Division of the Budget
Landon State Office Building Phone: (785) 296-2436
900 SW Jackson Street, Room 504 adam.c.proffitt@ks.gov
Topeka, KS 66612 http://budget.kansas.gov
Adam Proffitt, Director Laura Kelly, Governor
Division of the Budget
February 6, 2023
The Honorable Stephen Owens, Chairperson
House Committee on Corrections and Juvenile Justice
300 SW 10th Avenue, Room 546-S
Topeka, Kansas 66612
Dear Representative Owens:
SUBJECT: Fiscal Note for HB 2104 by House Committee on Corrections and Juvenile
Justice
In accordance with KSA 75-3715a, the following fiscal note concerning HB 2104 is
respectfully submitted to your committee.
HB 2104 would clarify that probation, suspension of sentence, or assignment to community
corrections in both misdemeanor and felony cases may be terminated by the court at any time. The
bill would also require that once a defendant has served a period of twice the original supervision
term, the defendant must be released from supervision but would continue to be responsible for
any outstanding child support or restitution. Under current law, an offender’s period of supervision
may be extended for five years or the maximum prison sentence that could be imposed, whichever
is longer. HB 2104 would require supervision periods to not exceed a maximum of twice the
original supervision term. The bill would also require low-risk defendants to serve at least 50.0
percent of the original term of probation, assignment to a community correctional services
program, suspension of sentence, or nonprison sanction prior to petitioning the court for discharge.
Currently, a defendant may petition the court after 12 months. The bill would allow a supervision
officer to recommend the court terminate moderate and high-risk offenders’ term of probation,
assignment to a community correctional services program, suspension of sentence, or nonprison
sanction.
The bill would also add new provisions that for any defendant, regardless of risk level, the
court may set a hearing for a date when a defendant has served 50.0 percent of their term of
supervision to determine whether to terminate the remaining time. The bill would also add new
provisions that specify what the court or supervision officer must consider when deciding whether
to terminate or recommend termination, including (1) the defendant’s history of compliance with
terms and conditions of supervision; (2) whether the defendant has successfully completed any
required treatment or programming; (3) whether the defendant has completed 75.0 percent of the
required supervision period; (4) whether termination of probation, assignment to a community
correctional services program, suspension of sentence, or nonprison sanction serves the
community safety interest; and (4) any outstanding fines, costs, and restitution owed by the
defendant. Finally, the bill would allow the court to terminate a defendant’s term of probation, The Honorable Stephen Owens, Chairperson
Page 2—HB 2104
assignment to a community correctional services program, suspension of sentence, or nonprison
sanction at any time.
The Kansas Sentencing Commission estimates that enactment of HB 2104 would result in
a decrease of 572, 617, or 666 beds needed by the end of FY 2024 depending on the scenario. The
scenarios project 572 fewer inmates by the end of FY 2024 if there would be a 10.0 percent
reduction of probation violations, 617 fewer inmates if there would be a 15.0 percent reduction in
probation violations, and 666 fewer inmates if there would be a 20.0 percent reduction in probation
violations. By the end of FY 2033, 625, 673, or 732 fewer beds would be needed, depending on
the scenario. The current estimated available bed capacity is 9,428 for males and 936 for females.
Based upon the Commission’s most recent ten-year projection contained in its FY 2023 Adult
Inmate Prison Population Projections report, it is estimated that the year-end population will total
7,933 male and 764 female inmates in FY 2023 and 8,043 male and 740 female inmates in FY
2024.
The Department of Corrections indicates that enactment of the bill could result in a slight
decrease in the number of beds needed. The Department states that a review of data from April
2021 through December 2022 shows 716 offenders were recommended for early discharge from
probation, an average of 34 a month. As a result, the Department indicates that the number of
persons released early is generally low and due to the requirement in the bill that supervision
officers and the courts must grant early termination, the Department states enactment of the bill
would have no fiscal effect on the agency because it does not anticipate such early terminations to
significantly increase. The Department notes that if a reduction were to be experienced in either
prison bed utilization or Community Corrections probation caseloads, the daily savings per
offender on Community Corrections would be $7.72 per day and the savings on marginal per
resident costs (meals, clothing, supplies, etc.) would be $9.52 per day.
The Office of Judicial Administration indicates enactment of the bill would increase
expenditures for the Judicial Branch because it allows petitions to be filed and additional hearings
to be held regarding defendant supervision. This would increase the time spent by district court
judicial and nonjudicial personnel in processing, researching, and hearing cases. In addition, the
bill could result in more time spent by court services officers in the supervision of offenders.
However, a precise fiscal effect cannot be estimated. Any fiscal effect associated with HB 2104
is not reflected in The FY 2024 Governor’s Budget Report.
Sincerely,
Adam Proffitt
Director of the Budget
cc: Scott Schultz, Sentencing Commission
Randy Bowman, Department of Corrections
Vicki Jacobsen, Judiciary