SESSION OF 2023
SUPPLEMENTAL NOTE ON HOUSE BILL NO. 2400
As Amended by House Committee of the Whole
Brief*
HB 2400, as amended, would create the Kansas Adult
Learner Grant Act (Act) and a workforce retention incentive
tax credit (tax credit) and would establish the Kansas Adult
Learner Grant Program Fund (Fund). The Act would provide
grants to eligible students enrolled in eligible programs at
eligible postsecondary educational institutions. The Act would
also provide a tax credit to individuals who received a grant
and meet certain conditions.
Definitions (Section 1)
Adult Learner Grant Eligible Program
The bill would define “adult learner grant eligible
program” to mean any baccalaureate degree offered by an
eligible postsecondary education institution that is identified
as an “adult learner grant eligible program” by the State
Board of Regents (Board) or designated as an “adult learner
grant eligible program” by an eligible postsecondary
educational institution.
Eligible Postsecondary Educational Institution
The bill would define “eligible postsecondary educational
institution” as one of the following:
____________________
*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
● A state educational institution under the control and
supervision of the Board;
● A municipal university;
● Any not-for-profit institution of postsecondary
education with its main campus or principal place
of operation in Kansas that offers an eligible grant
program, is operated independently and not
controlled or administered by any state agency or
subdivision of the State, maintains open
enrollment, and is accredited by a nationally
recognized accrediting agency for higher education
in the United States; or
● A not-for-profit independent institution of higher
education that is accredited by an institutional
accrediting agency recognized by the U.S.
Department of Education, is operated
independently and not controlled or administered
by the State or any agency or subdivision of the
state, maintains open enrollment, offers online
education, and offers exclusively competency-
based education programs.
Part-time Student
The bill would define “part-time student” to mean a
student who is enrolled for six credit hours or more in a
semester, or the equivalent, and is not enrolled as a full-time
student.
Kansas Adult Learner Grant Program
The bill would create the Kansas Adult Learner Grant
Program (program) to be administered by the Board.
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Administration (Section 2)
Rules and Regulations. The bill would require the
Board to adopt rules and regulations implementing the
program on or before March 1, 2024. The rules and
regulations would establish:
● Grant application and renewal forms and
deadlines;
● Appeal procedures for denial or revocation of a
Kansas Adult Learner Grant (grant);
● The terms, conditions, and requirements for the
grant consistent with the provisions of the Act; and
● Procedures for requesting and approving medical,
military, and personal absences from an eligible
postsecondary educational institution while a grant
recipient is receiving such grant.
Grant-eligible Programs. The Board would be required
to identify adult learner grant-eligible programs (grant-eligible
programs) offered by each eligible postsecondary educational
institution that are in any of the following fields of study:
● Information technology and security;
● Health care and nursing;
● Science, engineering, aerospace, and advanced
manufacturing;
● Education, early childhood education and
development;
● Business, accounting, and data analytics; or
● A field designated by the eligible postsecondary
institution pursuant to the Act.
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The bill would allow an eligible postsecondary
educational institution to designate one additional grant-
eligible program if the additional program is a baccalaureate
degree program that corresponds to a high wage, high
demand, or critical need occupation. To designate an
additional grant-eligible program, such institution would be
required to have and maintain an existing grant-eligible
program in the above fields of study and maintain the
additional grant-eligible program designation for at least four
consecutive years. After maintaining such program for at least
four years, the institution would be able to designate a new
grant-eligible program that corresponds with a high wage,
high demand or critical need occupation.
Publicity. The bill would require the Board to work with
community partners to publicize grants, including, but not
limited to, publicizing eligible postsecondary educational
institutions, approved scholarship-eligible educational
programs, application procedures, and application deadlines.
Annual Evaluation and Report. Beginning January 1,
2025, the Board would be required to annually evaluate the
program and prepare and submit a report to the Senate
Committee on Education, Senate Committee on Commerce,
House Committee on Education, and House Committee on
Commerce, Labor and Economic Development.
Grant Specifications (Section 4)
Grant Amount. The bill would require grant amounts to
be $3,000 per semester for students that are enrolled full-
time. The grant amount would be prorated using a sliding
scale for students that are not enrolled full-time. The bill
would specify full-time enrollment is 12 credit hours per
semester and would qualify for a 100 percent grant, and 6
credit hours would qualify for a 50 percent grant.
Duration. The bill would allow students to receive a
grant for up to 48 months after the date that the grant was
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first awarded or upon graduation from the program,
whichever comes first.
Income Limitation. The bill would limit grants to eligible
students whose family household income is less than or
equal to the following amounts:
● $100,000 for a family of two;
● $150,000 for a family of three; and
● $150,000 plus $4,800 per additional family member
beyond three.
Appropriations Made for Program (Section 4)
The bill would limit appropriations made for the program
to $1.0 million per fiscal year.
Eligible Student (Section 5)
To be eligible for a grant, the bill would require a student
to:
● Be a Kansas resident;
● Be 25 years of age or older at the time the
student’s first course that is funded by a grant
begins;
● Complete the free application for federal student
aid for the academic year in which the student
applies to receive a grant; and
● Enroll as a full-time student or part-time student at
an eligible postsecondary educational institution in
an adult learner grant-eligible program.
