Kansas Health Institute | Information For Policy Makers. Health for Kansans.

TOPEKA — A Democratic senator from Kansas City is promoting a list of options that he says could save the state $1 billion and get Kansas through its current budget crisis.

"All it is is ideas to get people thinking," said Sen. Chris Steineger. "This billion dollar list is adaptive and every idea on the list would be opposed by some group or some special interest."

Steineger shared the list last week with the Senate Ways and Means Committee. Today he shared it with the House Appropriations Committee where he said it was received more warmly.

"The House is always more willing to think outside the box," he said.

The two biggest items on his list of 30 ideas (in terms of savings or revenues) are consolidating the state's 105 counties and courthouses into 25. Steineger said a Wichita State University study showed those consolidations could save the state $700 million over time.

Selling off the University of Kansas Hospital could raise $500 million, which could be used to "recapitalize" the state employees' pension fund.

That's not a new idea.

In 2008, he introduced a bill that would have allowed the sale of the hospital for no less than $800 million with half the proceeds to be directed to the pension fund's unfunded liability and the rest for building maintenance at the state universities. The bill didn't go anywhere.

Steineger said he thinks this year the Legislature might be more receptive to that plan and his other ideas because of the budget dilemma and, in the case of the hospital sell-off, lawmakers have had more time to think about it so it isn't as shocking as when he first introduced it in 2007.

The list includes several proposed consolidations of government services, but does not call for consolidating schools. Steineger said he didn't feel compelled to proposed merging school districts because that's not a new idea and his goal was to get fellow legislators thinking of innovative approaches.

Among the consolidations proposed:

• All the regulatory functions dealing with parimutuel racing, gaming and bingo.
• All functions of probation and parole.
• Combine the department of agriculture with the Water Office, the geological survey, the livestock commission and the conservation commission.
• Consolidate all state debt into "one mega bond at today's low rates."
• All functions of the bank and securities commissioners and the credit union office.

His list of 30 items also included suggested changes for various state-funded health programs, including paying Medicaid rates to the contractor that provides prison health services.

He also suggested increased premiums and co-pays for state employee health insurance with large discounts provided those who maintain healthy weight, don't smoke and have annual check-ups.

The list included the idea of asking various foundations endowed as the result of hospital sales, including Kansas Health Foundation, REACH and the Wyandotte Health Foundation, to donate their annual revenues for two years to help fund Medicaid services.

"It doesn't hurt to ask," Steineger said.

His list also included selling and leasing back the Docking, Landon and Eisenhower state office buildings, eliminating state-financed buffalo herds and downsizing the Legislature to 30 senators and 90 representatives.

The Kansas Constitution provides for 40 senators and 125 representatives, so that change would require a constitutional amendment, which would need two-thirds support in the House and Senate before going on a statewide ballot.