2022 Legislative Update 11

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2022 Legislative Update 11

Mar 28, 2022

2022 Legislative Update 11

Last week was packed as we approach First Adjournment.

The Legislature debated and passed dozens of bills. House Democrats fought for Medicaid expansion on the 12-year anniversary of the Affordable Care Act, and special education was fully funded for 22 minutes. The Legislature passed the “Freestate 3” map, drawing new House districts. The “Sanctuary City” bill advanced. Native American representatives made history on the House floor. Next week Conference Committees begin meeting next with first adjournment on Friday April 1st.

It is a special honor to serve as your state representative. I value and appreciate your input on issues facing state government. Please feel free to contact me with your comments and questions. My office address is Room 452-S, 300 SW 10th, Topeka, KS 66612. You can reach me at (785) 296-7430 or call the legislative hotline at 1-800-432-3924 to leave a message for me. You can also e-mail me at pam.curtis@house.ks.gov

This is the last week to answer the 2022 Legislative Survey. I will post the results from the survey in the Legislative newsletter that I will soon mail to your homes. I will post the newsletter here as well. Be sure to answer my 2022 Legislative Survey.

Medicaid Expansion

It is shameful that on the 12-year anniversary of the Affordable Care Act, the Kansas House struck down a budget amendment from Rep. Henry Helgerson to expand Medicaid. 49 legislators voted to expand -- including 11 Republicans who bucked their leadership’s orders to vote “No.” See who voted to expand Medicaid here. The amendment was part of the broader state budget, which passed on a final action vote of 73-49.

Republicans in the Legislature have a common refrain to explain their rejection of Medicaid expansion: “We don’t want to give free health-care to able-bodied adults who refuse to work.” This position isn't supported by the facts. More than two-thirds of those eligible for Medicaid expansion work or are in working families, according to Alliance for a Healthy Kansas.

Combatting Medicaid Expansion Misinformation

Since January 1, 2014, Kansas has lost $5,419,631,900. This year, Kansas will lose an additional $1.3 billion from the federal government.

It costs Kansas $68 million this year not to expand.

An estimated 150,000 Kansans fall into a health coverage gap.

Medicaid expansion will create 23,000 new jobs -- and bring in extensive tax revenue.

By law, 90% of the costs of expanding Medicaid will be funded by the federal government.

Kansas has more hospitals at risk of closing than any other state, with 67% of rural hospitals facing closure.

Two-thirds of those eligible for Medicaid expansion work or are in working families.

With Potential Legal Ramifications, Republicans Limit Changes to State’s Medicaid Program

An attempt was made to block the passage of a potentially illegal change to the state’s KanCare program. Through a no-bid process, the proposal extended a $4 billion contract of the three insurance companies that serve as managed care organizations (MCO’s) for the KanCare program. The members expressed concern about the legality of the action and feared punitive action could be taken against the state’s Medicaid programs. With support from the majority of the committee, a legal opinion was requested from the Attorney General, who has not responded.

Unfortunately, the bill was inserted into the overall budget. KDHE is prohibited from negotiating contracts with private insurance companies, without approval from legislative leaders. In January, Kansas Department of Aging and Disability secretary Laura Howard wrote, “Ultimately, this may lead to delays in implementing life-saving programs and programs that protect rights of persons with disabilities.”

22 Minutes of Support for Special Education

In a rare moment of bipartisan teamwork, the House passed a budget amendment proposed by House Democrat Jarrod Ousley to add $68 million to special education funding on a 58-54 vote. The amendment was the first step in a 5-year plan to hit the statutorily-required 92% funding level. Current funding levels are at 70%. In a move that caused whiplash, Republicans immediately voted to reverse the funding decision. See who voted to strip special education of funding here. Read more about the vote in the Kansas Reflector.

Rep. Ousley wrote, “Today for roughly 22 minutes, the Kansas House supported the initial steps to meet our statutory obligation to fund special education… But then the members of the Republican Majority leadership called for an amendment to reconsider, and they began to whip votes to repeal the just passed amendment and strip the SPED funding back out of the budget. Citing concerns regarding the State's ability to fund it, despite having billions in surplus this year, they stripped the SPED funding, once again violating Kansas Statute that requires the legislature to provide these funds. The final vote count was 50-70.

Thank you to my fellow representatives on both sides of the aisle who recognized the need to provide an equitable and adequate education for our students with disabilities, and put our legal and moral obligation first, despite pressure to do otherwise. I am sorry we could not keep the good thing we had this afternoon.

