Division of the Budget
Landon State Office Building Phone: (785) 296-2436
900 SW Jackson Street, Room 504 larry.campbell@ks.gov
Topeka, KS 66612 Division of the Budget http://budget.kansas.gov
Larry L. Campbell, Director Laura Kelly, Governor


February 19, 2019


The Honorable Steve Huebert, Chairperson
House Committee on Education
Statehouse, Room 286-N
Topeka, Kansas 66612
Dear Representative Huebert:
SUBJECT: Fiscal Note for HB 2288 by Representative Erickson, et al.
In accordance with KSA 75-3715a, the following fiscal note concerning HB 2288 is
respectfully submitted to your committee.
HB 2288 would create the Kansas Student and Educator Freedom of Religious Speech Act.
A school district could not discriminate against any student or any parent or legal guardian of a
student on the basis of a religious viewpoint or religious expression. A school district would be
required to treat a student’s voluntary expression of a religious viewpoint on an otherwise
permissible subject in the same manner the district treats a student’s voluntary expression of a
secular or other viewpoint on an otherwise permissible subject. The district could not discriminate
against the student based on a religious viewpoint expressed by the student on an otherwise
permissible subject.
The bill would allow a student to express beliefs about religion in any coursework, artwork
or other written or oral assignment free from discrimination based on the religious content of the
submission. All assignments, including any assignment that requires a student to express a
viewpoint, would be required to be judged by ordinary academic standards of substance and
relevance to the course curriculum or requirements of the coursework, artwork or other
assignment, and against other legitimate pedagogical concerns identified by the school district. A
student could not be penalized or rewarded on the basis of religious content or a religious
viewpoint.
With the bill, a student may pray or engage in religious activities or religious expression
before, during and after the school day in the same manner and to the same extent that other
students may engage in nonreligious activities or expression. Students may organize prayer
groups, religious clubs or other religious gatherings before, during and after school to the same
extent that students are permitted to organize other noncurricular student activities and groups.
Religious groups are to be provided the same access to school facilities for assembling as is
The Honorable Steve Huebert, Chairperson
Page 2—HB 2288

provided to other noncurricular groups without discrimination based on the religious content of
the students’ expression. A school district could not discriminate against groups that meet for
prayer or other religious speech with respect to advertising of announcements of meetings. A
school district may disclaim school sponsorship of noncurricular groups and events in a manner
that neither favors nor disfavors groups that meet to engage in prayer or religious speech.
The bill would allow a student to wear clothing, accessories and jewelry that display
religious messages or religious symbols in the same manner and to the same extent that other types
of clothing, accessories and jewelry that display messages or symbols are permitted.
To ensure that a school district does not discriminate against a student’s publicly stated
voluntary expression of a religious viewpoint and to eliminate any actual or perceived affirmative
school sponsorship or attribution to the school district of a student’s expression of a religious
viewpoint, the board of education of each school district would be required to establish a limited
public forum for student speakers at all school events at which a student is to publicly speak.
The bill would state that student expression on an otherwise permissible subject could not
be excluded from the limited public forum because the subject is expressed from a religious
viewpoint. The board of education of each school district would be required to adopt and
implement policies regarding the establishment of a limited public forum and voluntary student
expression of religious viewpoints. If a board of education would adopt the model policy outlined
in the bill, the school district would be considered to be in compliance with the provisions of the
bill.
According to the Department of Education, enactment of HB 2288 would have no fiscal
effect on state aid to school districts. Any implementation costs for the bill would be borne by
local school districts.


Sincerely,

Larry L. Campbell
Director of the Budget


cc: Dale Dennis, Education