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
March 7, 2023
The Honorable Renee Erickson, Chairperson
Senate Committee on Commerce
300 SW 10th Avenue, Room 546-S
Topeka, Kansas 66612
Dear Senator Erickson:
SUBJECT: Fiscal Note for SB 282 by Senate Committee on Federal and State Affairs
In accordance with KSA 75-3715a, the following fiscal note concerning SB 282 is
respectfully submitted to your committee.
SB 282 would establish new training and education requirements for child care center staff
of licensed child care facilities, as well as general facility requirements, including requirements
for inspections. The bill would also set capacity limits for day care homes and facilities based on
ages of children and type of facility. The bill would allow for a waiver from the requirements as
approved by the Secretary of Health and Environment. The Secretary would also be authorized to
develop and operate pilot programs as outlined in the bill, designed to increase the availability or
capacity of day care facilities in the state. The bill would update definitions in KSA 65-503 to
provide for consistency and provide new definitions related to the new requirements within the
bill. SB 282 would also amend the current fee schedule for licensure for child care facilities to
include only maternity centers, child placement agencies, and child care resource and referral
agencies. In addition, beginning July 1, 2026, the bill would require all inspections of facilities
licensed under provisions of the bill to be conducted by employees of the Kansas Department of
Health and Environment. The Secretary would be able to hire, replace, or transition all surveyors
or similar employees working for a municipality who conduct inspections of the facilities into the
unclassified service.
According to the Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE), enactment of
SB 282 is estimated to require additional expenditures of $1.1 million, all from the State General
Fund, in FY 2024 and up to $9.2 million, all from the State General Fund, and up to an additional
93.00 FTE positions beginning in FY 2027 and ongoing each year after that. KDHE notes that
funding would need to come from State General Fund or federal funds but did not note an available
federal funding stream. The agency states that the fees currently collected from annual renewals
serve as aid to local health departments, which are contracted to assist the Child Care Licensing
Program with surveyors. Elimination of annual fees would require the program to find a way to
replace this funding stream. KDHE reports between 2017 and 2020 the program paid out an
average of $424,000 in funds to local health departments. The fees also provide some funding for
salaries and wages and assist with the purchase of fleet vehicles as needed and fleet vehicle repairs
throughout the year. KDHE estimates the replacement of $424,000 would be necessary beginning
in FY 2024. The Honorable Renee Erickson, Chairperson
Page 2—SB 282
KDHE also notes that removing contracted health departments would affect the amount of
matching funds the program is required to have each year through the Child Care and Development
Fund. The program contract with the Department for Children and Families obligates the program
to match approximately $1.0 million. Currently, the program is able to meet this obligation with
a recurring State General Fund appropriation of $290,720, funds collected from fees, and the match
funds health departments put toward the program. With the elimination of fees and contracted
health departments, this would leave the program with only the $290,720 in State General Fund,
which is not enough to meet the obligation. The program would need an additional $709,280 to
meet the obligation beginning in FY 2024.
In addition, the requirement for all surveyors to be employed by KDHE would also require
an increase in funding beginning in FY 2027. KDHE currently implements a hybrid model for
facility inspections where some of the surveyors are KDHE employees and others are contracted
through local agencies, depending on what best serves the community. As of March 2023, 43 of
105 Kansas counties are already covered by a KDHE surveyor compared to 62 covered by a
contracted local agency inspector. The increase in KDHE employed surveyors would also require
additional staff to supervise these surveyors. KDHE states the recommended ratio for surveyors
to facilities ranges from 1:50 to 1:60. A ratio of 1:50 would require 93.00 additional FTE positions
at an estimated cost of $6.2 million. A 1:60 ratio would require 78.00 additional FTE positions at
an estimated cost of $5.2 million. This is based on 4,632 total facilities, an average salary of
$50,171 for surveyors, and fringe benefits at $16,055. The total estimated cost per FTE position
is $66,226. There would also be an increase in needed funding for the purchase of fleet vehicles
for each surveyor. For basic vehicles estimated at $20,000, the cost would be $1.9 million for 93
surveyors and $1.6 million for 78 surveyors. The estimates provided do not account for the
issuance of supplies, phones, and other equipment needed to function as a KDHE surveyor, which
would cause an increase to the fiscal note as well. Any fiscal effect associated with SB 282 is not
reflected in The FY 2024 Governor’s Budget Report.
The Kansas Association of Counties states the bill could have a fiscal effect for counties,
but notes that counties are restricted in their ability to regulate child care centers. The League of
Kansas Municipalities reports that enactment of the bill would result in increased costs to local
governments as they would be required to develop and implement new procedures regarding child
care facilities and licensure. The added duties would also require additional time and training for
city appointed officials. A total fiscal effect could not be estimated.
Sincerely,
Adam Proffitt
Director of the Budget
cc: Amy Penrod, KDHE
Wendi Stark, League of Kansas Municipalities
Jay Hall, Kansas Association of Counties