House and Senate Redistricting Maps Approved

Rarely in the House does the chamber stand to applaud legislation, but members of both parties rose in a standing ovation to celebrate the passage of the ‘Freestate 3’ redistricting map on Wednesday, March 23.

Following the August redistricting tour, a tense congressional redistricting process, and days of intense negotiations, the final House legislative districts in Freestate 3 were widely supported. As the Kansas Reflector reported, “One after another Republican and Democratic legislators grabbed a microphone to praise the work of Rep. Chris Croft, the Overland Park Republican who led the special redistricting committee through months of mapmaking.” Croft notably ended every redistricting meeting with a catch phrase, “One team, one Kansas.”

Redistricting is intense. It is a detail-oriented, time-consuming process requiring immense effort from staff and legislators alike. Legislative staff and statehouse researchers spent months learning mapping software. Legally required population benchmarks dictate the basic outline of the map, and from there, the cartographers get creative.

"I know there are some of you who aren't happy, some of you who think we could have done better," House Redistricting Committee Ranking Member Tom Burroughs said. "But it wasn't for a lack of effort."

One notable outlier from the celebrations was hard right-wing Rep. Tatum Lee, who was drawn into a district with fellow Republican Jim Minnix.

“Dictators don’t like dissenters,” Lee said, referring to GOP leadership.

Attorney General’s Sanctuary City Bill

HB 2717 was introduced at the request of Attorney General Derek Schmidt in response to a local ordinance adopted by the Unified Government of Kansas City/Wyandotte County authorizing municipal photo identification cards for people regardless of documentation status to improve access to public services.

This is yet another encroachment on local control. The Safe and Welcoming Ordinance was adopted after a five-year process with a huge amount of input from the community, including police and political leadership. Safe and welcoming is the kind of local solution to a local problem that we should hold up as an example. Democracy in action. The state should not come in and upset all this careful work.

The ability to provide proof of identity is taken for granted for many of us. For undocumented residents, the inability to provide proof of identity impacts nearly every aspect of their lives. From borrowing books, enrolling children in school, renting a house or apartment, opening a bank account to reporting crime.

Unfortunately the bill did pass the House 84 to 38 and is now headed to the Senate for consideration.

Native American Women Make History in Women’s History Month

Native American Representatives Dr. Ponka-We Victors-Cozad, Christina Haswood and Stephanie Byers made history this week when all three stood at the front of the House chamber during chamber proceedings. Rep. Dr. Victors-Cozad chaired the Committee of the Whole, the first time in Kansas history a Native American woman has done so. Rep. Haswood carried a bill to return land to the Shawnee Tribe and Rep. Byers rose in support of the bill. It passed unanimously.

Other Legislation Passed by the House

SB 434: Creating exemptions in the open records act for records that contain captured license plate data or that pertain to the location of an automated license plate recognition system. Emergency Final Action, Passed 122-0.

HB 2340: Increasing the minimum age to 21 to purchase or possess cigarettes and tobacco products. Emergency Final Action, Passed 79-43.

HB 2492: Submitting claims against the state by the joint committee on special claims against the state. Emergency Final Action, Passed 116-6. Applying licensure provisions for real estate brokers and salespersons to trusts and authorizing the Kansas real estate commission to issue cease and desist orders.

SB 12: Requiring the Kansas department for children and families to implement performance-based contracts. Emergency Final Action, Passed 117-5.

HB 2502: Authorizing retail liquor stores to sell and deliver alcoholic liquor and cereal malt beverages to a caterer, public venue, club or drinking establishment located in any county. Emergency Final Action, Passed 112-10.

HB 2716: Concerning the authorization of educational benefits for spouses and dependents of deceased, injured or disabled public safety officers and employees and certain deceased, injured or disabled military personnel and prisoners of war; definitions; increasing the limitation on reimbursements to Kansas educational institutions. Emergency Final Action, Passed 122-0.

HB 2495: Prohibiting the disclosure of personal information about a person's affiliation with an entity that is exempt from federal income taxation under section 501(c) of the federal internal revenue code. Emergency Final Action, Passed 107-13.

SB 150: Defining and prohibiting certain deceptive lawsuit advertising practices and restricting the use or disclosure of protected health information to solicit individuals for legal services. Emergency Final Action, Passed 75-47.

