| Kansas House of Representatives | |
| Coa Pic: | Seal of Kansas.svg |
| House Type: | Lower house |
| Term Limits: | None |
| New Session: | January 8, 2024 |
| Leader1: | Dan Hawkins (R) |
| Election1: | January 9, 2023 |
| Leader2 Type: | Speaker Pro Tempore |
| Leader2: | Blake Carpenter (R) |
| Election2: | January 9, 2023 |
| Leader3 Type: | Majority Leader |
| Leader3: | Chris Croft (R) |
| Election3: | January 9, 2023 |
| Leader4 Type: | Minority Leader |
| Leader4: | Vic Miller (D) |
| Election4: | January 9, 2023 |
| Members: | 125 |
| Structure1: | Kansas House of Reps 2022.svg |
| Structure1 Res: | 250 |
| Term Length: | 2 years |
| Salary: | $88.66/day + per diem |
| Last Election1: | November 8, 2022 (125 seats) |
| Next Election1: | November 5, 2024 (125 seats) |
| Meeting Place: | House of Representatives Chamber Kansas State Capitol Topeka, Kansas |
| Website: | Kansas House of Representatives |
| Rules: | Rules of the Kansas House of Representatives |
The Kansas House of Representatives is the lower house of the legislature of the U.S. state of Kansas. Composed of 125 state representatives from districts with roughly equal populations of at least 19,000, its members are responsible for crafting and voting on legislation, helping to create a state budget, and legislative oversight over state agencies. Representatives are elected to two-year terms. The Kansas House of Representatives does not have term limits. The legislative session convenes at the Kansas State Capitol in Topeka annually.
On January 29, 1861, President James Buchanan authorized Kansas to become the 34th state of United States, a free state. The ratification of the Kansas Constitution created the Kansas House of Representatives as the lower house of the state legislature.
Members of the Kansas House voted to impeach Governor Charles L. Robinson in 1862, but the impeachment trial did not lead to his conviction and removal of office.[1] The Kansas Senate did vote to impeach the secretary of state and state auditor for the unlawful sale of bonds, but only three state senators voted for the governor's impeachment.[1] In 1870, the Kansas House of Representatives first met at the Kansas State Capitol, which was not officially completed until 1903.[2]
Populists and Republicans both claimed control of the Kansas House of Representatives in 1893, with the Populists accusing the Republican Party of election fraud.[3] The dispute led to separate Populist-led and Republican-led Houses in 1893 until the Kansas Supreme Court sided with the Republicans and the Populist-led House disbanded.[3]
In 1888, Alfred B. Fairfax became the first African American elected to the House, serving as chairman of the House Committee on Immigration.[4]
In 1918, Minnie J. Grinstead became the first female elected to the House.[5]
In 1966, the state legislature began to hold annual general sessions and a constitutional amendment adopted at the 1974 general election extended the duration of the session held in the even-numbered years to 90 calendar days, subject to extension by a vote of two-thirds of the elected membership of each house.[6]
United States presidential candidate Bob Dole, the 1996 Republican nominee, began his political career with a two-year term in the Kansas House of Representatives after his election in 1950.[7]
State representatives introduce a proposed law in the Kansas House of Representatives in the form of a bill, which must be approved by a standing committee, the Committee of the Whole and the entire membership of the chamber.[8] Other state representatives can amend a bill in committee or on the floor of the chamber.[8]
A bill must be approved by both houses of the Kansas Legislature in order to be submitted to the governor, who can sign it into law or veto the bill.[8] State legislators can override the veto with the support of two-thirds majority of both houses.[8]
Republicans have controlled the chamber for all but six years since statehood, and without interruption since 1993. The GOP presently holds a supermajority in the chamber. The following is the official make-up for the 2023-2024 session:
| Affiliation | Party (Shading indicates majority caucus) | Total | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Democratic | Independent | Vacant | ||||
| nowrap style="font-size:80% | Begin 2021 | 86 | 38 | 1 | 125 | 0 | |
| nowrap style="font-size:80% | February 8, 2021[9] | 86 | 39 | 0 | 125 | 0 | |
| nowrap style="font-size:80% | Begin 2023 | 85 | 40 | 0 | 125 | 0 | |
| Latest voting share | |||||||
The Speaker of the Kansas House of Representatives is the leader of the chamber and is elected by his fellow state representatives.[8] The speaker presides over the legislative process on the floor of the chamber or appoints a presiding officer. The speaker decides the committee structure.[8] The majority and minority leaders, are elected by their respective party caucuses relative to their party's strength in the chamber.
