Committee Reports to the 2024 Legislature

Download the 2023 Interim Committee Reports here:
2023-ICR-to-2024-Legislature.pdf

Download the Supplement to the 2023 Interim Committee Reports here:
2023-ICR-supplement (PDF)

Foreword

In the 2023 Interim, the Legislative Coordinating Council appointed 11 special committees to study 16 study topics and authorized meetings of 2 special committees created pursuant to provisions in the Appropriations Bill (HB 2184). Legislation recommended by the committees will be available in the Documents Room early in the 2024 Session. Such legislation will also be available on the Kansas Legislature’s website at: http://kslegislature.org/li/.

Joint committees created by statute met in the 2023 Interim as provided in the statutes specific to each joint committee. Several of the joint committees have reported on their activities, and those reports are contained in this publication. Legislation recommended by these committees will be available in the Documents Room early in the 2024 Session. Such legislation will also be available on the Kansas Legislature’s website at: http://kslegislature.org/li/.

This publication also contains reports of other committees, commissions, and task forces that are not special committees created by the Legislative Coordinating Council or joint committees. Reports of the following are not contained in this publication and will be published in a supplement:

  • Special Committee on Civil Asset Forfeiture
  • Special Committee on Energy and Utilities
  • Legislative Budget Committee
  • Special Education and Related Services Funding Task Force

Minutes of the meetings of the special committees, joint committees, other committees, commissions, task forces, and panels are on file in the Division of Legislative Administrative Services. A summary of each reporting entity’s conclusions and recommendations may be found beginning on page ix.

Available Individual Reports

Career Technical Education in Kansas

In 2012, enacted SB 155 launched a new plan to enhance career technical education (CTE) in Kansas with the purpose of better preparing high school students for college and careers. Beginning with the 2012-2013 school year, Kansas high school students could qualify for free college tuition in approved technical courses offered at Kansas technical and community colleges. The program also initially provided school districts with a $1,000 incentive for each high school student who graduated from that district with an industry-recognized credential in a high-need occupation.


The 2015 Legislature changed the incentive to a prorated amount not to exceed $750,000 in total. During the 2016 Session, the appropriated amount decreased from $750,000 to $50,000 for fiscal year (FY) 2016 and FY 2017, which was estimated to cover the cost of the certification examinations only.


The 2017 Legislature moved the $50,000 incentive funds from the Kansas Board of Regents (KBOR) to the Kansas State Department of Education for FY 2018 and FY 2019. The amount changed over the subsequent two years and then was deleted from the budget in FY 2020.


The appropriated amount for tuition was prorated in FY 2016 and FY 2017, as there was no increase in appropriations and the amount did not cover all program participants. The program was fully funded in FY 2018, FY 2019, and FY 2020.


Occupations on the qualifying credential incentive list can be found on the KBOR website. The list currently includes, but is not limited to, the following occupations:

  • Heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers;
  • Computer support specialists;
  • Nursing assistants;
  • Automotive service technicians and mechanics;
  • Machinists;
  • Dental assistants;
  • Firefighters;
  • Carpenters;
  • Welders;
  • Electricians;
  • Plumbers and pipefitters;
  • Sheet metal workers; and
  • Heating, air conditioning, and refrigeration mechanics and installers.

Since the program’s inception, the number of students participating in postsecondary career technical education has grown, resulting in a growth of college credit hours generated and credentials earned by high school students. The following table, published on the KBOR website, summarizes the increase in participation over time per academic year.

 2010-2011
(Baseline)		2013-20142016-20172019-20202020-20212021-2022
Participating Headcount3,4758,44010,60013,93412,52913,712
College Credit Hours Generated28,00062,19585,150109,22698,681105,509
Credentials Earned—1,4191,4591,6319811,656
Source: KBOR Workforce Development, Excel in CTE Initiative (SB155) website, information dated February 2023, accessed December 2023.

National Recognition

In 2013, the Career Technical Education Initiative received national recognition as one of the “Top Ten Innovations to Watch” from The Brookings Institution. The same year, Martin Kollman of KSDE and Lisa Beck of KBOR published the article “Free CTE College Tuition and Certification Funding: KS SB 155 at Work” in the September issue of Techniques, a national monthly magazine published by the Association for Career and Technical Education.

Online Courses

Students also have the opportunity to take Excel CTE courses online, available at select community and technical colleges. The following institutions are among the technical and community colleges that offer Excel CTE online eligible classes for Fall 2023/Spring 2024:

  • Allen Community College;
  • Barton Community College;
  • Cloud County Community College;
  • Colby Community College;
  • Cowley College;
  • Flint Hills Technical College;
  • Fort Scott Community College;
  • Highland Community College;
  • Hutchinson Community College;
  • Labette Community College;
  • Manhattan Area Technical College;
  • Neosho County Community College;
  • North Central Kansas Technical College; and
  • Pratt Community College.