Sub SB 450: Eliminating the crediting to the Kansas public employees retirement fund of 80% of the proceeds from the sale of surplus real estate, authorizing state educational institutions to sell and convey real property given to such state educational institutions as an endowment, bequest or gift and authorizing the state board of regents to adopt policies relating to such sale and conveyance. Emergency Final Action, Passed 117-5.

Sub HB 2504: Allowing the printing of the international symbol of access for disabled veteran distinctive license plates and certain parking privileges for disabled veterans who meet certain physical disability definitions. Emergency Final Action, Passed 122-0.

SB 405: Authorizing the state historical society to convey certain real property to the Shawnee Tribe. Emergency Final Action, Passed 122-0.

HB 2697: Making changes to the process for evaluating and treating people who are undergoing evaluation for competency to stand trial and allowing such evaluation and treatment at various facilities. Emergency Final Action, Passed 122-0.

HB 2596: Authorizing the board of education of a school district to contract with transportation network companies to provide certain transportation services. Emergency Final Action, Passed 122-0.

Sub SB 563: Proposing state senatorial redistricting plan liberty three. Emergency Final Action, Passed 112-9.

H Sub Sub SB 267: Appropriations for FY 2022, FY 2023, FY 2024, and FY 2025 for various state agencies. Final Action, substitute passed as amended; 73-49.

H Sub Sub HB 2512: Making appropriations for the Kansas state department of education for FY 2022, FY 2023 and FY 2024, establishing requirements relating to academic achievement and third-grade literacy, authorizing credits to be earned through alternative educational opportunities, requiring KSHSAA members and employees to report child abuse and neglect, requiring boards of education of school districts to consider district needs assessments and academic assessments when approving district budgets, authorizing part-time enrollment for certain students, establishing an alternative graduation rate calculation for virtual schools, providing virtual school state aid for credit deficient students and amending the age of initial eligibility for the tax credit for low income students scholarship program. Final Action, substitute passed as amended; 76-46.

SB 493: Prohibiting cities and counties from regulating plastic and other containers designed for the consumption, transportation or protection of merchandise, food or beverages. Final Action, passed as amended, 74-48.

HB 2609: Allowing restricted driver's license holders to drive to and from worship services for any religious organizations at age 15. Final Action, Passed 95-27.

HB 2717: Prohibiting any municipality from preventing the enforcement of federal immigration laws, requiring municipal law enforcement agencies to provide written notice to each law enforcement officer of the officer's duty to cooperate with state and federal agencies in the enforcement of immigration laws and requiring any municipal identification card to state on its face that it is not valid for state identification. Final Action, passed as amended; 84-38.

Sub HB 2737: Proposing state representative redistricting plan free state 3f. Final Action, substitute passed; 112-10.

SB 161: Providing for the use of personal package delivery devices on sidewalks and crosswalks, exempting such devices from motor vehicle regulation and limiting additional municipal regulation. Final Action, passed as amended; 75-47.

Sub HB 2615: Allowing K-12 students to transfer to and attend school in any school district in the state. Final Action, substitute passed as amended; 63-59.

SB 199: Providing for short-term, limited-duration health plans. Final Action, passed as amended; 73-49.

HB 2631: Enacting the career technical education credential and transition incentive for employment success act to provide additional state aid for school districts based on students obtaining a credential. Final Action, passed as amended; 122-0.

SB 367: Requiring officers to file copies of receipts with the court when property is seized under a search warrant and providing requirements and procedures for destruction or disposition of dangerous drugs and return or disposition of weapons. Final Action, Passed 122-0.

SB 313: Designating a portion of United States highway 69 as the Senator Tom R Van Sickle memorial highway. Emergency Final Action, passed as amended; 122-0.

SB 448: Adopting the national association of insurance commissioner's amendments to the unfair trade practices act excluding commercial property and casualty insurance producers, brokers and insurers from prohibitions on giving rebates as an inducement to sales. Emergency Final Action, Passed 122-0.

Sub SB 300: Amending the Kansas racketeer influenced and corrupt organization act to add a person who has engaged in identity theft or identity fraud to the definition of "covered person" and add identity theft and identity fraud to the definition of "racketeering activity." Emergency Final Action, Passed 121-1.

H Sub SB 261: Prohibiting the use of identifiable meat terms on the labels of meat analogs when such labels do not include proper qualifying language to indicate that such products do not contain meat. Emergency Final Action, substitute passed; 96-26.

SB 417: Establishing minimum and maximum permit renewal fees for certain solid waste disposal areas and processing facilities. Emergency Final Action, Passed; 120-2.

