Topeka ? A Senate committee has endorsed a budget report criticizing Atty. Gen. Phill Kline, drafted in part by a lawmaker who lost last year’s Republican primary race to Kline.

The Ways and Means Committee made no changes Monday in the $13.2 million budget for Kline’s office for the fiscal year beginning July 1.

But in endorsing that budget proposal, the committee also approved the accompanying report from a subcommittee, complaining it had not received enough information about abortion-related litigation, questioning whether Kline’s new consumer protection chief is qualified, and suggesting close legislative oversight of Kline’s hiring of outside attorneys.

The subcommittee was Sens. David Adkins, R-Leawood, and Christine Downey, D-Newton. Kline defeated Adkins for the GOP nomination last year.

“It was a little more political than our normal budget report,” Sen. Nick Jordan, R-Shawnee, told The Kansas City Star after the committee’s meeting. “We normally stick to money issues. We don’t usually micromanage agencies.”

Under the committee’s recommendations, the attorney general’s current budget would decrease from $21.8 million appropriated last year to $17.7 million, or by almost 19 percent. The change reflects the transfer of victims services financed by federal funds to the governor’s office, to which Kline agreed.

The attorney general’s budget would drop 26 percent more for the next fiscal year.

But the report does not focus primarily on money. Adkins had circulated a tougher version, but Downey would not sign it. Adkins said the version endorsed by the committee was “a consensus report.”

The report questioned Kline’s appointment of Bryan Brown to head the consumer protection division, saying the division should be led by someone whose qualifications and fitness for the job are unquestioned.

Abortion rights supporters have criticized Brown because of his past anti-abortion activities and for not paying a $61,616 court judgment in Indiana.

Another part of the report dealt with a lawsuit the House ordered the Attorney General’s Office to file, asking the Kansas Supreme Court to rule that life begins at conception. Kline is researching the litigation.

Adkins defended the report’s tone.

“The work of the subcommittee is one of the very few, if not the only opportunity we have as the legislative branch to provide oversight for our constituents into the operation of the state office,” he said.