HB 2451 Kansas House · 2025-2026 Regular Session

Prohibiting the use of public assets by government officers and employees to advocate for or against proposed amendments to the constitution of the state of Kansas and ballot questions submitted to qualified electors.

HB 2451 prohibits state and local government employees from using public resources - such as funds, vehicles, equipment, or work time - to advocate for or against state constitutional amendments or ballot questions. It directly affects government officers and employees, banning them from using their official positions to promote or oppose these issues through materials like mailers, social media, or physical signage. The bill allows neutral information sharing on official websites but exempts incumbents campaigning for re-election and certain commission duties. Violations would be classified as class C misdemeanors.
Bill status died 3 of 5 stages cleared
Introduction
Jan 2026
Committee Review
Feb 2026
House Passage
Feb 2026
Senate Passage
Governor
Introduced Jan 15, 2026 Last action Apr 10, 2026
Maddy AI version diff · 1 comparison

What changed between versions

As Introduced As Amended by House Committee on Elections · 5 edits
MODERATE
The bill was amended to add a new requirement for fiscal transparency regarding bond issues paid for with public funds. The House Committee added detailed rules requiring that any publication about a proposed bond issue must include specific financial data, such as total costs, debt service payments, and property tax impacts, presented in plain language. This addition shifts the bill's focus from strictly prohibiting advocacy to also mandating clear financial disclosure for bond-related communications.
Scope change
The bill's scope expanded to include new regulations specifically governing informational materials about proposed bond issues, whereas the original version only addressed the use of public assets for campaigning and ballot questions.
REQUIREMENT

Added a new section requiring that any publication concerning a proposed bond issue paid for with public funds must include a neutral fiscal disclosure statement.

Mandated specific financial details in the disclosure, including principal amount, estimated total cost with interest, duration, outstanding obligations, annual debt service, and property tax revenue required.

Required the disclosure to be presented in plain language that is clearly visible and not obscured by other content.

Prohibited publications from implying a bond issue will not raise taxes based solely on mill levy calculations unless specific disclaimers about property valuation increases are included.

ENFORCEMENT

Reorganized the bill structure to include the new bond disclosure rules as Section 1, while moving the original campaign finance restrictions to a new Section 2.

Floor votes

How they voted

This bill passed the House by voice vote (no roll call recorded).
Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions
12
Key actions
5
Committee
4
Feb 19, 2026
Committee
Referred to Senate Committee on Federal and State Affairs
upper
Feb 18, 2026
Introduced
Received and Introduced
upper
Feb 18, 2026
Lower · Passed
Final Action - Passed as amended; Yea 88, Nay 36, Absent 1
lower
Feb 17, 2026
Lower · Passed
Committee of the Whole - Be passed as amended
lower
Feb 17, 2026
Lower · Passed
Committee of the Whole - Motion to Amend - Offered by Rep. Kirk Haskins
lower
Feb 17, 2026
Lower · Passed
Committee of the Whole - Committee Report be adopted
lower
Feb 9, 2026
Lower · Passed
Committee Report recommending bill be passed as amended by House Committee on Elections
lower
Jan 15, 2026
Committee
Referred to House Committee on Elections
lower
Jan 15, 2026
Introduced
Introduced
lower
0 primary · 0 co-sponsors

Sponsors

No sponsor information available.