Kansas Department of Corrections Registration Enhancement Grant Program

The Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act of 2006 (AWA) (Pub. L. 109-248, 42 U.S.C. § 16901, et seq) authorizes the Office of Sex Offender Sentencing, Monitoring, Apprehending, Registering, and Tracking (SMART) to administer sex offender management grants. These grants assist state, local and tribal jurisdictions in developing and/or enhancing sex offender registration and notification programs that support substantial implementation of Title I of the AWA, known as the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA). SORNA was enacted to protect the public from convicted sex offenders and offenders against children by establishing a comprehensive national system for the registration of those offenders.

Kansas has substantially implemented the provisions of SORNA. The changes made in Kansas law to substantially implement SORNA have added responsibilities to the Kansas Department of Corrections (KDOC) for incoming, transferring, and releasing offenders including: (1) a significant increase in the number of incarcerated offenders who are required to register; (2) a requirement that the offenders be registered as they are admitted; (3) a requirement that prints include both finger and palm prints; (4) a requirement that registration be updated as offenders transfer to work release; (5) more offenders under supervision on parole required to register, presenting a need to identify those required to register and to encourage, enable and monitor compliance; and (6) a need for KDOC staff in correctional facilities and parole be trained about the various changes and impact of those changes. The KDOC grant project will enhance ongoing efforts to address these challenges.

ca/ncf