Volume 45 - Issue 10 - March 5, 2026
State of Kansas
Department of Health and Environment
Notice of Hearing on Proposed Administrative Regulation
The Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE), Bureau of Water, will conduct a public hearing at 10:00 a.m. Thursday, May 21, 2026, in the Azure Conference Room, Fourth floor, Curtis State Office Building, 1000 SW Jackson, Topeka, Kansas, to consider the adoption of proposed amended regulation K.A.R. 28-15-16.
The time period between the publication of this notice and the scheduled public hearing constitutes a comment period of at least 60 days for the purpose of receiving written public comments on the proposed regulation. Interested parties may submit written comments prior to 10:00 a.m. May 21, 2026, to William Carr, Bureau Director, Kansas Department of Health and Environment, Bureau of Water, 1000 SW Jackson St., Suite 420, Topeka, KS, 66612, or by email to William.J.Carr@ks.gov. All interested parties will be given a reasonable opportunity to present their views orally regarding the adoption of the proposed regulation during the public hearing. To provide all parties an opportunity to present their views, it may be necessary to request that each participant limit any oral presentation to five minutes. It is requested that each individual giving oral comments also provide a written copy of the comments for the record.
Any individual with a disability may request an accommodation in order to participate in the public hearing and may request the regulation, economic impact statement, and environmental benefit statement in an accessible format. Requests for accommodation to participate in the public hearing should be made at least 10 business days in advance of the hearing by contacting the appointed agency contact using the contact information provided.
Copies of the proposed regulation, the economic impact statement, and the environmental benefit statement can be requested by contacting the appointed agency contact at the contact information provided.
A summary of the proposed regulation, its estimated economic impact, and the environmental benefit follows:
Summary of Regulation
K.A.R. 28-15-16. Permit requirements for public water supply systems. This regulation provides suppliers of water the option to participate in a certification program to extend existing permitted distribution systems without obtaining a permit. K.S.A. 65-163(a)(3) allows for KDHE to establish a certification program for approval of distribution system extensions without the need for an additional permit. However, no rules and regulations have ever been developed. The proposed regulation amendments would implement K.S.A. 65-163(a)(3).
Economic Impact
There would be a positive economic effect to businesses and local governments that own or operate a public water supply as any costs associated with waiting for KDHE review and approval of distribution extensions would be eliminated for those participating in the certification program. For those entities that choose to participate in the program, there could be costs associated with employing a full-time professional engineer; however, it is likely that entities would not be interested in participating in the certification program unless they already employed a professional engineer or if it was cost effective to hire a professional engineer for this purpose. There is no fee to participate in the program. It would be the public water supply owner’s choice to pass costs or savings on to public utility ratepayers. Eliminating the time for KDHE review of these projects should have a positive economic effect on the state economy as a whole.
These regulations will enhance business activities and growth by reducing the time between project design and construction of the distribution system extensions of participating suppliers of water. The regulations will allow suppliers of water who participate in the program to review and approve these distribution extensions eliminating the time needed for the Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) to review and approve the project for construction. Additionally, this will free up KDHE staff time and allow for more timely review of more complex projects that are associated with business and growth.
Environmental Benefit
There will not be an environmental benefit due to these proposed regulation changes. The changes in the regulation would create a voluntary certification program for approving distribution system extensions without obtaining a permit. Any impact or benefit to the environment made by distribution system expansions would not change due to this certification program.
Janet Stanek
Secretary
Kansas Department of Health and Environment
Doc. No. 053938
