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Read. Follow. Verify.Kansas restructuring Prisoner Review Board, adding qualifications, and requiring victim notice before parole hearings
Last action · April 9, 2026: Enrolled and presented to Governor on Monday, March 30, 2026
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What This Bill Does
SB 459 removes the Prisoner Review Board from the supervision of the Secretary of Corrections, changes its appointment structure to a five-member board appointed by multiple authorities with specific professional qualifications, and mandates the postponement of parole hearings if proper notice of public comment sessions is not provided to victims.
Changes who appoints state parole board members, establishes mandatory professional background requirements for those seats, and creates a strict legal requirement to delay parole decisions if crime victims or their families are not properly notified of public input sessions.
- The Prisoner Review Board in Kansas evaluates inmates for parole, conditional release, and postrelease supervision conditions. context
- State correctional policies in Kansas frequently intersect with statutory requirements regarding victim notification and sentencing guidelines. context
Who It Affects
Groups the bill's text affects, as described in the record. Being affected is not a position for or against it.
Prisoner Review Board members
Board members face new appointment structures, professional qualification requirements, four-year terms, and full-time salary adjustments pegged to judicial pay.
Crime victims and their families
Victims and their families receive mandatory advance written notice of public comment sessions, and parole decisions must be delayed if notice is omitted for serious crimes.
Secretary of Corrections
The secretary no longer supervises the Prisoner Review Board, though the Department of Corrections continues to provide personnel, accounting services, and supervision support.
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
Who appoints the members of the restructured Prisoner Review Board?
What happens if a crime victim is not notified of a parole public comment session for an off-grid or class A felony?
Are board members required to work full-time?
What else do you want to know?
News Coverage
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Votes, people, money & the original sourceWhere This Stands
Current status: Signed into law.
Procedural history
24 actions- Apr 9, 2026SenateEnrolled and presented to Governor on Monday, March 30, 2026
- Apr 9, 2026SenateEnrolledApproved by Governor on Tuesday, April 7, 2026
- Mar 26, 2026SenateConcurred with amendments in conference
- Mar 23, 2026SenateNonconcurred with amendments; Conference Committee requested; appointed , and
- Mar 23, 2026HouseFloorMotion to accede adopted; Representative Lewis, Representative Barrett, Representative Schlingensiepen, , appointed as conferees
- Mar 18, 2026HouseCommittee of the Whole - Now working on
Show 18 earlier actions
- Mar 18, 2026HouseFloorCommittee of the Whole - Committee Report be adopted
- Mar 18, 2026HouseFloorCommittee of the Whole - Be passed as amended
- Mar 18, 2026HouseFloorMotion to advance to Emergency Final Action adopted
- Mar 18, 2026HouseFloorEmergency Final Action - Passed as amended
- Mar 17, 2026HouseFloorCommittee Report recommending bill be passed as amended by
- Mar 2, 2026HouseHearing: Monday, March 2, 2026, 1:30 PM — Room 546-S
- Feb 24, 2026HouseIntroducedReceived and Introduced
- Feb 24, 2026HouseCommitteeReferred to House Committee on Corrections and Juvenile Justice
- Feb 18, 2026SenateFloorFinal Action - Passed as amended
- Feb 17, 2026SenateCommittee of the Whole - Now working on
- Feb 17, 2026SenateFloorCommittee of the Whole - Committee Report be adopted
- Feb 17, 2026SenateCommittee of the Whole - Motion to Amend - Offered by
- Feb 17, 2026SenateFloorCommittee of the Whole - Amendment by was adopted
- Feb 17, 2026SenateFloorCommittee of the Whole - Be passed as further amended
- Feb 16, 2026SenateFloorCommittee Report recommending bill be passed as amended by
- Feb 9, 2026SenateHearing: Monday, February 9, 2026, 10:30 AM — Room 346-S
- Feb 4, 2026SenateCommitteeReferred to Senate Committee on Judiciary
- Feb 3, 2026SenateIntroducedIntroduced
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
Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.
Independence of Prisoner Review Board
The legislation formally separates the Prisoner Review Board from the administrative supervision of the Secretary of Corrections while establishing rigorous professional qualifications for appointed members.
Connected Entities
Sources
www.kslegislature.gov
Analysis Score
0–100- Significance85How much this matters to a regular citizen
- Controversy50Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
- Entertainment10Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
- Buzz30Current news / social attention level
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