Prisoner Review Board Supervision and Qualifications

State Bills: Kansas

Published April 9th, 2026

Detected April 2nd, 2026

Summary

The Kansas Senate passed SB459, removing the prisoner review board from supervision of the secretary of corrections, establishing member qualifications and new appointing authority, and requiring postponement of parole hearings if victims receive insufficient notice of public comment sessions. The bill was enrolled April 9, 2026, and presented to the Governor.

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What changed

Kansas SB459 makes several structural changes to prisoner review board governance and parole hearing procedures. The bill removes the board from supervision of the secretary of corrections, establishes new appointing authority for board members, creates minimum qualifications for those members, and requires parole hearings to be postponed when proper notice of victim public comment sessions is not provided.

Once signed into law, corrections departments and prisoner review boards should update appointment procedures to comply with new member qualifications and ensure victim notification protocols are in place to avoid parole hearing postponements. The bill passed the Senate 33-7, House 124-0, with final Senate concurrence 32-7.

What to do next

Review and update board appointment procedures to align with new member qualifications
Implement or enhance victim notification protocols for parole hearings
Coordinate with secretary of corrections office on transferred supervisory authority

Source document (simplified)

ChangeBridge / Kansas / SB459 Enrolled SB459 Senate Bill Enrolled 2026-04-09

Removing the prisoner review board from the supervision of the secretary of corrections, changing the appointing authority and creating qualifications for the members of the board and requiring parole hearings to be postponed if proper notice of the public comment session is not made to the victim.

Bill Details

State Kansas

Session 2025-2026 Regular Session

Chamber Senate

Official Source kslegislature.gov/li/b2025_26/measures/sb459/

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Action History

2026-04-09 S Senate Enrolled and presented to Governor on Monday, March 30, 2026 2026-03-26 S Senate Concurred with amendments in conference; Yea: 32 Nay: 7 2026-03-23 H House Motion to accede adopted; Representative Lewis, Representative Barrett and Representative Schlingensiepen appointed as conferees 2026-03-23 S Senate Nonconcurred with amendments; Conference Committee requested; appointed Senator Warren , Senator Titus and Senator Corson as conferees 2026-03-18 H House Emergency Final Action - Passed as amended; Yea: 124 Nay: 0 2026-03-18 H House Committee of the Whole - Be passed as amended 2026-03-18 H House Committee of the Whole - Committee Report be adopted 2026-03-17 H House Committee Report recommending bill be passed as amended by Committee on Corrections and Juvenile Justice 2026-03-02 H House Hearing: Monday, March 2, 2026, 1:30 PM Room 546-S 2026-02-24 H House Referred to Committee on Corrections and Juvenile Justice 2026-02-24 H House Received and Introduced 2026-02-18 S Senate Final Action - Passed as amended; Yea: 33 Nay: 7 2026-02-17 S Senate Committee of the Whole - Be passed as further amended 2026-02-17 S Senate Committee of the Whole - Amendment by Senator Blasi was adopted 2026-02-17 S Senate Committee of the Whole - Motion to Amend - Offered by Senator Blasi 2026-02-17 S Senate Committee of the Whole - Committee Report be adopted 2026-02-16 S Senate Committee Report recommending bill be passed as amended by Committee on Judiciary 2026-02-09 S Senate Hearing: Monday, February 9, 2026, 10:30 AM Room 346-S 2026-02-04 S Senate Referred to Committee on Judiciary 2026-02-03 S Senate Introduced

Votes

2026-02-18 Senate Final Action - Passed as amended - Yea: 33 Nay: 7 Yea: 33 Nay: 7 2026-03-18 House Emergency Final Action - Passed as amended - Yea: 124 Nay: 0 Yea: 124 Nay: 0 2026-03-26 Senate Concurred with amendments in conference - Yea: 32 Nay: 7 Yea: 32 Nay: 7

Committee Referrals

2026-02-04 S Judiciary 2026-02-24 H Corrections and Juvenile Justice

Amendments

2026-02-16 Senate Committee on Judiciary Report 2026-02-17 Senate Floor Amendment (Committee of the Whole - Motion to Amend - Offered by Senator Blasi) 2026-03-17 House Committee on Corrections and Juvenile Justice Report