Kansas ban-the-box rules: Executive Order 18-12 for state jobs, and what private employers face

Kansas has no statewide ban-the-box law for private employers as of October 2026; no statute limits when a private company may ask about arrests or convictions. The state's rule is Executive Order 18-12, signed May 2, 2018, which keeps the question off the initial stage of applications for executive branch agencies under the Governor while still allowing background checks as a condition of employment. Two Kansas statutes reach every employer: K.S.A. 22-4710, which governs record requests and gives a safe harbor for job-related decisions, and K.S.A. 21-6614, which lets most applicants deny expunged records.

Does Kansas have a ban-the-box law for private employers?

No. We found no Kansas statute that restricts when a private employer may ask about criminal history, and this site's Kansas background check laws and hiring employees in Kansas pages reach the same result. Under state law, a private Kansas employer may ask on the application, in a screen or in an interview. What Kansas does regulate is how records are obtained, how decisions are protected, and which records an applicant may deny, covered below.

What does Executive Order 18-12 cover?

Governor Jeff Colyer issued Executive Order 18-12 on May 2, 2018. His announcement (a copy of the governor.kansas.gov release kept by the National Employment Law Project) says it "instructs all Executive Branch departments, agencies, boards, and commissions under the jurisdiction of the Office of the Governor to ensure that job applicants are not asked about their criminal record during the initial stage of a state employment application," and that it "does not prevent employers from conducting criminal background checks or from excluding such applicants if a law or regulation prohibits those with criminal records from holding that specific position."

The Kansas Legislative Division of Post Audit reviewed the order in a December 2024 audit of the Department of Commerce's pre-employment screening (Report L-24-018). It describes the order as saying that "during the initial stage of a state employment application, job applicants shall not be asked if they have a criminal record," that a record "shall not automatically disqualify an applicant from receiving an interview," and that it "doesn't prevent agencies from conducting a criminal history check as a condition of employment." The auditors concluded agencies may run a check once an applicant is past the initial application stage. Commerce, in its response, read the order as restricting it more than that, which shows how much the order's short text leaves to interpretation.

The order does not reach the Legislature, the courts, cities, counties, school districts or private employers. It sets no notice, assessment or complaint process. We could not confirm whether it has been amended or rescinded since the December 2024 audit, which treated it as in force.

Did Kansas change anything for state jobs in 2025?

Yes, for two agencies. House Bill 2342 of the 2025 session, which the Legislature's page shows as approved by the Governor, authorizes the Secretary of Commerce to conduct criminal history record checks on final applicants for, and employees in, certain sensitive positions, and requires the Secretary of Labor to run checks on employees with access to federal tax information. Checking "final applicants" fits the order's approach of keeping records out of the initial stage. We did not come across a 2025 or 2026 bill that would create a ban-the-box rule for private employers, but we could not run a full search of the Legislature's bill list for this page, so check its bill search before relying on that.

Which Kansas statutes reach every employer?

• Record requests. K.S.A. 22-4710(a) makes it a class A misdemeanor for an employer or prospective employer "to require a person to inspect or challenge any criminal history record information relating to that person for the purpose of obtaining a copy of the person's record in order to qualify for employment." Under subsection (c), the employer may instead ask the applicant to sign a release so the employer can get the record itself.
• Safe harbor. Subsection (f) says no employer is liable for an employment decision based on criminal history record information, "provided the information that led to the employment or contracting decision reasonably bears upon the independent contractor's, applicant's or employee's trustworthiness, or the safety or well-being of the employer's employees or customers." That is a reason to tie every decision to the job.
• Expunged records. Under K.S.A. 21-6614(k)(1), "in any application for employment," a person whose arrest, conviction or diversion was expunged "may state that such person has never been arrested, convicted or diverted of such crime." Subsection (i)(2) lists exceptions where disclosure is still required, including applications as a law enforcement officer, private detective or security personnel, work in certain state institutions, the Kansas lottery and racing and gaming.

Can Kansas cities adopt their own ban-the-box rules?

Nothing in Kansas's main local preemption statute stops them. K.S.A. 12-16,130 bars cities and counties from requiring employers to provide leave, pay above the minimum wage, offer extra benefits or change scheduling, but it does not mention hiring practices or criminal history. We did not review the personnel policies or ordinances of Wichita, Overland Park, Kansas City (Kansas), Olathe, Topeka or Lawrence for this page, so check the city's code when a client is a city or hires inside one.

The rule Kansas recruiters most often meet is across the state line. Kansas City, Missouri's ordinance, as passed in 2018, reaches private employers with six or more employees and holds criminal history questions until the applicant is otherwise qualified and has been interviewed; see Missouri ban-the-box rules. A metro-area desk should know which side of State Line Road the job is on.

Which Kansas rules apply to which employer?

What federal rules still apply in Kansas?

The Kansas safe harbor does not displace federal law. The EEOC rescinded its 2012 guidance on arrest and conviction records on October 28, 2026, effective immediately, and its announcement says Title VII "continues to prohibit discrimination based on race or national origin." The disparate impact provision, 42 U.S.C. 2000e-2(k), is unchanged. A review that weighs the Green factors from the 1975 Eighth Circuit case Green v. Missouri Pacific Railroad Co. (the nature and gravity of the offense, the time since it and the nature of the job) also lines up with the Kansas safe harbor's focus on trustworthiness and safety. Federal contractors follow 41 U.S.C. 4714 for contract-related positions, and reports from screening companies follow the FCRA background check process; Kansas adds its own consumer reporting rules, covered in our background check page.

What should recruiters and staffing agencies do in Kansas?

For state agency clients, the recruiter's screen is part of the initial stage, so leave criminal history out. For private clients, there is no state timing rule, but the safe harbor only protects decisions tied to trustworthiness or safety, so the record question belongs where a decision maker can weigh it against the job, usually after an offer. Settle at intake:

• Is the client an executive branch agency under the Governor, another public body, a federal contractor or a private employer?
• Is the job in Kansas or in Kansas City, Missouri? For Missouri jobs, how many employees does the client have?
• Does a law disqualify people with certain records from the job, or require a check? Which law?
• Does the application tell applicants expunged records need not be disclosed, outside the listed exceptions?
• Who requests the KBI record or orders a screening report, and who sends the FCRA notices?

Agency recruiters should also confirm their own setup; see Kansas staffing agency licensing.

A script for Kansas screens

State agency role, candidate volunteers a record: "Thanks for telling me. That isn't part of my screen, and the agency doesn't ask at this stage. If it does a background check, that comes later."

Candidate asks about an expunged case: "For most jobs, Kansas lets you answer as though an expunged case never happened. A few kinds of work, like law enforcement or security, are exceptions."

Private client asks you to ask on the phone screen: "Kansas doesn't stop you, but the state's protection for these decisions depends on tying the record to the job. Let's leave it to your background stage where someone can do that."

A Kansas checklist for recruiting desks

1. Tag state agency requisitions and keep criminal history off their applications and screens.
2. Never require a candidate to obtain or challenge their own Kansas record; use a signed release if the client wants it.
3. Respect expunged records outside the listed exceptions.
4. Apply Kansas City, Missouri's ordinance to jobs on the Missouri side.
5. Keep volunteered details out of notes. See what not to write in interview notes.
6. For neighbors, see Oklahoma, Nebraska and Colorado; for the federal picture, ban-the-box laws and interview questions.