pro.stateaffairs.com · September 8, 2026
# Hawver's Capitol Report
Sep 08, 2026
Can Kansas’ new task force tackle the state’s water crisis?
Hand watering small plant. (Credit: Arthon Meekodong)
Adam Goldstein Jul 10, 2025
In western Kansas, farmers are pumping large volumes of water out of the Ogallala Aquifer to irrigate crops, depleting it over decades after the state over-appropriated water rights.
In eastern Kansas, rivers and streams are filling reservoirs with sediment, reducing their capacity.
As a result of these developments, more than 100 communities across the state are at risk of running out of water within 25 years. Failing septic systems, agricultural runoff and aging infrastructure are also harming water resources.
“The sooner that we deal with some of these issues, the better off we’re going to be in the future,” said Rep. Jim Minnix, R-Scott City.
Minnix is co-chair of the new Water Program Task Force, seeking to improve Kansas’ long-term water planning and investment program. On Monday, the Legislative Coordinating Council approved four working days for the 16-member task force. Minnix and co-chair Sen. Kenny Titus, R-Wamego, had requested 10 working days for the group, which will start meeting this month.
The effort comes as water resources continue to decline across the state and officials see significant demand for water-related grant funds.
Water is critical to the well-being of Kansas’ economy and communities, Minnix told State Affairs. Yet parts of the state are starting to run low and water quality problems are on the rise.
“It’s a precious commodity, and it’s something that we can manage far better,” Minnix said.
Gov. Laura Kelly signed the bill creating the Water Program Task Force — House Bill 2172 — on April 7. The team will help the Legislature modernize the State Water Resources Planning Act, passed in 1963 and updated in the 1980s. It guides Kansas’ approach to managing, conserving and developing water resources.
The task force will focus on identifying risks to Kansas’ water supply. It will determine what the state should do to address those risks, examine the state’s capacity to fund projects and assess how it can meet current and future needs.
The team will also look at the roles of government entities in the state’s water planning processes and how projects are prioritized. It will seek out new funding sources for water projects and the State Water Plan Fund and pursue improvements for existing revenue streams.
A preliminary report with findings and recommendations is due to the governor and the House and Senate Committees on Agriculture and Natural Resources on Jan. 31, 2026, with a final report expected a year later.
Embracing new technologies, creative water management strategies and palatable funding sources will be key to developing plans that legislators act on.
“I’m excited to get everyone together … and see where the discussion goes,” Titus said.
### Water problems strain Kansas farmers, communities
Kansas farmers, communities and state agencies want to address the water problems they face. Yet solutions can cost thousands — even millions — of dollars. That’s more than some of them can afford.
So they have been seeking help through the State Water Plan Fund. The Legislature created it in 1989 under the State Water Resources Planning Act. It pays for projects and programs that help the state meet water quality, supply and resiliency goals in the Kansas Water Plan.
By statute, the fund receives $8 million in annual revenue through funds appropriated by the Legislature, along with millions more from taxes and fees. Yet the Legislature did not fully fund its share from 2008 through 2021. That has resulted in the fund missing out on roughly $80 million and created a backlog of needs.
In 2022, Kelly worked with the Legislature to resume full funding for the Kansas Water Plan. In 2023, lawmakers provided five years of $35 million in additional annual funding for the State Water Plan Fund through House Bill 2302. Half of those funds have been going to new community technical assistance and project grant funds.
Still, those funds can meet just a fraction of the demand for water project dollars. In fiscal years 2024 and 2025, the state received more than $600 million in funding requests across two new State Water Plan Fund grant programs. It had roughly $45 million to distribute.
The amount of funds requested “was alarming to everyone in water,” Kansas Water Authority Chair Dawn Buehler said in a January hearing of the House Committee on Water. “I don’t think that we really, truly knew how much of a need there was.”
Roughly a dozen state agencies and entities govern water in Kansas, which can lead to inefficiencies and delays in water projects.
In January, Kansas water management leaders and Kelly urged lawmakers to streamline water oversight, boost investment in the state’s water program and develop plans to secure water for future generations.
“There’s a lot of good work to be done, but these are the problems that Kansans want to have fixed,” Julie Lorenz, lead consultant on the Kansas Water Plan Implementation Framework, said in a January House Committee on Water hearing.
After signing the task force bill into law in April, Kelly lauded the effort as “long overdue.”
“Developing a comprehensive, long-term, and sustainable water program is long overdue and a significant step forward in ensuring Kansas’ water supply is preserved for generations to come,” she said in a statement. “I commend the Legislature for … acting on this critical issue.”
### Task force seeks creative, realistic water management solutions
The Water Program Task Force’s work is “huge” for Kansas’ economy, Minnix said. Roughly half of the state’s agricultural production comes from western Kansas farms and livestock operations.
These farmers can reach groundwater pumping levels that would stabilize the Ogallala Aquifer long term and maintain the economy, Minnix said. Producers in some areas have proven it’s possible through playa lake restorations and water conservation areas.
The state needs more farmers to adopt innovative agricultural technologies and practices, Minnix said. Providing information to farmers about these new tools could help the task force develop effective and economical water conservation strategies for western Kansas before the state limits water use.
Finding a “reasonable, equitable” way of funding the Kansas Water Plan is a priority for Minnix. He also hopes the task force can provide recommendations for reorganizing state agencies dealing with water.
Titus wants the task force to come up with creative water management strategies. Yet he is more concerned with ensuring it avoids repeating the mistakes of the Blue Ribbon Funding Task Force.
In 2016, the Legislature formed the Blue Ribbon Funding Task Force to develop a long-term funding program for water projects in Kansas. The team brought together a lot of useful information and ideas, Titus said. But state lawmakers did not support funding projects through a dedicated sales tax, so they did not enact many of that task force’s recommendations.
“We have to be realistic about what can be accomplished,” Titus said. “I want us to have workable recommendations that we share with the Legislature.”
Randy Hayzlett, a farmer and rancher in Kearny County and board vice president for Southwest Kansas Groundwater Management District No. 3, is skeptical about whether the Water Program Task Force will effectively address the state’s water issues. It doesn’t have much western Kansas representation on it, he said. Hayzlett also remembers the challenges that limited the Blue Ribbon Funding Task Force, and other Ogallala committees.
“I don’t know if this will accomplish much more than what they have done,” he said. “But I guess it’s a start.”
Hayzlett said the task force should emphasize finding ample funding for conservation programs. He added that no matter how much con