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Overall, we found that changes made to bills after fiscal notes were submitted resulted in most of the inaccuracies we saw. But a few fiscal notes were unreasonable because of agencies' methods. Statute requires the Division of the Budget (Budget) to provide fiscal notes for original bills but outlines only a few requirements for them. Budget works with agencies to create estimates for all original bills, but not amendments. We reviewed 10 fiscal notes from enacted bills to determine fiscal notes' accuracy and 10 fiscal notes from bills that died to determine the reasonableness of agencies' methods and estimates. 7 of 10 fiscal notes for enacted bills differed significantly from their actual fiscal effects, mostly due to bill amendments or other changes made after the fiscal notes were submitted. Most other states update fiscal notes after bill amendments to account for this, but Kansas doesn't. 3 of 10 fiscal notes for bills that died appeared to be unreasonable because they didn't include complete or correct information. Of these, 2 were unreasonable because agencies used questionable data and assumptions, and 1 was unreasonable because Budget left out a potentially large cost to the state. Finally, we didn't see evidence Budget coordinated with agencies on fiscal notes like we would've expected.

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In 2022, Kansas school districts received $7.9 billion in funding from state, local, and federal sources, up 12% from 2017. Since 2017, public school enrollment has decreased while staffing and spending have increased. Only about 1/3 of students met state standards in the 3 subjects we evaluated, and the numbers have been declining since 2017. It is unlikely that any amount of additional spending will result in all students meeting state standards. We used a logistic regression model to predict how increases in regular education spending might affect student outcomes. Across-the-board spending increases were associated with almost no increase in the percentage of students who met state standards. Targeted increases in spending were associated with improvements in the number of students who met state standards, but significant numbers of students would still be unlikely to meet state standards. We identified several factors, such as teacher pay and administrative spending, that were also associated with whether students met state standards. Much like our own model, the research we reviewed found a positive relationship between spending and outcomes but it was not strong in all circumstances. Research also suggests spending on teacher pay, books, and time in class may improve student outcomes. We estimated how much it would cost to provide special education services in Kansas. In the 2021-22 school year, Kansas school districts provided special education services to nearly 89,000 children. We estimated it would cost between $1.2 billion and $1.5 billion to provide special education services that would allow students to meet their IEP goals. Our special education estimate has a few important caveats related to staffing and efficiency.

The Rural Opportunity Zones (ROZ) program incents individuals to move to rural Kansas counties. Currently, 95 of the state's 105 counties qualify as rural opportunity zones. The program incents individuals to move by providing up to 2 benefits: up to $15,000 in student loan repayment assistance over 5 years and, for individuals who relocate from out-of-state, a 100% state income tax credit for up to 5 years. As part of this audit, we used program data to estimate how often the ROZ program incented program participants to move to rural counties. We also used data from the U.S. Census Bureau to help estimate to extent to which the ROZ program counteracted rural depopulation. Based on our estimates, the ROZ program had limited effects on rural depopulation on a statewide basis. However, the program had more significant effects on the extent to which 19 counties gained or lost population.

As of Spring 2023, the State of Kansas currently employs about 18,000 employees across 81 state executive branch agencies, boards, or commissions. State agencies have discretion to create their own work-from-home policies. State agencies reported about 30% of state employees currently work from home all or part of the time. They also estimated that an additional 15% of state employees could also work from home going forward. Some state jobs are better suited for working from home than others. Permanent work-from-home options could help the state hire and retain staff, have limited impact on productivity, and have a mixed impact on costs. Cost increases could be offset by reducing office space, but this has yet to occur in Kansas.

The Kansas African American Affairs Commission is a liaison office within the Governor’s Office and its fiscal year 2022 expenditures were about $130,000. It is comprised of 7 commissioners and an executive director. In this audit, we reviewed the commission and executive director's statutory compliance and expenditure approvals. The commission and its executive director are required to meet various statutory requirements and bylaws to accomplish their mission. The commission did not comply with 2 of 6 meeting-related duties and 1 of 3 staff-related duties outlined in law or bylaws in the timeframe we reviewed. The executive director complied with her statutory duties to serve the commission in 2022 and the first half of 2023. The commissioners who responded to our survey generally had positive reviews of the executive director’s performance, but some thought she wasn’t as effective or responsive as she should be. With regard to its expenditures, the commission’s fiscal year 2023 expenditures seemed reasonable to accomplishing its duties at a high level. However, about half of the 11 individual expenditures we reviewed in detail did not receive written approval to ensure they were appropriate. Commissioners told us they had insufficient financial awareness and oversight, in part because the executive director has not shared relevant information.

