Education (Student Financial Aid)

HB 2136 expands eligibility for Kansas' tax credit scholarship program by removing the requirement that students must have previously attended a public school. It increases the tax credit amount for donations to the program and adds new limits on total credits. The bill directly affects low-income students (including those in foster care, military families, or with first-responder parents) and donors who contribute to scholarship organizations. This change allows more students to access private school scholarships through tax-credit donations, without the prior public school enrollment barrier.

HB 2361 abolishes Kansas's existing nursing scholarship program and replaces it with the "Kansas healthcare service scholarship program." The new program expands eligibility to include part-time students and adds allied health and health science programs to the list of qualifying educational paths, beyond the previous nursing-only focus. It transfers funds from the state general fund to support these expanded scholarship opportunities and amends multiple statutes to reflect the program's updated scope and structure. This change directly affects students pursuing healthcare education at eligible Kansas institutions, including community colleges, universities, and accredited programs.

SB 87 expands Kansas' tax credit program for low-income student scholarships by removing the requirement that students must have previously attended a public school. It increases the tax credit rate for donors from 70% to 75% for tax years starting in 2023, while maintaining an annual scholarship cap of $8,000 per student. The bill directly affects low-income students (including those in foster care, military families, or with parents in emergency services) and scholarship organizations by broadening eligibility and making contributions more valuable for donors. Key mechanisms include eliminating prior public school enrollment as a requirement and raising the credit rate to encourage greater private funding for educational scholarships.

SB 252 expands Kansas' low-income student scholarship program to include specific high school students and those eligible to attend school districts with low standardized test scores (under 50% meeting achievement levels). It increases tax credits for donors and raises the annual program limit, while keeping scholarships capped at $8,000 per student. The state treasurer will now manage program administration, and new eligibility rules allow current scholarship recipients (who haven’t graduated or turned 21) and students in qualifying districts to participate. This directly affects low-income families seeking educational options through tax-credit-funded scholarships.

The bill titled "SB 44: Declaring antisemitism..." is mislabeled in your query. The actual bill text provided is **not about antisemitism** but rather an amendment to Kansas's scholarship program. This bill expands eligibility for the Kansas Promise Scholarship program to include more private postsecondary institutions in Kansas, sets income limits ($100,000 for families of 1-2, $150,000 for families of 3, plus $4,800 per additional member), caps lifetime awards at 68 credit hours or $20,000, and limits annual program funding to $10 million. It modifies definitions of "eligible institution," "promise eligible program," and "scholarship award" to clarify how funds are calculated and distributed to public and private colleges. The bill was enacted after passing the legislature and receiving gubernatorial approval in April 2025. *(Note: The bill's stated title about antisemitism does not match the provided text, which exclusively addresses scholarship program changes.)*