(April 6, 2023) – The House and Senate have sped up the work in conference committees and have spent the days running Conference Committee Reports. Among those passed include:
CCR on House Bill 2090: Insurance; relating to fees, assessments and taxes imposed thereon; authorizing the commissioner of insurance to set the amount of certain fees; requiring information obtained from background checks, fingerprinting and criminal history records checks be used solely for the purpose of verifying the identification of an applicant and the fitness of an applicant to be issued a license as an insurance agent; discontinuing annual registration fees for prepaid service plans; modifying the requirement to report individuals who solicit memberships on behalf of such plans from semi-annually to annually and upon application for registration; decreasing the premium tax rate imposed on surplus lines insurance. Passed the Senate on a vote of 37-3, and the House on a vote of 122-1.
CCR on House Bill 2093: Relating to certain group-funded insurance pools and certain municipal insurance coverage; discontinuing payments paid to the Group-Funded Pools Fee Fund and the Group-Funded Workers' Compensation Fee Fund; transferring such balances and abolishing such funds; establishing the Group-Funded Pools Refund Fund; refunding the balance thereof and abolishing such fund on July 1, 2024; adjusting the basis upon which certain premium tax calculations are made; requiring such premium taxes to be paid 90 days after each calendar year and basing such premium taxes upon the gross premiums collected for the previous calendar year; adding fire districts to the definition of "municipality" for purposes of the payment of COBRA premiums under certain circumstances. The CCR passed the Senate on a vote of 40-0, and the House on a vote of 122-1.
CCR on House Bill 2015: Authorizing the designee of an employing agency or entity to petition the court for an order requiring infectious disease testing. Passed the Senate on a vote of 32-8, and the House on a vote of 117-6 and the Senate on a vote of 32-8.
CCR on House Bill 2130: Kansas probate code; permitting a copy of a will to be filed and admitted to probate; increasing certain dollar amounts; relating to allowance to spouse and minor children; supplemental elective share amount; transfers within two years of death; homestead or homestead allowance; payment of benefits to certain relatives; small estates affidavit for personal property; remission of court costs for small estates; exhibition of demands and allowance without a hearing; refusal to grant letters of administration; appealable orders and bond; requests for transfer from magistrate to district judge; adjusting time requirements linked to notice by publication and mailing; relating to hearing dates; sales at public auction; clarifying how property held under a transfer-on-death deed is distributed when one beneficiary predeceases the grantor. The CCR passed the Senate on a vote of 40-0 and the House on a vote of 123-0.
CCR on Senate Bill 66: Occupational licensure; relating to teacher licensure; enacting the Interstate Teacher Mobility Compact; recognizing equivalent teacher licenses from other member states; requiring licensing bodies provide verified electronic credentials, in addition to paper-based credentials, to all credential holders, including military service members and others receiving Kansas credentials based on their credentials from other jurisdictions; requiring licensing bodies to use centralized electronic credential data management systems capable of providing instantaneous credential verification; mandating such systems maintain an auditable record; excepting certification of law enforcement officers from such electronic credential requirements and other provisions. The CCR passed the House on a vote of 116-5, and the Senate on a vote of 37-3.
CCR on House Substitute for Senate Bill 169: Providing an income tax rate of 5.25 percent for individuals and decreasing the normal tax for corporations, increasing the income limit for the income tax subtraction modification for social security income, increasing the Kansas standard deduction for individuals and further increasing the standard deduction by a cost-of-living adjustment, discontinuing the food sales tax credit, decreasing the privilege tax normal tax, establishing a 0 percent state rate for sales and use taxes for food and food ingredients on July 1, 2023, and increasing the extent of property tax exemption for residential property from the statewide school levy.
CCR on Senate Bill 17: Housing; expanding the use of bond proceeds under the Kansas Reinvestment Housing Incentive District Act; transferability of income, privilege and premium tax credits issued under the Kansas Housing Investor Tax Credit Act. The motion to adopt the CCR passed in the House on a vote of 63-59 and the Senate on a vote of 31-9.
Conference Committee Reports will continue to run throughout the evening.