2023 Session


SB 123 enacted during the 2023 session requires school districts to pay assessment fees for identified career technical education credentials at the student’s request. The State Board of Education and the Board of Regents have collaborated to create a list of approved eligible industry credentials for academic year 2024. The list below highlights a few of the career areas approved on the list:

  • Medical record specialists;
  • Farm equipment mechanics;
  • Phlebotomists; and
  • Emergency medical technicians and paramedics.

by Brianna Horton
Fiscal Analyst
785-296-6684

Vaccine Mandates Affecting Kansas Health Care Personnel

KSA 76-147 allows the The Kansas Board of Regents (Board) to acquire land for building or utility construction; however, there is no required notification to the Legislature in taking this action, nor is there a statute regarding the acquisition of buildings. The Board policy states that state universities may acquire real property necessary to properly maintain and carry on a state university or the business thereof.

Kansas Hospital Mandates

In 2021, several Kansas hospitals mandated all staff receive vaccinations against COVID-19. The table below lists hospitals and hospital systems in the state that issued COVID-19 vaccine mandates, as well as the date by which staff were to complete the vaccine regimen. Some hospitals, such as AdventHealth, paused their mandates following court injunctions against federal vaccine mandates.

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) issued technical guidance on the topic of vaccine requirements. According to the EEOC, employers can mandate employees receive vaccines subject to reasonable accommodation provisions in Title VII of the Civil Rights Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Hospital or SystemVaccine Deadline
Ascension Via Christi11/11/21
Lawrence Memorial Hospital Health11/21/21
Mercy Health System09/30/21
Stormont Vail Health10/30/21
University of Kansas Health System Kansas City Division12/01/21
University of Kansas Health System St Francis Campus (Topeka)12/01/21
Advent Health01/04/22

Health-Related Federal Vaccination Requirements

In August 2021, the Biden Administration announced it would require all staff at Medicaid-participating nursing homes to be vaccinated against COVID-19 by January 4, 2022. In September 2021, CMS extended that requirement to include staff at the following facilities, as a condition for participating in the Medicare and Medicaid programs:

  • Acute care facilities;
  • Critical access hospitals;
  • Inpatient rehabilitation facilities;
  • Ambulatory surgical centers;
  • Comprehensive outpatient rehabilitation facilities;
  • Federally qualified health centers;
  • Rural health clinics;
  • Durable medical equipment suppliers;
  • Home health agencies;
  • Hospices; and
  • Clinical laboratories.

According to CMS data on nursing facilities nationwide, as of October 21, 2021, an average of 64.7 percent of health care personnel in Kansas nursing care facilities had completed a COVID-19 vaccination regimen. Staff at two Kansas facilities were 100 percent vaccinated against COVID-19.

On November 29, 2021, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri issued a preliminary injunction against the federal vaccine mandate for employees at CMS-regulated facilities in the 10 states, including Kansas, that filed the lawsuit [State of Missouri, et al. v. Joseph Biden, Jr., No. 4:21-cv-01329-MTS (E.D. Mo.)]. As of December 2021, two other district courts had issued injunctions against the CMS mandate, bringing the total number of states affected by the CMS mandate injunctions to 25. As a result of the injunctions, CMS announced on its website it had “suspended activities related to the implementation and enforcement of this rule pending future developments in the litigation.” The federal government appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit requesting a stay of the injunction granted by the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri, but the stay was denied. The federal government then appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court for a stay of the preliminary injunction pending appeal. On January 7, 2022, the U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments on the CMS mandate injunctions. On January 13, 2022, the U.S. Supreme Court in Biden v. Missouri, 142 S. Ct. 647 (2022) granted the federal government’s request for a stay of the preliminary injunction pending the government’s appeal in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit and the disposition of the government’s petition for a writ of certiorari. The federal vaccine mandate for healthcare workers began being enforced nationwide in February 2022.

In February 2022, Kansas Governor Kelly announced Kansas regulators would not enforce the federal COVID-19 vaccine mandate at hospitals and other health care facilities after negotiations with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

In April 2022, Missouri and the other states asked the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit to expedite hearing the merits of the case on vaccine mandate for health care workers, but the Eighth Circuit Court instead vacated the preliminary injunction and sent the case back to the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri to proceed to a trial. The states then appealed that Eighth Circuit Court decision to the U.S. Supreme Court, which declined to hear the states’ challenge on October 3, 2022.

In June 2023, CMS published a final rule, effective August 5, 2023, withdrawing the COVID-19 health care staff vaccination requirements, including removing the requirement for COVID-19 vaccination policies and procedures for health care staff. The rule states CMS would not enforce staff vaccination provisions between June 5, 2023, and August 4, 2023.

U.S. Department of Labor Rules

In September 2021, the Biden Administration announced the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) was planning to require all employers with 100 or more employees to protect all staff from COVID-19. According to OSHA, the Vaccination and Testing Emergency Temporary Standard required covered employers to develop, implement, and enforce a mandatory COVID–19 vaccination policy, with an exception for employers that instead adopted a policy requiring employees to either get vaccinated or elect to undergo regular COVID–19 testing and wear a face covering at work in lieu of vaccination. As of January 2022, OSHA withdrew the proposed standard.

by Amanda Prosser
Fiscal Analyst
785-296-7879

Capital Improvements and Deferred Maintenance in Higher Education

Board Oversight

KSA 76-147 allows the The Kansas Board of Regents (Board) to acquire land for building or utility construction; however, there is no required notification to the Legislature in taking this action, nor is there a statute regarding the acquisition of buildings. The Board policy states that state universities may acquire real property necessary to properly maintain and carry on a state university or the business thereof.

