Rep. Burgess appointed Select Committee on State Employee Pay Plan

Lawmakers to study state employee pay

Topeka – Kansas Speaker of the House Melvin Neufeld (R-Ingalls) announced today the formation of the Select Committee on the State Employee Pay Plan.

“The Kansas Legislature needs to ensure the state pays its employees fairly and has a long-range plan to reward their hard work,” said Speaker Neufeld. “Our current system sometimes makes it difficult to maintain valuable workers and attract qualified applicants.”

Minority Leader Dennis McKinney (D-Greensburg) echoed the need to study the pay plan.

"Some do not realize the difficulty of the jobs done by state employees such as our corrections officers and attendants at our state hospitals,” said McKinney. “This is an innovative approach to retain experienced and talented state employees."

Rep. Pat George (R-Dodge City) will chair the committee with Rep. Lee Tafanelli (R-Ozawkie) serving as Vice-Chair.

"I am honored to lead this committee. The last time we seriously looked at the state pay plan was 20 years ago," said Committee Chairman George. "Our goal is to come up with a plan that will put state agencies in line with the competitive job market. Our state employees invest their time and energy to provide valuable services to Kansans and they deserve to be treated as such."

Also on the committee: Reps. Mike Burgess (R-Topeka); Charlie Roth (R-Salina); Jo Ann Pottorff (R-Wichita); John Grange (R-El Dorado); Tom Hawk (D-Manhattan), Ranking; Ann Mah (D-Topeka); and Stan Frownfelter (D-Kansas City).

Chairman George said the committee will receive an overview of the current state employee pay plan from the Kansas Legislative Research Department this Thursday and then meet with a consulting group hired to conduct a comprehensive market study review of the state plan next week.