HB 2455 is a funding bill that adjusts budget allocations for specific Kansas state agencies across fiscal years 2026-2029. It primarily increases expenditure limits for agencies like the State Board of Healing Arts ($8.2 million for 2027), Kansas State Board of Cosmetology ($1.3 million for 2027), and others, while slightly decreasing funding for the State Board of Pharmacy ($3.2 million for 2027). The bill also lapses unused funds for the Legislative Coordinating Council’s operations accounts. It directly affects state boards and agencies managing professional licensing fees, not the general public. The bill authorizes these budget adjustments through specific appropriations and fee fund modifications.
HB 2459 requires all riders aged 17 and younger to wear helmets while operating electric-assisted scooters or bicycles, and prohibits children under 13 from riding scooters. It sets a 15 mph maximum speed limit for electric-assisted scooters and modifies their legal definition to include specific design and speed specifications. The bill also mandates the Kansas Department of Transportation to develop helmet safety education materials for law enforcement to distribute. These changes directly affect young riders, parents, and scooter operators in Kansas, focusing on safety through clear age restrictions and speed limits.
SB 337 is a budget bill that allocates funding for Kansas state agencies across fiscal years 2026-2029. It directly affects state boards and commissions by adjusting their annual expenditure limits, such as increasing funding for the State Board of Healing Arts ($8.2M) and Board of Nursing ($4.0M), while decreasing limits for the State Board of Pharmacy ($3.2M) and Real Estate Appraisal Board ($441K). The bill also lapsed unused funds for the Legislative Coordinating Council and authorizes capital improvement projects. It does not create new policies but adjusts existing budget allocations for specific state agency fee funds.
HB 2449 requires Kansas voters to attest on registration forms that obtaining a driver's license from another state constitutes a change in residency for voting purposes. If a voter receives a driver's license from another state, election officials must automatically remove them from Kansas voter registration rolls. The bill amends Kansas election law (K.S.A. 25-2309) to add this attestation requirement and removal process. It directly affects voters who relocate to another state and obtain a driver's license there.
HB 2454 requires landlords in Kansas to accept partial rent payments from tenants and consider all types of income (like wages, government benefits, or pensions) when evaluating rental applications, excluding federal housing assistance like Section 8. It prohibits landlords from refusing partial payments or unfairly disqualifying applicants based on income sources. Violations would be treated as deceptive practices under Kansas consumer protection law, allowing tenants to seek remedies through that enforcement system. The bill directly affects landlords and renters under the state's residential landlord-tenant law.
SB 340 amends Kansas's Promise Scholarship program to clarify that scholarship funds cannot cover remedial courses unless those courses are offered in a corequisite format (where students take remedial content alongside their main course). This directly affects Kansas Promise Scholarship recipients and eligible public/private colleges, as it restricts scholarship use for traditional remedial classes but allows corequisite remedial courses. The bill updates eligibility rules in K.S.A. 74-32,274 to specify that only corequisite remedial courses qualify for funding, while other remedial courses remain ineligible. This change aims to streamline scholarship usage for academic support without altering the program's income limits or funding caps.
Kansas would join a federal tax credit program allowing individual taxpayers to deduct contributions to scholarship organizations supporting low-income students. The bill increases the tax credit percentage from 70% to 75% for contributions made after 2022 and raises the state's annual credit limit from $10 million to $20 million (with a potential maximum of $30 million). If credits claimed approach 75% of the annual limit, the cap automatically increases for the next year. This directly affects Kansas residents who donate to qualifying scholarship organizations, providing a larger tax incentive for such contributions.
HB 2419 amends Kansas' Open Records Act (KORA) to allow certain retired KPERS (Kansas Public Employees Retirement System) members to restrict home address and property ownership details from public websites. The bill creates a new exemption in KORA, specifically permitting these retirees to prevent their residential information from being publicly accessible online. This change directly affects retired state employees who were part of KPERS, giving them control over the visibility of their personal residence details. The provision adds to existing KORA exemptions but focuses solely on protecting the privacy of retired public employees' home information.
HB 2434 is a funding bill that adjusts budget limits for 12 Kansas state boards and commissions for fiscal years 2026-2028. It increases expenditure limits for most agencies (e.g., State Bank Commissioner +$275,242, Board of Barbering +$3,778) while decreasing limits for others (e.g., State Board of Pharmacy -$402,043). The bill also lapses unused funds for agencies like the Public Disclosure Commission and Legislative Coordinating Council. This legislation directly affects state agency budgets but does not create new policies or impact the general public.
HB 2426 defines "gender" as biological sex at birth for legal purposes in Kansas statutes. It requires the Division of Motor Vehicles to reissue driver's licenses and the Office of Vital Statistics to reissue birth certificates if they reflect gender identity inconsistent with biological sex at birth. The bill invalidates birth certificates issued before July 1, 2026, that do not match this definition and mandates correction of such records. This policy directly affects individuals whose legal documents (birth certificates or licenses) currently reflect a gender identity different from their sex assigned at birth.
HB 2443 amends Kansas property tax law to exclude certain natural gas storage facilities from being classified as "public utilities" for tax purposes. Specifically, it applies to new facilities constructed after January 1, 2026, located entirely within a single county without crossing state boundaries. This change means these facilities would no longer be subject to the higher property tax rates typically applied to public utilities. The bill directly affects owners of qualifying natural gas storage infrastructure built after 2026. It revises K.S.A. 79-5a01 and repeals the prior definition.
SB 347 ends the Kansas Secretary of State's authority to appoint election commissioners in counties with populations over 125,000. Starting July 1, 2026, all election duties - including voter registration, election supervision, and administration - will transfer to county clerks whenever a commissioner vacancy occurs or a term ends. County clerks will then conduct elections under existing law (K.S.A. 25-126) for those counties. The bill repeals current provisions governing election commissioners, making this change permanent once no commissioners remain.
