SESSION OF 2024
SUPPLEMENTAL NOTE ON HOUSE BILL NO. 2654
As Amended by House Committee on
Corrections and Juvenile Justice

Brief*
HB 2654, as amended, would create and amend
provisions in sentencing law regarding computation of time
served.
Under continuing law, at sentencing, a judge is required
to designate a date to be used when computing a defendant’s
sentence, parole eligibility, and conditional release dates. The
date must be designated in a journal entry after considering
the time the defendant has been incarcerated while awaiting
disposition of their criminal case.
The bill would specify that the defendant is entitled to
have credit applied for each day spent incarcerated while
awaiting disposition of their criminal case
A court would not be able to consider the following in
designating a date in the sentencing journal entry:
● Time awarded as credit in another case when
consecutive sentences are imposed on a
defendant; or
● Time spent incarcerated in another jurisdiction if no
hold has been issued in such jurisdiction for the
case being sentenced.

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*Supplemental notes are prepared by the Legislative Research
Department and do not express legislative intent. The supplemental
note and fiscal note for this bill may be accessed on the Internet at
http://www.kslegislature.org
 The bill would also make technical amendments to
ensure consistency in statutory phrasing and to remove
obsolete references to conservation camps.
The bill would be effective upon publication in The
Kansas Register.

Background
The bill was introduced by the House Committee on
Corrections and Juvenile Justice at the request of a
representative of the Kansas County and District Attorneys
Association.

House Committee on Corrections and Juvenile Justice
In the House Committee hearing, proponent testimony
was provided by a representative of the Kansas County and
District Attorneys Association, who stated the bill was
introduced to address a recent Kansas Supreme Court
decision, State v. Hopkins, which has caused a significant
disruption to sentencing decisions, and the bill would prevent
duplicative credit in consecutive sentences.
Neutral testimony was provided by a private citizen who
stated concerns that the bill would not make a notable
difference in recidivism and would make the sentencing
process more complicated.
Opponent testimony was provided by a representative
of the Board of Indigents’ Defense Services’ Legislative
Committee, who stated its concern the bill would be contrary
to other provisions of sentencing law and would not address
“dead time” in a meaningful way. The opponent also stated
the provisions of the bill regarding duplicative credit are
already in the Kansas Administrative Regulations of the
Kansas Department of Corrections (KDOC).

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 The House Committee amended the bill to:
● State the defendant shall be entitled to have credit
applied for each day spent incarcerated; and
● Clarify that no credit is to be awarded when
consecutive sentences are imposed (and credit
has already been awarded), and for time spent
incarcerated in another jurisdiction.
Fiscal Information
According to the fiscal note prepared by the Division of
the Budget on the bill, as introduced, KDOC indicates
enactment could result in increased costs if additional prison
beds were needed. However, an estimate could not be
determined. The Judicial Branch indicates the bill would not
have an effect on expenditures. Any fiscal effect associated
with enactment of the bill is not included in The FY2025
Governor’s Budget Report.
According to the prison bed impact statement prepared
by the Sentencing Commission on the bill, as introduced, the
Commission indicates enactment of the bill would have no
impact on prison admissions or the workload of the
Commission. The bill may impact prison beds needed, but the
total cannot be determined.
Sentencing; credit; time served; incarceration


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Statutes affected:
As introduced: 21-6615
As Amended by House Committee: 21-6615