As many as 25,000 state employees whose jobs were guaranteed through June 26 now face the possibility of furloughs as a result of working for a state that is nearly broke—Kansas.
Yes, those workers, due to some fairly complicated budget dancing around the effective date of the new, tight budget and when payroll periods start and such, were rescued on June 7. They were officially declared “essential” to the operation of the state, and because they wore that mantle, they couldn’t be furloughed without pay.
Well, that safety net dissolves at the legislative sine die adjournment on June 26.
They go back into the now clearly defined pool of state employees who the state presumably can do its business without…and with the governor now charged with cutting some $50 million—and probably more—from the state budget for the year that starts July 1, they could become one of the quickest ways to balance the budget.
Not a very comfortable place for those state employees to be.