| Position | Name | Party | District |
|---|---|---|---|
| Speaker of the House | Republican | 100 | |
| Speaker Pro Tem | 81 | ||
| Majority Leader | 8 | ||
| Assistant Majority Leader | Vacant | ||
| Majority Whip | Susan Estes | 87 | |
| Caucus Chair | 77 | ||
| Minority Leader | Democratic | 58 | |
| Assistant Minority Leader | 34 | ||
| Minority Whip | 19 | ||
| Caucus Chair | 44 | ||
| Agenda Chair | 21 | ||
| Policy Chair | 10 |
| Committee | Chairman | Vice Chairman | Ranking Minority Member | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Agriculture and Natural Resources | Ken Rahjes | Lisa Moser | Sydney Carlin | |
| Agriculture and Natural Resources Budget | Ken Corbet | Sydney Carlin | ||
| Appropriations | Troy Waymaster | Kyle Hoffman | Henry Helgerson | |
| Calendar and Printing | Chris Croft | Daniel Hawkins | Vic Miller | |
| Child Welfare and Foster Care | Susan Concannon | Timothy H. Johnson | Jarrod Ousley | |
| Commerce, Labor and Economic Development | Sean Tarwater | Jesse Borjon | Jason Probst | |
| Corrections and Juvenile Justice | Stephen Owens | Eric Smith | Dennis Highberger | |
| Education | Adam Thomas | Susan Estes | ||
| Elections | Pat Proctor | Paul Waggoner | Brandon Woodard | |
| Energy, Utilities and Telecommunications | Leo Delperdang | Carl Turner | KC Ohaebosim | |
| Federal and State Affairs | Will Carpenter | Tom Kessler | Jo Ella Hoye | |
| Financial Institutions and Pensions | Nick Hoheisel | Bill Clifford | Rui Xu | |
| General Government Budget | Kyle Hoffman | Bill Rhiley | Mike Amyx | |
| Health and Human Services | Brenda Landwehr | John Eplee | Susan Ruiz | |
| Higher Education Budget | Steven Howe | Tory Marie Blew | Brandon Woodard | |
| Insurance | Bill Sutton | Patrick Penn | Cindy Neighbor | |
| Interstate Cooperation | Daniel Hawkins | Blake Carpenter | Valdenia Winn | |
| Judiciary | Fred Patton | Mark Schreiber | John Carmichael | |
| K-12 Education Budget | Kristey Williams | Brenda Landwehr | Valdenia Winn | |
| Legislative Budget (House) | Troy Waymaster | Kyle Hoffman | Henry Helgerson | |
| Legislative Modernization | Barbara Wasinger | Blake Carpenter | Jerry Stogsdill | |
| Local Government | Barbara Wasinger | Blake Carpenter | Jerry Stogsdill | |
| Rules and Journal | Fred Patton | Dennis Highberger | None | |
| Social Services Budget | Les Mason | Will Carpenter | Barbara Ballard | |
| Taxation | Adam Smith | Brian Bergkamp | Tom Sawyer | |
| Transportation | Shannon Francis | Lance Neelly | Barbara Ballard | |
| Transportation and Public Safety Budget | Avery Anderson | John Resman | Virgil Weigel | |
| Veterans and Military | Ronald Ellis | Mike Dodson | Virgil Weigel | |
| Water | Jim Minnix | Cyndi Howerton | Lindsay Vaughn | |
| Welform Reform | Francis Awerkamp | Leah Howell | Heather Meyer |
See also: Political party strength in Kansas. The Republican Party has controlled the Kansas House in most of Kansas History, with the Democratic control occurring less. Since 1992, the GOP has held most seats. The Democratic Party of Kansas had held most seats in the early 90s, but the party has never gained a trifecta in Kansas political history.