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HB 2192

Enhanced earned sentence credits; repeals four-level classification system.

2025 Regular Session Introduced by Nick Freitas

HB 2192 tightens work-release rules for repeat domestic battery offenders and requires mandatory DV offender assessments for first-time offenders.

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Bill Summary · HB 2192

Summary — HB 2192 (2025 session)

Title: Limiting or prohibiting work release for persons convicted of a second or third offense of domestic battery; requiring domestic violence offender assessment for first offenders. (Amends K.S.A. 21‑5414)

Purpose / intent

HB 2192 tightens sentencing-release rules for repeat domestic battery offenders and expands mandatory domestic violence assessment requirements. The bill is intended to give victims more time and protection before an offender may be released into the community or a work‑release program, and to increase use of certified batterer intervention assessments and recommended programming.

Key provisions

  • Domestic violence offender assessment

    • Current law: assessment required as a condition of release only for second (or subsequent) domestic‑battery convictions within five years.
    • HB 2192: requires the same certified domestic violence offender assessment and compliance with program recommendations as a condition of any probation, suspension of sentence, parole or other release for a first domestic‑battery conviction as well.

  • Second domestic battery within five years (repeat offender)

    • Offense class: class A misdemeanor (continuing law).
    • Sentence range (continuing law): 90 days to 1 year imprisonment; fine $500–$1,000.
    • Work‑release eligibility: the bill raises the mandatory minimum time the offender must serve in custody before being eligible for work release or other release. (Early drafts and committee versions varied: the House Committee of the Whole reduced the minimum to 20 days from earlier draft amounts; other versions reference 45 days. The text under consideration reflects a minimum period before release eligibility greater than current law’s 48 hours — see “Legislative status” below for amendment history.)

  • Third or subsequent domestic battery within five years

    • Offense class: person felony (continuing law).
    • Sentence range: 90 days to 1 year imprisonment; fine $1,000–$7,500.
    • Work‑release eligibility: removes the earlier provision allowing work release after 48 hours; the offender must serve at least 90 days before eligibility for release/probation/suspension/parole.
    • Assessment noncompliance: if the offender does not undergo the required assessment and follow all recommendations, the offender must serve at least 180 days (up to one year).

  • Technical and conforming edits to statutory phrasing; removal of the word “consecutive” from some confinement‑day references (addressing concerns about employment impacts).

Who would be affected

  • Defendants convicted of domestic battery in Kansas (first‑time, second, and third/subsequent within five years).
  • Courts: must impose assessment requirement on first offenders and include assessment compliance as a condition of release.
  • County jails and local governments: repeat offenders’ custodial time under county jurisdiction could increase, affecting supervision and confinement costs.
  • Certified batterer intervention programs: increased assessment and referral workload.
  • Victims: intended increase in protection time before offender release.

Fiscal and administrative impact

  • Division of the Budget / Sentencing Commission: no impact on state prison admissions or beds because non‑grid penalties are served in county jails.
  • Judiciary: reports no fiscal effect.
  • Kansas Association of Counties: notes potential increased county expenditures for supervision and confinement, but cannot quantify the impact.

Legislative status / timeline (selected)

  • Introduced: Jan 29, 2025 (House Committee on Corrections & Juvenile Justice).
  • Passed House (as amended): Feb 20, 2025 (Emergency Final Action; 123–0).
  • Passed Senate (as amended): Feb 18, 2025 (Senate action and committee amendments followed).
  • March 24, 2025: House nonconcurred with Senate amendments; conference committee requested.
  • March 24, 2025: Motion to accede adopted; Senators Warren, Titus, and Corson appointed as conferees.
  • Placed on General State Calendar May 15, 2025; currently in the conference/conciliation process between chambers.

Notes / points raised in committee

  • Proponents (prosecutors, domestic violence coalition, legislators) argued the bill increases victim safety and could prevent repeat violence.
  • Opponents (Board of Indigents’ Defense Services) warned mandatory confinement wording (e.g., “consecutive” days) could cause job loss and household harm to victims and families; the bill was amended to remove “consecutive” in some provisions.
  • Multiple committee amendments adjusted the minimum custody period before work release eligibility for second offenders (drafts referenced 45 days, then 20 days); readers should consult the conference report or final enacted text for the operative minimum.

For the operative statutory language and final numeric thresholds, consult the enrolled bill or the Kansas Statutes amendment once the conference committee report is adopted and the bill is enacted.

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

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