Kansas restores fairness in courtrooms with new law ending agency deference

Topeka, Kansas; February 9, 2026: Kansas took a major step to ensure balance in the justice system by enacting House Bill 2183, a new law requiring courts and administrative hearing officers to independently interpret laws and regulations without deferring to government agencies. Gov. Laura Kelly signed the bill into law February 5.

For decades, courts across the country have deferred to agencies’ interpretations of the rules they enforce, effectively allowing bureaucrats to say what the law is, placing ordinary citizens at a disadvantage. House Bill 2183 guarantees that won’t happen in Kansas by directing judges to review legal questions without bias and to resolve genuine ambiguity in favor of constitutional rights.

“This law protects a core principle of American justice: Courts—not bureaucrats—must say what the law is,” said Jim Manley, an attorney with Pacific Legal Foundation who testified on behalf of HB 2183. “Every Kansan, and every American for that matter, deserves an independent judge who will weigh the facts and the law without putting a thumb on the scale for the government.”

The new statute reinforces the idea that courts should serve as neutral arbiters, ensuring that individuals and small businesses receive fair treatment when challenging government actions. It also reflects the longstanding legal tradition that unclear rules should not be used to punish people who lacked fair notice of what the law required.

Pacific Legal Foundation applauds Kansas lawmakers for advancing this important reform and is working on similar efforts across the country to restore judicial independence.

PLF’s nationwide initiative seeks to reaffirm that American citizens have the right to a fair hearing before an impartial court—one that applies the law without bias and respects the constitutional limits on government authority.