New report examines whether spending requested by Kansas Sen. Roger Marshall raised his property value

Matthew Kelly, The Kansas City Star on Oct 16, 2026

By clicking submit, I authorize Arcamax and its affiliates to: (1) use, sell, and share my information for marketing purposes, including cross-context behavioral advertising, as described in our Privacy Policy , (2) add to information that I provide with other information like interests inferred from web page views, or data lawfully obtained from data brokers, such as past purchase or location data, or publicly available data, (3) contact me or enable others to contact me by email or other means with offers for different types of goods and services, and (4) retain my information while I am engaging with marketing messages that I receive and for a reasonable amount of time thereafter. I understand I can opt out at any time through an email that I receive, or by clicking here

In Washington, U.S. Sen. Roger Marshall has criticized colleagues for steering federal tax dollars to local projects without going through the standard appropriations process.

Earmarks, also commonly known as pork-barrel spending, allow lawmakers to advance pet projects in their districts with little oversight. Marshall has described them as wasteful and “not American.” The Kansas Republican voted four times to eliminate the practice.

But new reporting by The Associated Press shows that Marshall requested an earmark in 2024 to help resolve a water shortage at Quivira National Wildlife Refuge in rural Stafford County, directly next to a ranch property that he co-owns.

Federal records show it’s the only earmark he’s requested in his six years as a senator.

Experts told the AP that the upgrades to increase water flow to the popular waterfowl hunting destination could raise Marshall’s own property value, presenting a conflict of interest that he didn’t disclose when making the $4.2 million request.

“Think about it: If Quivira doesn’t have water, we don’t have as many ducks and waterfowl staying in that area for hunting season. That would absolutely diminish the value of the property,” Burke Griggs, a Washburn University law professor and former state water rights attorney, told the AP.

Marshall’s earmark was added to a bill that didn’t ultimately become law. But funding to pump water from a separate watershed into Rattlesnake Creek was approved in 2025 through spending legislation that Marshall supported.

The money provides a lifeline to the nature preserve, resolving a heated water rights dispute that pitted environmentalists against farmers whose operations have expanded in Stafford County in recent years.

Marshall’s campaign described his leadership on the water rights issue as critical for the region.

Spokesperson Payton Fuller told the AP that the project would “literally save farms” and “supply water to the refuge in drought years.”

At a legislative breakfast event in Topeka on Friday morning, Marshall reiterated his distaste for congressionally directed spending, suggesting that earmarks require lawmakers to pick winners and losers.

“I don’t do earmarks,” Marshall said. “It’s really hard for me to say, well, Topeka’s got this infrastructure project. Manhattan’s got one. And I’m supposed to decide between the two of them?”

Records show that Sen. Jerry Moran, Marshall’s Kansas counterpart, made 128 separate earmark requests in Fiscal Year 2026 alone.

Ethics questions

Scrutiny over the ethical implications of Marshall’s lone funding request comes as the Republican incumbent is fighting for his political life against a surprisingly strong challenge from the Rev. Adam Hamilton, a Johnson County megachurch pastor.

Marshall, an avid outdoorsman, has regularly posted hunting photos to social media in the decade since voters first elected him to Congress. He identifies his primary residence as a hunting cabin in Stafford County.

At one point, Marshall either owned or co-owned more than 1,000 acres of land near the Quivira preserve, the AP reported. Senate financial disclosures show the property generated income for Marshall in the form of building rentals and oil and gas leases.

His portfolio has been significantly reduced in recent years, but he still owns a 20% stake in Rattlesnake Ranch, which is directly adjacent to the wildlife refuge. Kansas Secretary of State records list Marshall as a company director.

Fuller, Marshall’s spokesperson, dismissed the notion that his legislative efforts to resolve the water dispute might be considered self-enrichment.

“All the water for this project would go into Quivira Wildlife Refuge,” Fuller told the AP. “Rattlesnake Ranch would not benefit from it.”

But Craig Holman, a lobbyist with the government accountability nonprofit advocacy group Public Citizen, told the AP that Marshall’s actions raised ethical red flags.

Marshall “should not be involved in any legislative effort that provides a direct or substantial financial benefit to himself,” Holman said. “He should have recused himself.”