Daily Legislative Update 🐝
Tuesday, February 11, 2025

Below is today’s morning update on published activities in the Kansas Legislature.

Table of Contents

• Top Stories of the Day

  • Let the Games Begin!

  • New BillBee resource: Legislator Profiles

• Bills and Resolutions

  • Bills Under Consideration

  • House Bills on the Floor for Consideration

  • Senate Bills on the Floor for Consideration

  • New Bills Introduced

    • House Bills:

    • Senate Bills:

• Session Highlights for February 10, 2025

  • House of Representatives

  • Senate

  • Upcoming Actions

    • House of Representatives

  • Senate

Top Stories of the Day

Let the Games Begin!

There is a lot of activity returning to the chambers for floor votes. We haven’t yet updated the automatic formatting of the Bill Details section below to organize this information by category so you’ll have to scan through them manually (we expect to improve this next week).

Noteworthy bills making significant progress include:

• SB 5 passed the Senate and has moved to the House. This proposal prohibits most Federal funds from being used on election-related activities in Kansas, including voter registration efforts.

• HB 2206 would rename and repurpose the current Governmental Ethics Commission as the Kansas Public Disclosure Commission. It creates stricter requirements for filing independent expenditures in elections, but in nuanced ways that likely leave wide-open lanes for undisclosed campaign spending.

• HB 2027 passed the House and is now in the Senate. It further restricts eligibility for public assistance programs (e.g., persons who quit a job or are fired for misconduct are no longer eligible). It also strengthens work requirements.

New BillBee resource: Legislator Profiles

As we approach “voting season,” it’s going to become more and more important (and interesting!) to track how legislators are voting on specific bills. In the spirit of build-the-airplane-while-flying-it, we’ve added Legislators to the BillBee website. This information, aswith the rest of the information portal, is sourced from the Kansas Legislature website but we humbly suggest that our tool is much easier to use.

At the moment, we only have their contact information handily available, but committee assignments and vote history are coming soon.

Bills and Resolutions

Bills Under Consideration

House Bills on the Floor for Consideration

• Final Action on Bills and Concurrent Resolutions:

  • SB 5 – Prohibits unsolicited federal funds for elections.

  • SB 7 – Increases bonding authority limits for township improvements.

  • SB 32 – Reduces insurance company premium tax rates from 2% to 1.98%.

  • SB 36 – Increases the funding cap and state matching funds for conservation districts.

  • SB 84 – Expands criminal use of cards to include gift cards.

  • SB 125 – $6,430 in approved payments for claims against the state.

  • SB 135 – Enhances child-related protection order precedence.

  • HB 2040 – Extends final orders on electric transmission line siting applications from 120 days to 180 days.

  • HB 2046 – Authorizes insurers to file certain travel insurance policies under the accident and health line of insurance.

  • HB 2109 – Allows police equipment on utility poles, exempts utility liability.

  • HB 2061 – Defines and penalizes trespass on critical infrastructure.

  • HB 2120 – Authorizes sale of two specific Kansas State University properties.

  • HB 2075 – Set strict timelines for child custody hearings.

  • HB 2088 – Establishes fast-track building permits process.

  • HB 2215 – Increase cost-share limit for corrections' partnerships.

  • HB 2140 – Establishes a D.A.R.E. educator in Kansas.

  • HB 2185 – Transfer unused National Guard tuition benefits to dependents.

  • HB 2016 – Allows private online obituary notices to be used for removing deceased voters from Kansas voter registration books.

  • HB 2106 – Ban foreign nationals from campaign contribution in Kansas.

  • HB 2206 – Renames and updates Kansas governmental ethics commission.

  • HB 2039 – Clarifies that certain entities providing physical therapy, occupational therapy, and speech-language pathology are not home health agencies.

  • HB 2170 – Establishes Kansas burn awareness week in February.

  • HB 2212 – Increases reimbursement for inmate personal losses.

  • HB 2183 – Defines AI-generated child exploitation as a crime.

  • HB 2231 – Increases personal tax exemptions for head of households.

  • HB 2122 – Alters registration fee payment rules for trucks.

  • HB 2169 – Modifies documentation for veteran license plates issuance.

  • HB 2201 – FFA distinctive license plates authorized in Kansas.

  • HB 2222 – Mandates ignition interlock fees for manufacturers.

  • HB 2261 – Reclassifies Kansas Highway Patrol employment status as unclassified for certain ranks.

  • HB 2121 – Increase electric vehicle annual fees for highway funds.

  • HB 2168 – Creates blackout distinctive license plate and replacement fund.

  • HB 2256 – Awards for military spouses' community contributions.

  • HB 2274 – Streamlines licensing for military spouses and veterans.

Senate Bills on the Floor for Consideration

• Final Action on Bills and Concurrent Resolutions:

  • HB 2027 – Tightens qualification requirements for some public assistance programs.

  • SB 51 – Sales tax exemptions for data center development investments.

  • SB 105 – Governor fills vacancies with same-party appointees.

  • SB 77 – Revise administrative rules regulation and agency review processes.

  • SB 85 – Mandates frequent data matching for public assistance eligibility.

  • SB 99 – Abolishes state-funded positions unfilled for more than 180 days.

  • SB 161 – Legislative consent required for public assistance program changes.

  • SB 138 – Require probable cause statement by law enforcement for warrants.

  • SB 82 – Grants waivers for rural hospital nursing facilities.

  • SB 88 – Requires dementia training for long-term care ombudsmen.

  • SB 29 – Strips local health officers and the Secretary of Health and Environment of their authority to impose isolation or quarantine orders.

  • SB 98 – Create Route 66 Kansas license plates.

  • SB 97 – Regulates titling of nonhighway and salvage vehicles.

  • SB 181 – Limits annual state general fund expenditures.

• Consent Calendar (Bills Eligible for Fast-Track Approval):

  • SB 92 – Extends electric line siting permit decision timeline.

New Bills Introduced

House Bills:

• Taxes, Fiscal Policy, and Economic Development:

  • 🐝 HB 2380: Provide COLA for elderly retirees in Kansas system.

• Criminal Justice, Public Safety, and Corrections:

  • 🐝🐝🐝 HB 2381: Establishes safe and secure firearm detection program.

• Education:

  • 🐝 HB 2382: Increase state board of education compensation.

• Child Welfare, Family Services, and Social Assistance:

  • 🐝🐝 HB 2383: Establishes health services pilot for child care providers.

• Government Organization, Elections, and Public Administration:

  • 🐝 HB 2384: Authorize real property conveyance to Shawnee Tribe with conditions.

Senate Bills:

• Miscellaneous / Commemorative and Cultural Acts:

  • 🐝 SB 265: Designates Nov 14 as Ruby Bridges walk to school day.

• Environment, Energy, and Natural Resources:

  • 🐝🐝 SB 266: Require legislative approval for major electric transmission lines.

• Taxes, Fiscal Policy, and Economic Development:

  • 🐝🐝🐝 SB 267: Bill defines criteria for pregnancy centers and repeals statutes.

  • 🐝 SB 268: Clarifies modifications for business interest and loss carrybacks.

  • 🐝 SB 269: Prohibits tax appeal filing fees for certain cases.

• Education:

  • 🐝🐝 SB 270: Create Kansas educator apprenticeship grant program.