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This audit determined whether selected state agencies and school districts adequately complied with certain IT security standards and best practices. State agencies must follow state IT security standards to protect sensitive information against data loss and theft. Local entities are not required to follow the state's policies. 9 of 15 entities we audited did not substantively comply with IT standards and best practices in at least 2 of 3 subject areas we evaluated. Specifically, 8 of 15 entities did not substantively comply with selected security awareness training controls. 10 of 15 entities did not substantively comply with selected account security controls. Lastly, 8 of 15 did not substantively comply with selected incident response controls. The findings demonstrate a poor "tone at the top" at many entities--meaning lack of top management oversight and supervision..

In 2021-22, the state provided $406.3 million in dedicated funding for school districts to deliver additional services to students at-risk of academic failure. State law requires that district spend money from their at-risk fund only on programs approved by the State Board of Education. Kansas Department of Education (KSDE) officials told us the State Board has delegated the task of approving at-risk programs to the department. None of the KSDE-approved programs we reviewed met the statutory criteria necessary to be included on the list. Further, most of the approved programs we reviewed had little to no evidence of effectiveness. Additionally, many KSDE-approved programs did not appear to meet the purpose of at-risk programs, which is to provide above and beyond opportunities to at-risk students. The problems we identified with KSDE's approved at-risk list are the result of several factors. This includes things such as, KSDE's process for approving at-risk programs does not include some statutorily required criteria, the department does not follow it's own process, and the board does not provide any oversight to the department. This audit showed the same problems as in our 2019 at-risk audit, and none of our recommendations have been adequately implemented. Most of the $176 million in at-risk expenditures we reviewed for 20 districts was spent on salaries and benefits. About 30% of the expenditures we reviewed did not adhere to statutory spending rules. Further, it is unclear how much of the districts' at-risk spending targets at-risk students or provides them an "above and beyond" opportunity. Problems with the at-risk spending guidance KSDE provided to school districts may contribute to some of the unallowable spending we found. Over the last 6 years, students eligible for free lunch have consistently performed worse on state assessments than students who are not eligible for free lunches. All 3 cohort groups we evaluated performed worse over time, but this trend was more pronounced for students eligible for free lunch. Additionally, the graduation rates and ACT scores of students eligible for free lunch were also lower than other students.

This audit reviewed a selection of county election offices' policies and practices to ensure the accuracy and security of voting machines, ballots, storage units, and tabulators. State law gives county election officials discretion over how to run elections in their counties, so election processes vary across counties. We identified and reviewed election security best practices from the U.S. Election Assistance Commission, the federal election agency. They fall into 5 general security categories: overall process, election management computer, ballot, voting and tabulation, and transfer and movement security. Kansas only has a few high-level election security-related laws and regulations related to these 5 best practice categories. We reviewed whether 13 counties had policies and practices that aligned with 55 best practices and state laws during the 2022 primary or general elections. These counties generally had adequate overall process and election management computer security practices. Ballot security practices were weaker overall, but county results varied. Most of the 13 counties we reviewed had inadequate voting and tabulation machine security practices except for physical security practices. And the 13 counties we reviewed had some adeqate transfer and movement security practices, but others that were generally inadequate. Overall, larger counties generally had stronger security practices than smaller counties because of their greater security needs and resources. But these results don't necessarily mean elections aren't secure. Finally, none of the counties we reviewed had adequate written election security policies or guidance.

