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Kansas Recording Laws (2026): One-Party Consent Rules

Independently fact-checked against primary sources (last audited August 15, 2026). · Reviewed by the RecordingLaw editorial team. · Law checked current as of August 15, 2026. · 26 primary sources cited on this page. How we verify our legal content

Kansas Recording Laws (2026): One-Party Consent Rules

Updates

Corrected a quotation from State v. Wigley to its exact wording, clarified that Werner v. Kliewer applied (rather than first recognized) the intrusion-upon-seclusion tort, and narrowed the description of State v. Brooks to the sent e-mails the court actually addressed.

Corrected the Kansas case law discussion: State v. Wigley (1972) is identified as the source of the one-party consent construction with State v. Roudybush (1984) reaffirming it, a misstated Roudybush holding was replaced with the court’s actual rulings, the 2011 recodification is described as a consolidation of the former eavesdropping and breach-of-privacy statutes into K.S.A. 21-6101, the open-meetings recording right is now quoted from K.S.A. 75-4318(e), and both case citations now link to the opinions.

Split the criminal fine caps by severity tier under K.S.A. 21-6611 ($300,000 for severity level 5; $100,000 for levels 6-10) and removed a case link that pointed to a repealed statute page.

Independently fact-checked against the cited primary sources; governing law re-checked for recent changes

Governing law re-checked for recent changes

Reviewed and approved by an editor

Restructured for readability: tightened lede, added at-a-glance table, split core sections (in-person, phone calls, hidden cameras, penalties, police), condensed special topics (SB 186/deepfakes, KOMA, KORA, workplace, ECPA/FCC, HIPAA) into dedicated subsections, added in-depth links index, refreshed FAQ to 8 questions, confirmed all load-bearing facts (K.S.A. 21-6101 subsection structure and penalties, K.S.A. 22-2518 damages formula, SB 186 effective date) against ksrevisor.gov primary sources.

Refreshed for 2026 around the consolidated structure of K.S.A. 21-6101 'breach of privacy.' Anchored subsections (a)(1) through (a)(5) as Class A nonperson misdemeanors (up to 1 year jail under K.S.A. 21-6602; up to $2,500 fine under K.S.A. 21-6611) and subsections (a)(6), (a)(7), and (a)(8) as person felonies on the K.S.A. 21-6804 sentencing grid. Added SB 186 of 2025 (L. 2025 ch. 120 sec. 3), signed by Governor Laura Kelly on April 24, 2025 and effective July 1, 2025, amending K.S.A. 21-6101(a)(8) to reach AI-altered or digitally modified intimate images of identifiable adults. Corrected the controlling one-party-consent precedent to State v. Roudybush, 235 Kan. 834, 686 P.2d 100 (1984) (the baseline previously referenced 'State v. Roach,' which is not a Kansas Supreme Court case on this issue). Corrected the body-camera citation to K.S.A. 45-254 under the Kansas Open Records Act (the baseline previously referenced K.S.A. 75-7710 and 22-3431, both of which are unrelated). Documented the civil cause of action under K.S.A. 22-2518 (Kansas wiretap-procedure act): the greater of actual damages, $100 per day of violation, or $1,000 minimum, plus punitive damages and reasonable attorney fees; good-faith reliance on a court order is a complete defense. Added the Frasier-then-Irizarry Tenth Circuit progression for record-the-police: Frasier v. Evans, 992 F.3d 1003 (10th Cir. 2021) granted qualified immunity for August 2014 conduct, while Irizarry v. Yehia, 38 F.4th 1282 (10th Cir. 2022) recognized a clearly established First Amendment right as of May 2019 (Irizarry is a Tenth Circuit decision binding on Kansas, not an Eleventh Circuit decision). Added a Kansas Open Meetings Act recording-rights H2 under K.S.A. 75-4317 et seq. with the Kansas Attorney General KOMA FAQ as a unique Kansas differentiator. Updated FCC 24-24 (One-to-One Consent Rule) to vacated by 11th Cir. mandate April 30, 2025 and removed the stale 47 CFR § 64.501 (deleted November 20, 2017). Added NLRB Stericycle / GC 25-05 / GC 25-07 workplace recording overlay and the TAKE IT DOWN Act federal compliance (Pub. L. 119-12, signed May 19, 2025; platform notice-and-takedown effective May 19, 2026). Replaced commercial-codifier URLs with kslegislature.gov, ksrevisor.gov, kscourts.org, ag.ks.gov, ca10.uscourts.gov, fcc.gov, nlrb.gov, ftc.gov, and uscode.house.gov. Keywords array populated (was empty).

Refreshed for 2026 around the consolidated structure of K.S.A. 21-6101 'breach of privacy.' Anchored subsections (a)(1) through (a)(5) as Class A nonperson misdemeanors and subsections (a)(6), (a)(7), and (a)(8) as person felonies. Added SB 186 of 2025 (L. 2025 ch. 120 sec. 3), signed April 24, 2025 and effective July 1, 2025, amending K.S.A. 21-6101(a)(8) for AI-altered intimate images. Corrected controlling precedent to State v. Roudybush, 235 Kan. 834 (1984). Corrected body-camera citation to K.S.A. 45-254 under KORA. Added Irizarry v. Yehia, 38 F.4th 1282 (10th Cir. 2022) for record-the-police. Added KOMA recording-rights section. Added NLRB Stericycle/GC 25-05/GC 25-07 workplace overlay and TAKE IT DOWN Act (Pub. L. 119-12).

Added wearable recording device guidance covering AI voice recorders (Plaud) and smart glasses (Meta Ray-Bans) under Kansas one-party consent law.

Sources and References

  1. ksrevisor.gov.gov
  2. ksrevisor.gov.gov
  3. ksrevisor.gov.gov
  4. ksrevisor.gov.gov
  5. ksrevisor.gov.gov
  6. ksrevisor.gov.gov
  7. ksrevisor.gov.gov
  8. ksrevisor.gov.gov
  9. ksrevisor.gov.gov
  10. ksrevisor.gov.gov
  11. ksrevisor.gov.gov
  12. kslegislature.gov.gov
  13. sos.ks.gov.gov
  14. ag.ks.gov.gov
  15. ag.ks.gov.gov
  16. ca10.uscourts.gov.gov
  17. ca10.uscourts.gov.gov
  18. uscode.house.gov.gov
  19. docs.fcc.gov.gov
  20. fcc.gov.gov
  21. media.ca11.uscourts.gov.gov
  22. congress.gov.gov
  23. nlrb.gov.gov
  24. nlrb.gov.gov
  25. justice.gov.gov
  26. ecfr.gov.gov
  27. State v. Roudybush, 235 Kan. 834, 686 P.2d 100 (1984)(courtlistener.com)
  28. State v. Wigley, 210 Kan. 472, 502 P.2d 819 (1972)(courtlistener.com)
  29. K.S.A. 75-4318 (open meetings; cameras, photographic lights and recording devices)(ksrevisor.gov)
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