SESSION OF 2024
SUPPLEMENTAL NOTE ON SENATE BILL NO. 347
As Amended by House Committee on Federal
and State Affairs

Brief*
SB 347, as amended, would make changes to the
Kansas Wildlife and Parks Commission (Commission).

Abolish and Create Commission
The bill would abolish the current Commission, as it
exists on December 31, 2024, on January 1, 2025, and
create a new Commission on the same day.

Commission Membership
The bill would require the new Commission to be
composed of seven members, including:
● Four appointed by the Governor;
● One appointed by the Speaker of the House
(Speaker);
● One appointed by the President of the Senate
(President); and
● One appointed by the Attorney General.
The bill would require the respective appointing
authorities to make their initial appointments on or before
January 15, 2025.
____________________
*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
 [Note: Under current law, the Governor appoints all
seven members of the Commission.]
Commission Member Representation
Current law requires that each of the five regions be
represented by at least one member of the Wildlife and Parks
Commission. The bill would require appointments by certain
appointing authorities to represent different fish and wildlife
administration regions that have been established by the
Department of Wildlife and Parks (DWP).
The bill would require each of the four appointments
made by the Governor to represent a different fish and wildlife
administration region.
The appointment made by the Attorney General would
be required to represent the remaining fish and wildlife
administration region.
[Note: The DWP has established five fish and wildlife
administration regions within Kansas: Northeast, Northwest,
South Central, Southeast, and Southwest.]
Commission Member Terms
The bill would specify the following membership terms
for Commission members based upon the appointing
authority:
● Each member appointed by the Governor would
serve a four-year term; and
● Each member appointed by the Speaker,
President, or Attorney General would serve an
initial term of two years with subsequent terms of
four years.


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Commission Chairperson
The bill would authorize the new Commission to elect a
Chairperson for a term not to exceed two years. Under
current law, the Governor has the authority to appoint the
Chairperson of the Commission with no term limit.

Conforming Amendments
To reflect the proposed appointment of Commission
members by entities other than the Governor, the bill would
remove the term “governor” throughout the bill and replace
with the term “each respective appointing authority” or
“respective appointing authority” regarding selecting an
appointment, filling vacancies, removing a commissioner, and
actions against a commissioner.

Effective Date
The bill would be in effect upon publication in the
Kansas Register.

Background
The bill was introduced by the Senate Committee on
Agriculture and Natural Resources at the request of Senator
Peck.

Senate Committee on Agriculture and Natural Resources
In the Senate Committee hearing, Senator Steffen and
Representative Corbet provided proponent testimony, stating
Senate confirmation of the Commission creates checks and
balances on the Executive Branch. The conferees also stated
the right to hunt, fish, and trap in the state is important, and
appointees to the Commission should be thoroughly vetted in
order to ensure this right is protected.
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 The Secretary of Wildlife and Parks provided opponent
testimony, stating that under the existing gubernatorial
appointment process, vacancies can be filled quickly, which is
important, as the Commission’s main purpose is to solicit
public input during the rules and regulations promulgation
process. The Secretary also noted the Commission does not
oversee the administrative functions of the Kansas
Department of Wildlife and Parks (KDWP).
Written-only opponent testimony was provided by a
representative of Backcountry Hunters & Anglers Kansas.
Neutral testimony was provided by a representative of
The Nature Conservancy, who stated that regulatory
decisions of the Commission must be informed by science
and in pursuit of outcomes that benefit wildlife as a shared
resource owned by all Kansans.

House Committee on Agriculture and Natural Resources
Budget
In the House Committee on Agriculture and Natural
Resources Budget hearing, Representative W. Carpenter
provided proponent testimony, stating the bill, as introduced,
is good legislation and asked the Committee to amend the bill
to require the Commission to elect a Chairperson and place a
term limit on the Chairperson.
The Secretary of Wildlife and Parks provided opponent
testimony, stating the current Commission and processes
work well.
Written-only opponent testimony was provided by a
representative of Backcountry Hunters & Anglers Kansas.
Written-only neutral testimony was provided by a
representative of The Nature Conservancy.


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 The House Committee on Agriculture and Natural
Resources Budget amended the bill to:
● Abolish the existing Commission, as it exists on
December 31, 2024, and create a new
Commission on January 1, 2025;
● Establish the seven appointments to the new
Commission;
● Require the appointments to be made on or before
January 17, 2025;
● Replace the term “Governor” with “each respective
appointing authority” or “respective appointing
authority”; and
● Authorize the members of the Commission to elect
the Commission’s chairperson for a term not
exceeding two years.
House Committee on Federal and State Affairs
On March 18, 2024, the bill, as amended by the House
Committee on Agriculture and Natural Resources Budget,
was withdrawn from the House Calendar and referred to the
House Committee on Federal and State Affairs.
In the House Committee on Federal and State Affairs
hearing on March 20, 2024, proponent testimony was
provided by Representative Corbet, who stated the bill would
require a more diverse membership on the Commission.
On March 21, 2024, the House Committee on Federal
and State Affairs amended the bill to:
● Specify representation of the five fish and wildlife
administration areas on the Commission;
● Designate specific membership terms;
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 ● Amend the appointment date to January 15, 2025,
from January 17, 2025; and
● Remove provisions that would have required
Senate confirmation of appointees.
Fiscal Information
According to the fiscal note prepared by the Division of
the Budget on the bill, as introduced, the KDWP states that
an appointee could incur travel expenditures to meet with the
Senate for confirmation; however, any additional expenses
would be absorbed within the agency’s existing resources.
[Note: The bill as amended by the House Committee on
Federal and State Affairs does not require Senate
confirmation of appointees.] Legislative Administrative
Services states the requirements of the bill would fall within
normal operations of the Legislature and could be absorbed
within its current budget. Any fiscal effect associated with
enactment of the bill is not reflected in The FY 2025
Governor’s Budget Report.
Kansas Wildlife and Parks Commission; Department of Wildlife and Parks; Senate
confirmation; appointments


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Statutes affected:
As introduced: 32-805
As Amended by House Committee: 32-805
As Further Amended by House Committee: 32-805