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This audit evaluated whether 3 agencies and the Board of Education had implemented 7 previous audit recommendations. The Kansas Department of Education (KSDE) fully implemented 1 of 3 recommendations from our 2019 audit evaluating at-risk student counts, weights and expenditures. KSDE partially implemented the other recommendation, and the Board of Education did not implement the third recommendation. The Kansas Department of Agriculture partially implemented all 3 recommendations from our 2020 audit evaluating the agency's price verification inspection process. We could not evaluate whether the Kansas Department of Commerce implemented a recommendation from our 2020 Angel Investor Tax Credit Program audit.

We couldn’t determine how effective or timely the state’s child support services system is due to data limitations, but we saw several signs it’s not working as well as it could. Federal law requires states to assist parents in collecting monthly childcare payments. In Kansas, the Department for Children and Families is the primary state agency responsible for administering the state’s child support program. Kansas court trustees also can provide child support services, but they generally only provide enforcement services. A small number of parents we talked to expressed frustration and a lack of communication, regardless of whether they were served through DCF or court trustees. Kansas’s dual track child support system may create unequal costs for some Kansas parents. It also prevented us from evaluating the state’s child support system as a whole. DCF’s outdated computer system prevented us from determining how timely and effective its services are. We relied on 4 federal performance benchmarks as indicators of DCF’s child support performance. In recent years, DCF performed well on federal requirements to establish child support cases, but not on requirements to enforce those cases. DCF officials told us the difficult nature of their cases and certain administrative hurdles make it difficult to enforce child support payments. DCF and its contractors don’t have the tools to quickly identify and address delinquent payments. DCF’s use of federal performance measures to monitor contractors’ performance is too simplistic to identify poor performance. Kansas’s low national rankings in child support enforcement may be due to the state’s unique system and outdated technology. Kansas’s child support services through DCF and its contractors performed worse on federal enforcement benchmarks than most other states. Kansas’s trustee option appears to be unique compared to other states, which may skew its national performance metrics. Kansas’s DCF child support services did not have key computer system features and collection tools that some other states had.

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In Kansas, groundwater is managed by multiple state and local agencies, including the Kansas Water Office, the Department of Agriculture, and groundwater management districts. In 1972, the legislature established the process by which local voters can form groundwater management districts. Local voters have established 5 districts in central and western Kansas. Groundwater management districts provide input but have little independent authority over many important state groundwater policies and actions. State law only requires groundwater management districts to do a few things, including having and reviewing a management program. All 5 groundwater management districts had a management program as required by state law, but we identified a few concerns with how those programs are reviewed and revised. Groundwater management districts currently operate programs related to data collection, research, and public education which appear reasonable for the purposes of groundwater management districts. In 2021, the 5 districts spent a total of $6.1 million, mostly on salaries and benefits and professional services. Overall, an estimated 75% of districts' expenditures were for programs related to an area of concern the district identified. In the last 10 years, 3 of the 5 groundwater management districts experienced overall water level declines but we could not evaluate water quality. Last, we could not determine the impact district programs had on these trends but some research suggest some positive results.

This audit reviewed three aspects of elections in Kansas, including training, electronic vote records, and policies and processes in long-term care facilities. With regard to training, we couldn't tell whether county election officers received adequate training and we found most counties either didn't or coun't show they had trained all election workers before the 2022 general election. Each of Kansas’s 105 counties has a county election officer responsible for overseeing all elections in the county. This includes appointing election workers who perform frontline election duties. But state law has almost no requirements related to training county election officers and workers, and no one tracks county election officers’ training. However, county election officers we surveyed still reported feeling well prepared to oversee federal elections. With regard to electronic vote records, we found that 6 Kansas counties we reviewed use scanners to record and tally voters’ paper ballots that are also capable of producing digital copies of those ballots. But nothing requires county election officials in Kansas to create or use digital copies, which meant some counties created and used them and others didn't. None of the counties we reviewed made digital copies public. We compared Kansas to 5 other states. Those states generally used digital copies similar to Kansas. However, some other states made them public. Finally, with regard to processes for protecting voting in long-term care facilities, facility and county election officials described having a few basic practices. The national literature on this topic is sparse and much of it dated, but it identified a few practices to address fraud and undue influence. Kansas has a few basic laws related to fraud and undue influence, but nothing specifically for long-term care.