entertaining participation in CEP. This provision would make their path more difficult and make it harder for struggling families to keep up with the bills.

When a family fills out an application for free school lunches, the current practice (as mandated by federal law) is for school districts to accept self-attestation regarding household income. This practice helps alleviate what is known as the “benefits cliff,” where families see their net resources decline once their income reaches a certain threshold.

This resource decline occurs when all-or-nothing approaches recognize that a family making 130% of the Federal Poverty Level (FPL) could use a hand up, but does not recognize the same for a family making 131% of FPL. This bill will lead to more families falling over the cliff and seeing their resources decline.

Kansas Is Doubling Down on Program Restrictions

We’ve heard rumors that legislation would be introduced this session to codify some of the worst parts of H.R. 1 into state law, and this week proved that rumor to be true when SB 363 was introduced.

To our surprise, SB 363 goes even farther than H.R. 1, as if the more than $1 trillion in cuts to SNAP and Medicaid weren’t already going to harm enough Kansans. This bill will impact Kansans’ ability to access these programs for decades to come, even if federal laws are reversed in the future. We know from past work that it will be nearly impossible to reverse these laws if this bill passes.

There’s a little bit of everything in this bill, from work requirements modeled after H.R. 1 to more frequent eligibility determinations when enrolled in Medicaid. We are working quickly to understand several aspects of the bill and its impacts on struggling Kansans. But what we know right now leaves us with the clear impression that the Legislature is, once again, telling Kansans they’re on their own when it comes to food or medical assistance, and that they don’t believe many Kansans actually need the help provided by SNAP or Medicaid.

One of the best ways to advocate against this type of legislation is to show lawmakers directly the difficult choices you have to make to make ends meet. You or someone you know may have a story to share about how your bills stack up – and how these programs give your own budget a little room to breathe.

The Senate Committee on Government Efficiency had scheduled a hearing for this bill on Wednesday, which as of the timing of this email is on hold. Be prepared for this bill to be put back on the agenda. Regardless, it’s still important to communicate concerns. We are hopeful we’ll see many voices come out against this bill, so stay tuned for ways we may need your help in telling lawmakers how further restricting these programs will harm Kansas families.

Federal Update

Yesterday, the U.S. House passed two measures. The first is to fund the Department of Defense, Department of Education, Department of Labor, Health and Human Services and Department of Transportation and Housing and Urban Development. The other is to fund the Department of Homeland Security. Several federal programs that impact kids and families are part of the first spending bill. Both bills head to the Senate next week for their needed fast action, ahead of a January 30 government shutdown deadline.

What to Expect in Week 3

As committees pick up more bills to consider, our work will continue to focus on weighing in when public testimony is accepted. Here’s what’s on our radar going into the third week of the legislative session:

On Tuesday in Senate Committee on Government Efficiency, we’ll submit testimony in opposition to the school meals bill, which does not currently have a bill number.
If the hearing is rescheduled in the Senate Committee on Government Efficiency, we’ll provide testimony in opposition to SB 363, relating to several changes to the SNAP and Medicaid programs and certain requirements for the agencies administering those programs.
On Wednesday in the Senate Committee on Public Health and Welfare, we’ll submit testimony in support of SB 328, which would update state law to allow for school nurses to administer any FDA-approved epinephrine delivery system.
In budget committees throughout the week, we’ll also weigh in on the budgets for the Kansas State Department of Education, the Kansas Department of Health and Environment, and the Kansas Department for Aging and Disability Services.

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