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HB 2228KANSASSession 2025-2026State BillVetoed by the governor
Did Not Advance

Kansas requires state attorney general approval and open meetings for local government contingency fee legal contracts

Original title: AN ACT concerning contingent fee contracts for legal services; relating to contracts entered into for legal services by a political subdivision; requiring an open meeting before a political subdivision may approve such a contract; requiring the attorney general to approve such contract before such contract becomes effective.

Last action · April 11, 2025: No motion to reconsider vetoed bill; Veto sustained

Bill progressHistory & official text ↓
Introduced
Committee
Floor Vote
Passed
Law

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What This Bill Proposed

Kansas cities, counties, and other s must hold a public meeting, make written findings, and obtain approval from the state attorney general before entering into contingency fee legal contracts. The attorney general has 45 days to approve the contract or refuse it based on conflicts with state lawsuits or professional rules. Existing contracts entered into between July 1, 2024, and July 1, 2025, must be submitted to the attorney general by July 1, 2026.

Why it matters

Local governments hiring outside lawyers on a contingency basis face new state-level oversight, potential contract rejections, and court dismissals if procedures are bypassed.

Background
  • Contingent fee agreements allow local governments to hire private law firms without upfront costs, with attorneys taking a percentage of any financial recovery. context

Who It Would Have Affected

Groups the bill's text would have affected, as described in the record. Being affected is not a position for or against it.

Directly affected

political subdivision

Local governments must follow new open meeting, written finding, and attorney general approval procedures when hiring attorneys on a contingency fee basis.

Directly affected

Attorney General

The attorney general is tasked with reviewing, approving, or refusing local contingency fee contracts and intervening in court proceedings when contracts are non-compliant.

Key Facts

You don't have to trust us. Each fact below is taken straight from the official document - click any one to see the exact passage, highlighted in the original.

Frequently Asked Questions

What does a local government need to do before signing a contingency fee legal contract?
The local governing body must call a public meeting with specific disclosures on the agenda, make written findings of necessity and best interest, approve the contract in an open meeting, and then obtain approval from the state attorney general.
On what grounds can the attorney general refuse to approve a contract?
The attorney general can refuse if the legal matter overlaps with existing state lawsuits, interferes with state enforcement priorities, or violates the state's rules of professional conduct for attorneys.
Are all legal services hired by local governments subject to this rule?
No. The law exempts services performed by bond counsel, debt collection attorneys, insurance recovery attorneys, property sale attorneys, and court trustees.

What else do you want to know?

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Where This Stands

This bill did not become law - Vetoed by the governor.

Procedural history

22 actions
  1. Apr 11, 2025House
    No motion to reconsider vetoed bill; Veto sustained
  2. Apr 10, 2025House
    Enrolled and presented to Governor on Tuesday, April 1, 2025
  3. Apr 10, 2025House
    Vetoed by Governor; Returned to on Wednesday, April 9, 2025
  4. Mar 27, 2025House
    Motion to nonconcur with amendments and appoint conferees failed
  5. Mar 27, 2025House
    Concurred with amendments
  6. Mar 26, 2025SenateFloor
    Committee of the Whole - Committee Report be adopted recommending substitute bill be passed
Show 16 earlier actions
  1. Mar 26, 2025Senate
    fa_fabc_912
  2. Mar 26, 2025SenateFloor
    Emergency Final Action - Substitute passed
  3. Mar 25, 2025Senate
    Withdrawn from Calendar; Referred to Senate Committee on Ways and Means
  4. Mar 25, 2025Senate
    Withdrawn from and referred to Committee of the Whole
  5. Mar 19, 2025SenateFloor
    Committee Report recommending substitute bill be passed by
  6. Mar 10, 2025Senate
    Hearing: Monday, March 10, 2025, 10:30 AM — Room 346-S
  7. Feb 26, 2025SenateCommittee
    Referred to Senate Committee on Judiciary
  8. Feb 25, 2025SenateIntroduced
    Received and Introduced
  9. Feb 20, 2025House
    Committee of the Whole - Now working on
  10. Feb 20, 2025HouseFloor
    Committee of the Whole - Be passed
  11. Feb 20, 2025HouseFloor
    Motion to advance to Emergency Final Action adopted
  12. Feb 20, 2025HouseFloor
    Emergency Final Action - Passed
  13. Feb 14, 2025HouseFloor
    Committee Report recommending bill be passed by
  14. Feb 11, 2025House
    Hearing: Tuesday, February 11, 2025, 1:30 PM — Room 546-S
  15. Feb 4, 2025HouseIntroduced
    Introduced
  16. Feb 4, 2025HouseCommittee
    Referred to House Committee on Corrections and Juvenile Justice

Version history

Only one version on file - nothing to compare yet. As later stages (committee substitute, engrossed, enrolled) are captured, the redline appears here.

View official text →

Lobbying Activity

No state lobbying filings in our records match this bill. Federal lobbying reports (LDA) cover Congress, so they are not listed on state bills.

Full breakdown

Who this bill affects and the strongest case for and against it, written only from the bill’s own text.

Discoveries

1 pattern noticed across the record

Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.

policy shift95% confidence

Centralization of Local Legal Oversight

The bill shifts authority by requiring local governing bodies to secure state-level executive approval from the attorney general before executing certain contingency fee contracts.

Attorney General

Connected Entities

Kansas, Attorney General
locationKansas“State where the legislation applies”Map →
OrganizationAttorney General“State official responsible for approving or refusing local contingency fee contr”Map →

Sources

Open source document

www.kslegislature.gov

Analysis Score

0–100
  • Significance75
    How much this matters to a regular citizen
  • Controversy65
    Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
  • Entertainment10
    Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
  • Buzz40
    Current news / social attention level

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