Correctional facilities in Winfield and Norton would remain operational under a one-percent current-year budget cut proposed in the Kansas House, corrections officials said.
A House committee late Friday approved a proposal that would lower the Senate’s proposed 1.5 percent cut for all state agencies by half a percent. Such a reduction would reduce corrections spending by $2.7 million rather than $4.1, Correction Secretary Roger Werholtz said in update letter to corrections staff.
"At this point I would note that the current budget bill is still very much a work in progress. However, I can advise you that we are hopeful that we can reach the one percent reduction currently contained in the House committee version of the bill without closing a major facility and preserving the bulk of parole and post-release supervision," Werholtz said.
Bill Miskell, a spokesperson for the department of corrections, confirmed that Winfield and Norton were the major facilities referenced in the memo. A one-percent budget cut should be enough to preserve operations at both facilities, he said.
Originally the Senate had proposed a 3.5 percent, or $9 million reduction, that corrections officials said would lead to a significant suspension of programs.
