Government relations at Sedgwick County plays an integral role in the legislative process by communicating issues of primary importance in Sedgwick County at the local, state and federal levels.

2025 Sedgwick County Legislative Platform

The following are legislative issues that will enable Sedgwick County to continue to maintain the high level of service and programs to the citizens of our County.

APPROPRIATIONS

Aging

Support K4ad request to:

  • Add $5M to the Senior Care Act base funding.
  • Add $3 million to nutrition services for older adults base funding

Appraiser, Elections and Treasurer’s Office

  • Support legislation appropriating additional budget for the County Appraiser, County Election and County Treasurer’s Offices.  These functions are state mandates with local property tax funding.  Sedgwick County funded the Appraiser and Election Offices in 2024 at $12.3 M.  The Auto license support from the general fund in 2024 was $630,000 and is anticipated to be $1M by 2028. 

COMCARE

Support the Association of CMHCs of KS Inc. request to:

  • Addressing the Needs of the Uninsured and Underinsured—Keeping the Promise of Mental Health Reform. Continue and enhance funding to support behavioral health services for the uninsured.
  • Building Career Pathways and Supporting Workforce in Partnership with the Behavioral Health Center of Excellence. To address the workforce shortage of Qualified Mental Health Professionals (QMHPs) the Kansas Behavioral Health Center of Excellence (KSBHCoE) was established and is largely focused on addressing the workforce shortage through education and training opportunities as well as linking academic programs with community-based providers.  In 2024, the Kansas Legislature made an initial investment to fund these programs, and ongoing support is needed to continue to make progress. In order to further leverage that investment, we recommend that the Department of Health and Environment (Medicaid) update the state General Medical Education (GME) program to support KSBHCoE education programs.

Community Developmental Disability Organization

Support Interhab request to:

  • Request to develop and implement a multi-year strategy to eliminate the State’s IDD waiting list.
  • Request to adopt an annual adjustment process for IDD funding to keep pace with cost increases.
  • Request to develop strategies to assist the IDD system in supporting individuals with complex needs.
  • Increase the Intellectual and Development Disability Waiver Personal Care Services rates to ensure parity with the other Medicaid Waiver Personal Care Service rates.

Public Services

  • Support addressing the gap for youth in foster care with behavioral health issues.
  • Continue resources support for mental health crisis in-patient beds.
  • Create a pool of matching funds for capital expenditures related to the development and implementation of Juvenile Crisis Intervention Centers.

POLICY

Appraiser Office

  • Re-name the Sedgwick County Appraiser to State Appraiser on behalf of Sedgwick County.

Corrections

  • Amend SB 228 to add Juvenile Detention Facilities. SB 228 directs KDADS to reimburse counties for costs related to holding a person in custody while awaiting examination, evaluation, or treatment to restore competency to stand trial. 
  • Make enhancements to SB 367 (2016).

 Elections Office

  • Modify statute for any Election Precinct separated from other precincts by any public right of way, county or township roads or similar geographical divisions may be combined with an adjacent precinct as long as the political districts are the same for each of the combined districts.
  • Modify statute for Precinct person election results data shall not be considered final or official until county canvassing is complete. The election commissioner or county clerk of a county shall be afforded up to 3 business days to transmit the official results for precinct elections to the office of the Kansas Secretary of State.
  • Support legislation limiting the days for special question submitted elections set forth by resolution by any county, city, unified school district, community college, or township.  Special question elections for any county, city, unified school district, community college, or township, shall occur on the first Tuesday in March, August, or November.

 Finance and Economic Development

  • Support amendments to statutes that allow counties to go out for sales taxes in ¼ %  intervals to allow that to instead be done in 1/8 % intervals.
  • Support a change to the to the current distribution formula for the County’s 1% sales tax. The distribution is based in part upon the County’s and cities’ mill levies. In essence, if a municipality lowers its mill levy and other municipalities all keep their mill levies the same, the municipality that lowered its mill levy also receives a smaller portion of the sales tax. Applicable statute is K.S.A. 12-192.  A change could be to include the assessed valuation as the calculation instead of the total tangible property levies (which is partially dependent on the mill levy).
  • Amend SB 13 (2019) to allow for adjustments to the revenue neutral rate.

 Metropolitan Area Planning Department

  • Amend KSA 66-2019 to allow local governments to consider cell tower zoning and conditional use cases.

Public Works

  • Modify statute that would shield municipalities from liability if they would go above and beyond MUTCD (the traffic engineer guidelines, Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices) requirements and wouldn’t then be responsible if they would remove that additional condition.

 Regional Forensic Science Center

  • Change to state law that will statutorily enable county coroners to dispose of the cremated remains of unclaimed individuals in a manner established in state laws for mortuary services providers.
  • Change to state law and/or enactment of a state law that will enable county coroners to dispose of personal property of the unclaimed deceased in a similar fashion established in the unclaimed property act.

Sheriff

  • Reinstate medical coverage for local jail detention inmates.

Sedgwick County

  • Remove K.S.A. 79-1613 (property tax relief to damaged structures).
  • Unilateral annexation – County has no representation.
  • Extend constitutional protection for county home rule authority.