The state university must submit a description of all properties they desire to purchase or acquire to the Board for approval. Such description must include:

  • A legal description of the property;
  • Anticipated use; and
  • The estimated cost of purchase and any cost relating to the razing or renovating and maintaining the property.

In 2019, the Board directed the universities to survey the utilization of instructional spaces and offices and assess mission critical buildings. The Board defines “mission critical” as those buildings that are predominately used for the academic and research mission of the state universities and the infrastructure that directly supports these buildings. The 2020 Report on State University Building Inventory, Space Utilization, and Facilities Condition published by the Board notes that the estimated renewal costs to address deferred maintenance for mission critical buildings is approximately $1.2 billion.

Deferred Maintenance & EBF

The Board policy definition of “deferred maintenance” is annual maintenance and necessary renewal of facilities systems and components that have been postponed, delayed, or deferred to a future budget cycle or until funds are available.

Educational Building Fund

The Educational Building Fund (EBF) was established in 1941 primarily for the construction of new buildings at state universities. The EBF receives revenue from a mill levy on all tangible property in the state that is subject to ad valorem taxation.

Currently, the fund is primarily used for deferred maintenance projects at state universities. The Board calculates EBF appropriations using an adjusted square footage formula that considers the gross square footage, building age, and complexity of the physical plant.

During the 2023 Legislative Session, the Legislature approved $45 million in Educational building funds and $20 million from the State General Fund (SGF) for state capital renewal projects.

History of Deferred Maintenance at the State Universities

The Board prepared a report in 1994 indicating that the six universities needed $288.3 million for capital improvements that included federal Americans with Disabilities Act compliance, State Fire Code requirements, improving classrooms, major remodeling of existing buildings, and new construction. The 1996 Legislature authorized the issuance of $156.5 million in bonds. The initiative was referred to as the “Crumbling Classroom Initiative.”

Because the amount financed was less than what was needed for the projects, the Board reduced the amount that would be spent for rehabilitation and repair of university buildings. Since the majority of the EBF was being used to pay the bonds for the Crumbling Classroom projects, the balance of the EBF moneys was insufficient to keep up with the routine day-to-day maintenance projects. The bond payments were made through FY 2012.

In 2004, the Board prepared a new study for the Legislature stating that the State’s universities would need an additional $584.0 million to cover the deferred maintenance costs. The study assessed the condition of 537 academic and administrative buildings as well as utilities and infrastructure components on the campuses.

In July 2005, the Legislative Division of Post Audit conducted a performance audit titled: “Regents Institutions: Reviewing Proposals for Increased Maintenance Funding at the State’s Colleges and Universities” (https://www.kslpa.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/r-05-16.pdf). The conclusion of the audit found that the use of the EBF to pay for the Crumbling Classroom Initiative resulted in the increase of deferred maintenance projects over time.

In 2007, Sub. for Senate Sub. for HB 2237 was passed, which created the State Educational Institution Long-Term Infrastructure Maintenance Program. Beginning in FY 2008, the bill directed the State to make annual transfers to the Board to fund deferred maintenance projects at the state universities. The transfers would total $90.0 million, including $47.0 million from SGF. In addition, the universities were to transfer the retained interest from tuition, restricted fees, and sponsored research overhead to the State University Building Maintenance Fund. Each university maintains a deferred maintenance support fund, which receives the interest income from the three other funds. The bill also authorized new tax credits for tax years 2008-2012 for contributions earmarked for deferred maintenance at universities and certain projects at community colleges. The tax credit was to sunset after tax year 2012. Due to the recession that occurred in the United States, this program was never funded.

Kansas Board of Regents Policy

The Board approved a new policy in June 2021 for university building maintenance. Beginning in FY 2023, and each year thereafter, each university must calculate a maintenance assessment as a percentage of the professionally estimated replacement cost of mission critical buildings according to an assessment schedule, culminating in a sustainable 2.0 percent of current replacement value as approved by the Board on an annual basis.

Utilizing each university’s Deferred Maintenance Projects Fund, expenditures must be itemized using a standard template for the Board’s review annually. Each state university must identify and expend campus funds (excluding EBF allocations) annually for the purpose of addressing annual maintenance according to a prioritized assessment plan reviewed by the Board. Funding for the maintenance assessment may include contributions from university, state, federal, and philanthropic sources.

It is the stated intent of the Board to use the 2.0 percent of current replacement value funds to annually maintain the buildings in proper working order and focus the use of the Educational Building Funds on strategic projects to reduce the backlog of deferred maintenance. The Board voted to allow the universities a six-year escalator to ultimately arrive at the 2.0 percent current replacement value.

by Brianna Horton
Fiscal Analyst
785-296-6684