The Kansas Senate approved legislation in February that would have incentivized state employees to identify fraud, waste, and abuse of taxpayer funds. The bill, Senate Bill 450 (SB450), passed on February 18 by a vote of 33-6 but was later eliminated in the House Committee on Federal and State Affairs on April 10.
Introduced at the request of Senator Michael Murphy (R-Reno County), who maintains a 67-percent lifetime Freedom Score, SB450 aimed to encourage state employees to uncover financial misconduct and inefficiencies within government agencies. Under the proposal, eligible employees would have received 10 percent of verified savings after deducting investigation and recovery costs—a payout structure that could result in significant financial gains.
The secretary of administration, working with the Office of Inspector General or the attorney general, would have determined whether reports led to actual savings. The bill also excluded rewards for information already known to authorities, previously disclosed through investigations, or discovered during regular auditing responsibilities. Existing protections under the Kansas Whistleblower Act would remain in place.
During a February 12 committee hearing, Murphy testified that SB450 was modeled after similar incentive programs in the private sector, including one he operated at United Airlines.
Murphy argued that government employees should have greater personal incentives to safeguard taxpayer funds and identify unnecessary expenditures. He emphasized that responsible stewardship of public money is critical because taxpayers bear the financial burden of inefficiency.
Opposition came from senators such as Cindy Holscher (D-Overland Park), who holds a 20-percent lifetime Freedom Score, warning that financial incentives could encourage politically motivated accusations and turn government employees into “bounty hunters.” Marci Francisco (D-Lawrence), with a 28-percent lifetime Freedom Score, questioned the bill’s lack of a clear definition for abuse of funds.
Unlike Kansas’ existing employee suggestion program, which caps cost-saving awards at $5,000, SB450 contained no specific dollar limit on whistleblower rewards. The absence of caps raised concerns that the policy could incentivize employees to become fiscal hawks, potentially reducing government spending and its overall size.