(March 18, 2025) – Today, the House and Senate took final action votes and debated bills before them.

The House took final action votes on the following:

• House Bill 2402 creates the Blue Ribbon Commission on Higher Education to study and set long-term goals for higher education in the state of Kansas and requires the submission of reports to the legislature. The bill passed on a vote of 98-24.

• Senate Bill 50 establishes uniform interest rate provisions for service scholarship programs administered by the Kansas Board of Regents that have repayment obligations as a part of the terms and conditions of such programs and authorizes the Kansas Board of Regents to recover the costs of collecting such repayment obligations and charge fees for the costs of administering such programs and requiring eligible students to enter into agreements with the Kansas Board of Regents instead of a postsecondary educational institution as a condition to receiving a grant under the Adult Learner Grant Act. The bill passed on a vote of 119-3.

• Senate Bill 78 requires postsecondary educational institutions to regularly review and update accreditation policies, prohibits accrediting agencies from compelling such institutions to violate state law and provides a cause of action for violations thereof. The bill passed on a vote of 86-36.

• Senate Bill 114 authorizes nonpublic and virtual school students to participate in ancillary public school activities and makes it unlawful for the Kansas State High School Activities Association and school districts to discriminate against such students based on enrollment status. The bill passed on a vote of 83-39.

The House also held debate and took final votes on the following bills:

• House Bill 2223 modifies certain provisions of the optometry law relating to scope of practice, definitions and credentialing requirements. The bill passed on a vote of 97-24.

• Senate Bill 36 increases the cap on the amount of moneys disbursed by the division of conservation to conservation districts and provides an increased matching basis for state moneys disbursed to conservation districts based on amounts allocated by the board of county commissioners for such districts. The bill passed on a vote of 119-2.

• Senate Bill 58 modifies the requirements and allocations for multi-year flex accounts. The bill passed on a vote of 119-2.

• Senate Bill 199 defines the fireworks sales season for seasonal retailers of consumer fireworks and provides for year-round sales by permanent retailers of consumer fireworks, requiring registration with the state fire marshal by such seasonal and permanent retailers, prohibits internet sales of consumer fireworks, creates the license categories of distributor of display fireworks, distributor of pyrotechnic articles and unlimited distributor and limiting lawful sale of fireworks that are labeled "For Professional Use Only" to certain license categories. The bill passed on a vote of 75-45.

Meanwhile, in the Senate, the Committee of the Whole took final votes on the following:

Confirmations for the following:

• Thomas Browne, State Board of Tax Appeals
• Kristen Wheeler, State Board of Tax Appeals
• Christopher Kennedy, Secretary of Department of Wildlife and Parks
• Donald Hall, University of Kansas Hospital Authority
• Maureen Mahoney, University of Kansas Hospital Authority
• Michael McCoy, Brigadier General Kansas National Guard
• Kate Gleeson, Central Low-Level Radioactive Waste Commission

• House Bill 2044 requires that third-party administrators maintain separate fiduciary accounts for individual payors and not contain funds collected or held on behalf of multiple payors and disclose to the commissioner of insurance any bankruptcy petition filed by or on behalf of such administrator. The bill passed on a vote of 40-0.

• House Bill 2061 includes aboveground and belowground lines, cables and wires in the definition of a critical infrastructure facility used for telecommunications or video services for the crimes of trespassing on a critical infrastructure facility and criminal damage to a critical infrastructure facility. The bill passed on a vote of 40-0.

• House Bill 2075 requires that a permanency hearing for a child in the custody of the secretary be held within nine months from such a child's removal from the home. The bill passed on a vote of 40-0.

• House Bill 2168 provides for the blackout distinctive license plate and creates the License Plate Replacement Fund to deposit the royalty fees from such license plates for purposes of replacing exhausted license plates. The bill passed on a vote of 37-3.

• House Bill 2201 provides the Future Farmers of America distinctive license plate. The bill passed on a vote of 39-1.

• House Bill 2333 renames the Kansas Insurance Department as the Kansas Department of Insurance, the Office of the Securities Commissioner of Kansas as the Department of Insurance, Securities Division, the Securities Commissioner as the Department of Insurance Assistant Commissioner, Securities Division and eliminates the requirement that the Senate confirm the Department of Insurance Assistant Commissioner, Securities Division appointees. The bill passed on a vote of 40-0.

• House Bill 2371 amends the Kansas Revised Limited Liability Company Act, the Business Entity Transactions Act and the Business Entity Standard Treatment Act. The bill passed on a vote of 40-0.

The Senate debated the following bills before them:

• Senate Bill 69 extends by five years the Loan Repayment Program and income tax credit for rural opportunity zones

• House Bill 2102 provides for the advance enrollment of a military student whose parent or person acting as parent will be stationed in this state and corrects federal statutory citations in the interstate compact on educational opportunity for military children

• House Bill 2185 updates the Kansas National Guard Educational Assistance Act to include dependents of National Guard members and the Kansas National Guard Educational Master's for Enhanced Readiness and Global Excellence Program to include other advanced degrees

• House Bill 2312 excludes certain offenders convicted of a nonperson felony from participation in certified drug abuse treatment programs and authorizes community correctional services officers to complete criminal risk-need assessments for divertees who are committed to such programs

• House Bill 2048 eliminates the requirement that the commissioner submit certain reports to the governor and removes certain specific entities from the definition of a person for the purpose of enforcing the insurance law

• House Bill 2068 enacts the Cosmetology Compact to provide interstate practice privileges

• S Sub for House Bill 2007 makes and concerns supplemental appropriations for fiscal year 2025 and appropriations for fiscal years 2026 and 2027 for various state agencies

• House Bill 2107 provides for claims to recover economic damages from fire events caused by electric public utilities, establishes a statute of limitations for such claims and requires the state corporation commission to convene a workshop on utility wildfire risk and mitigation

• House Bill 2046 authorizes insurers to file certain travel insurance policies under the accident and health line of insurance

• House Bill 2030 excludes dealers and manufacturers of trailers from certain provisions of the Vehicle Dealers and Manufacturers Licensing Act