SESSION OF 2023
SUPPLEMENTAL NOTE ON SENATE BILL NO. 66
As Amended by House Committee on Education

Brief*
SB 66, as amended, would enact the Interstate Teacher
Mobility Compact (Compact). The Compact’s uniform
provisions are outlined below.

Section 1: Purpose
The bill would state the purpose of this Compact is to
facilitate the mobility of teachers across the member states
with the goal of establishing a new and expedited pathway to
licensure.

Section 2: Definitions
The Compact would define various terms used
throughout the Compact.

Section 3: Licensure Under the Compact
The Compact would provide licensure requirements for
states participating in the Compact. Member states would
compile a list of licenses that it would be willing to consider
for equivalency, including licenses that a state would be
willing to grant to teachers from other member states. The
receiving state would have the sole discretion of determining
which license, if any, the teacher is eligible to hold. Receiving
states would be required to grant an equivalent license to any
active military member and eligible military spouse, as
____________________
*Supplemental notes are prepared by the Legislative Research
Department and do not express legislative intent. The supplemental
note and fiscal note for this bill may be accessed on the Internet at
http://www.kslegislature.org
defined in the bill, who holds a license that is not
unencumbered. Receiving states would not be required to
grant an equivalent license to a career and technical
education teacher who does not meet the receiving state’s
industry recognized requirements, including not holding a
bachelor’s degree.

Section 4: Licensure Not Under the Compact
The Compact would not limit the ability of a member
state to regulate its licensing authority. Nor would the
Compact impede member states’ control of ownership or
dissemination of teacher’s information. In the event a teacher
is required to renew a license received pursuant to the
Compact, the receiving state could condition the renewal of
the license on the teacher’s completion of state-specific
requirements.

Section 5: Teacher Qualifications and Requirements for
Licensure Under the Compact
The Compact would require a teacher to hold an
unencumbered license in a member state to be eligible to
receive a license through the Compact. The unencumbered
license requirement would not apply to active military
members or eligible military spouses. If a teacher’s license is
accepted by the receiving state, the teacher would be
required to then undergo a background check and provide
other information as necessary to the receiving state.

Section 6: Discipline and Adverse Actions
The Compact would not limit a member state’s authority
to impose disciplinary actions. Upon request of a member
state, other member states would be required to share
information regarding investigations and discipline of
teachers. The Compact would require member states to keep
shared information secure. Prior to a state disclosing
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information it received, the state would be required to inform
the original state of its intent to disclose the information
received.

Section 7: Establishment of the Interstate Teacher
Mobility Compact Commission
The Compact would create the Compact Commission
and include provisions relating to the membership, voting,
powers and duties, and financing of the Compact
Commission and would also create an executive committee.

Section 8: Rulemaking
The Compact would authorize the Compact Commission
to exercise rulemaking powers. Rules, or amendments to the
rules, would be adopted or ratified at a regular or special
meeting of the Compact Commission. If a majority of the
legislatures of the member states reject a rule, the rule would
have no further force nor effect. Additionally, if certain
conditions are met, the Compact Commission would be
required to grant the opportunity for a public hearing. In the
event of an emergency, the Compact Commission could
adopt emergency rules.

Section 9: Facilitating Information Exchange
The Compact Commission would be required to facilitate
the exchange of information.

Section 10: Oversight, Dispute Resolution, and
Enforcement
The Compact would provide for dispute resolution and
appeals processes of member states. In addition, the
Compact Commission would be authorized to enforce the

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provisions of the Compact and, by majority vote, could initiate
legal action in federal court against a member state.

Section 11: Effectuation, Withdrawal, and Amendment
The Compact would be effective on the date on which
the Compact statute is enacted into law in the tenth member
state. Any member state would be allowed to withdraw from
the Compact by enacting a statute that would repeal the
Compact, but this would not take effect until six months after
the enactment of the repealing statute. Member states could
amend the Compact, but any amendment would not be
effective until it is enacted by all member states.

Section 12: Construction and Severability
The Compact would be required to be liberally
construed. The provisions of the Compact would be
severable.

Section 13: Consistent Effect and Conflict with Other
State Laws
The Compact would not prevent the enforcement of any
other law of a member state that is not inconsistent with the
Compact. State laws that conflict with the Compact would be
superseded, to the extent of the conflict. All lawful actions of
the Compact Commission would be binding upon member
states.

Background
The bill was introduced by the Senate Committee on
Education at the request of Senator Pettey.


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Senate Committee on Education
In the Senate Committee hearing, Senator Pettey and
representatives of the Kansas Association of School Boards
and the United School Boards of America, Kansas testified as
proponents of the bill. The proponents generally stated it
would help reduce teacher vacancies and streamline the
licensing process.
Written-only proponent testimony was provided by a
representative of the Office of the Assistant Secretary of
Defense.
Representatives of the American Federation of
Teachers-Kansas and the Kansas State Board of Education
(Board) testified as opponents of the bill. The opponents
generally testified that other options are available to fill
teacher vacancies, and that potential member states may not
have licensure requirements as stringent as those of Kansas.
Written-only opponent testimony was provided by a
representative of the Kansas National Education Association
(KNEA) and a private citizen.

House Committee on Education
In the House Committee hearing, Senator Pettey
provided proponent testimony noting the purpose of the
Compact and that the Compact legislation has been
introduced in 14 states and has passed both chambers in
Utah. The Senator indicated technical amendments were
needed to update references in the definitions section of the
Compact.
Written-only proponent testimony was submitted by
representatives of the Greater Kansas City Chamber of
Commerce and the Office of the Assistant Secretary of
Defense.

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 Representatives of the Board and the KNEA provided
opponent testimony. The Board representative addressed
concerns regarding the Compact standards for teacher
licensure and indicated the Board is continuing to study the
Compact and Kansas’ participation. It was noted that the
Board was not yet ready to make a recommendation at its
January meeting, but was scheduled to again review the
matter at its March meeting.
Written-only opponent testimony was provided by a
representative of the American Federation of Teachers-
Kansas.
The House Committee amended the bill to make
technical amendments to conform with updated references to
“armed services” (instead of “uniformed services”) in the
underlying Compact model language.

Fiscal Information
According to the fiscal note prepared by the Division of
the Budget on the bill, as introduced, the State Department of
Education indicated that any possible fees associated with
the Compact should be negligible and managed within the
Department’s existing resources.
Education; Interstate Compact; teacher licensure


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Statutes affected:
Enrolled: 48-3406
{As Amended by House Committee of the Whole}: 48-3406