A student would continue to receive a grant if the
student maintains satisfactory academic progress toward
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completion of the grant-eligible program, completes a grant
renewal application on such forms in such manner as
established by the Board, and completes the free application
for federal student aid for the academic year for which the
student applies to renew the grant.
Kansas Workforce Retention Incentive Tax Credit
(Section 6)
The bill would establish a tax credit of $1,500 for
individuals who received a grant if they demonstrate
satisfactorily to the Secretary of Revenue (Secretary) that
they:
● Successfully completed their grant-eligible program
with the awarding of their degree; and either
○ Currently reside in Kansas and have resided
in Kansas for at least two consecutive years
following the completion of their program and
are currently employed in Kansas; or
○ Have commenced service as a military
servicemember.
To claim the tax credit, the bill would require an
individual to submit such information and documentation to
the Secretary in a form and manner as required by the
Secretary.
The bill would require individuals to claim the tax credit
not later than the 5th taxable year after the taxable year in
which the individual successfully completed the grant-eligible
program with an award of their degree.
Any amount of the tax credit that exceeds the
individual’s tax liability would be carried forward once to the
next succeeding taxable year as a credit against the
individual’s income tax liability for such year. Any amount of
the tax credit remaining after being carried forward once
would be forfeited.
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The bill would require the Secretary to adopt rules and
regulations implementing and administering the tax credit on
or before March 1, 2024. The rules and regulations would
include criteria to determine whether a student who has
received a grant has fulfilled the residency and employment
requirements to qualify for the tax credit.
Kansas Adult Learner Grant Program Fund (Section 7)
The bill would create the Fund to be administered by the
Board. All expenditures from the Fund would be for grants
awarded pursuant to the program and in accordance with
appropriation acts.
Background
The bill was introduced by the House Committee on
Commerce, Labor and Economic Development at the request
of a representative of Western Governor’s University.
House Committee on Commerce, Labor and Economic
Development
In the House Committee hearing, proponent testimony
was provided by a representative of Western Governor’s
University, stating the bill would provide financial support for
low- and middle-income individuals over the age of 25
seeking a bachelor’s degree in a high-need field and
incentivize grant recipients to stay in Kansas following
graduation. The conferee also stated the bill would
complement the Kansas Promise Scholarship.
Written-only proponent testimony was provided by a
representative of the Kansas Hospital Association.
Written-only neutral testimony was provided by
representatives of the Board and Kansas Independent
College Association. The neutral conferees generally stated
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the programs targeted in the bill would align with the Kansas
Promise Scholarship Act and suggested amendments to the
bill.
The House Committee amended the bill on February 21,
2023, to:
● Change the workforce retention incentive payment
of $3,000 to a nonrefundable and nontransferable
income tax credit of $1,500 to be administered by
the Secretary;
● Limit the receipt of grants to 48 months instead of
60 months;
● Add a sliding scale for determining the grant
amount;
● Specify the age requirement applies at the time of
student’s first course that is funded by the grant
begins, rather than the time of enrollment;
● Add requirements for students to continue
receiving a grant;
● Include provisions regarding the administration of
the tax credit by the Secretary; and
● Make conforming and technical changes.
On February 23, 2023, the bill, as amended by the
House Committee, was withdrawn from the House Calendar
and referred to the House Committee on Appropriations. On
March 1, 2023, the bill was withdrawn from the House
Committee on Appropriations and rereferred to the House
Committee on Commerce, Labor and Economic
Development. On March 6, 2023, the House Committee
reported the bill be passed with the amendments previously
recommended.
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House Committee of the Whole
The House Committee of the Whole amended the bill to
remove a provision providing for increased future transfers to
the Fund and to make changes to the qualifications for the tax
credit.
Fiscal Information
According to the fiscal note prepared by the Division of
the Budget on the bill, as introduced, the Board indicates that
a State General Fund (SGF) appropriation of $1.0 million
would allow it to award the maximum $3,000 scholarship to
approximately 166 students in both FY 2024 and FY 2025.
The Board estimates it would be allowed to award the
maximum $3,000 scholarship to approximately 111 students
in each subsequent year when the appropriation would be
limited to 150.0 percent of the amount dispersed for the
immediately preceding fiscal year.
The Board indicates the enactment of the bill would
increase its annual administrative expenditures by $187,427
SGF beginning in FY 2024, which includes $130,000 for
salaries, $41,427 for benefits, and $16,000 for other
operating expenditures for 2.0 FTE positions that would be
required to administer the program. The additional duties
required to administer the program would include creating
rules and regulations, awarding scholarships to eligible
students, tracking scholarship recipients, and collecting any
potential repayments from students who did not fulfill the
requirements of the scholarship agreement.
A revised fiscal note on the amended bill was not
immediately available. Any fiscal effect associated with the bill
is not reflected in The FY 2024 Governor’s Budget Report.
Kansas Adult Learner Grant Act; postsecondary education; workforce development;
tax credit; State Board of Regents; Kansas Department of Revenue
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