HB 2644: Designating the Sandhill plum as the official state fruit. Emergency Final Action, Passed 115-7.

Sub HB 2447: Permitting testimony to be presented using a two-way electronic audio-video communication device during a preliminary hearing. Emergency Final Action, substitute passed; 120-2.

SB 200: Expanding the pharmacist's scope of practice to include initiation of therapy for influenza, strep throat or urinary tract infection, pursuant to a statewide protocol adopted by the collaborative drug therapy management advisory committee. Emergency Final Action, passed as amended; 119-3.

SB 336: Updating certain investment limitation requirements to provide increased options for Kansas domiciled life insurance companies investing in equity interests and preferred stock. Emergency Final Action, passed; 121-1.

HB 2253: Updating certain provisions of the prescription monitoring program act relating to program data, storage and access, increasing the membership of the advisory committee and providing for setup and annual maintenance fees for program data integration. Emergency Final Action, Passed as amended; 121-1.

HB 2632: Requiring a referral of an alleged victim of child abuse or neglect for a examination as part of an investigation, creating a program in the department of health and environment to provide training and payment and defining child abuse review and evaluation providers, networks, examinations and referrals and child abuse medical resource centers. Emergency Final Action, passed as amended; 95-27.

SB 346: Allowing for the on-farm retail sale of milk and milk products, authorizing the secretary of agriculture to declare an imminent health hazard, extending certain milk and dairy license fees and establishing certain standards for milk. Emergency Final Action, passed as amended; 119-3.

SB 141: Enacting the Kansas uniform directed trust act. Emergency Final Action, Passed; 122-0.

SB 343: Updating the term "hearing impaired" to "hard of hearing" in statutes related to persons with hearing loss. Emergency Final Action, passed as amended; 122-0.

SB 446: Designating bridges on U.S. highway 166 and K-66 highway as Veterans Memorial Bridge. Emergency Final Action, passed as amended; 122-0.

SB 483: Increasing criminal penalties for theft and criminal damage to property involving remote service units such as automated cash dispensing machines and automated teller machines. Emergency Final Action, passed; 122-0.

H Sub SB 19: Implementing the 988 suicide prevention and mental health crisis hotline in Kansas. Emergency Final Action, substitute passed; 114-8.

HB 2600: Authorizing the state board of regents to sell and convey certain real property in the city of Emporia, Lyon county, Kansas, on behalf of Emporia state university. Emergency Final Action, passed as amended; 122-0.

SB 215: Transferring the authority for postsecondary driver's education programs and driver training schools from the state board of regents to the department of revenue. Emergency Final Action, passed as amended; 122-0.

H Sub SB 28: Enacting the pharmacy benefits manager licensure act and requiring licensure rather than registration of such entities. Emergency Final Action, substitute passed; 120-2.

SB 419: Allowing certain employees from the department of corrections to attend the Kansas law enforcement training center and including special agents of the department of corrections in the definition of law enforcement officer under the Kansas law enforcement training act. Emergency Final Action, passed 122-0.

SB 440: Establishing when an occupational therapist may treat a patient without referral from a physician and requiring occupational therapists to maintain professional liability insurance. Emergency Final Action, passed; 121-0.

Sub SB 34: Requiring review of administrative rules and regulations every five years. Emergency Final Action, passed as amended; 88-34.

SB 453: Requiring adult care home certified aides who take training courses to demonstrate certain skills to successfully complete such training courses and requiring licensed nurses to teach and evaluate such training courses. Emergency Final Action, passed as amended; 122-0.

SB 330: Authorizing the construction of a memorial honoring Kansas gold star families. Emergency Final Action, passed; 122-0.

SB 331: Updating the version of risk-based capital instructions in effect. Emergency Final Action, passed as amended; 121-1.

SB 451: Requiring an individual to maintain enrollment on a tribal membership roll to receive a free permanent hunting license. Emergency Final Action, passed as amended; 122-0.

SB 479: Authorizing a permanent memorial commemorating the Kansas suffragist movement to be placed in the state capitol and establishing the Kansas suffragist memorial fund. Emergency Final Action, passed as amended; 122-0.

HB 2734: Reinstating the social worker applicant option for board-approved postgraduate supervised experience and allowing master's and clinical level licensees to take the baccalaureate addiction counselor test. Emergency Final Action, passed; 122-0.

All committee hearings and chamber proceedings can be found on the Kansas Legislature’s YouTube page.