SESSION OF 2020
SUPPLEMENTAL NOTE ON SENATE BILL NO. 254
As Amended by Senate Committee on Federal
and State Affairs

Brief*
SB 254, as amended, would amend publication
requirements for the Office of the Secretary of State.
Specifically, the bill would amend or remove provisions
concerning publication requirements for the Kansas Session
Laws, Kansas Administrative Regulations, and Kansas
Register.

Kansas Session Laws
The bill would require the Secretary of State (Secretary)
to fix the per volume price for copies of the Kansas Session
Laws to recover the costs of publishing and storing such
volumes, whether published in print or electronic form.
Current law requires the Secretary to use the
administrative rule and regulation process to set the costs of
Kansas Session Laws; specifies such costs are to be set to
recover the costs of printing, binding, and storing the volumes
(rather than publishing and storing as provided in this bill);
and does not specify recovery of costs whether in print or
electronic form.
The bill would require that, after the Sine Die
adjournment of each legislative session, the State Printer and
Secretary complete preparation and printing for at least a
limited number of each volume of the Kansas Session Laws.
Current law requires the Secretary to furnish a copy of all
____________________
*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
acts, resolutions, and other matters, except the index,
required to be published and bound in the Kansas Session
Laws within a certain time after the Sine Die adjournment of
the Legislature (20 days in odd-numbered years, 40 days in
even-numbered years).

Kansas Administrative Regulations
The bill would remove the requirement that the
Secretary include the time of filing as part of the agency’s
endorsement of each rule and regulation filed with the agency
as part of the process of approving administrative rules and
regulations. A requirement that the date of filing be noted as
part of the Secretary’s endorsement of such rules and
regulations would remain in continuing law.
The bill would require the Secretary to fix the per volume
price for copies, replacement volumes, and annual
supplements of the Kansas Administrative Regulations to
recover the costs of publishing and storing such volumes,
whether published in print or electronic form.
Current law requires the Secretary to use the
administrative rule and regulation process to set the costs of
Kansas Administrative Regulations and specifies such costs
are to be set to recover the costs of publishing the volumes
(rather than publishing and storing as provided in this bill).

Kansas Register
The bill would specify that, in reference to the
publication of all acts of the Legislature that take effect upon
publication of the Kansas Register, publication of the Kansas
Register could be in print or electronic format. In reference to
publication requirements for legislative resolutions making
propositions to amend the Kansas Constitution, the bill would
require the Secretary to publish such resolutions in one
newspaper in each county of the State where a newspaper is

2- 254
published, or, if no newspaper is published in a county, then
in a Kansas-published newspaper of general circulation in
each county once a week for three consecutive weeks
immediately preceding the election. Current law requires such
resolutions be published in one newspaper in each county of
the state where is a newspaper is published once a week for
three weeks immediately preceding the election.
The bill would also require that after such publication,
the Secretary certify the amount of moneys expending on the
publications described above and transmit a copy of such
certification to the Director of Accounts and Reports. Upon
receiving this certification, the Director of Accounts and
Reports must transfer an amount of money equal to the
certification from the State General Fund to the Information
Services Fee Fund of the Secretary, and send notification of
such transfer to the Director of Legislative Research and the
Director of the Budget.
The bill would also remove requirements that the
Kansas Register include descriptions of all prefiled bills and
resolutions, as well as the hearings docket of the Kansas
Supreme Court and Court of Appeals.
The bill would allow the Secretary to sell annual
subscriptions to the Kansas register and fix, charge, and
collect subscription fees from subscribers. Current law
requires the Secretary to offer such subscriptions and
requires the Secretary to fix, charge, and collect such
subscription fees.
The bill would also replace references to “issues of the
Kansas Register” with the term “publication of the Kansas
Register.” Similarly, references to “copies of the Kansas
Register” (including paper copies) would be replaced by the
term “subscriptions to the Kansas Register” throughout the
bill.
Concerning requirements that each state agency must
maintain and publish an index of currently effective guidance
3- 254
documents, the bill would remove a requirement that
agencies must file such index in a manner prescribed by the
Secretary.

Background
The bill was introduced by Senator Denning and referred
to the Senate Committee on Federal and State Affairs.
In the Senate Committee hearing, a representative of
the Office of the Secretary of State provided proponent
testimony, indicating the bill would allow them to offer
documents in an electronic form to help recover the cost of
publication.
A representative of the Kansas Press Association
provided opponent testimony, generally indicating concerns
about the lack of a definition for “general circulation” and
stating the requirements associated with providing printed
copies of documents could encourage transparency. Written-
only opponent testimony was provided by representatives of
the Kansas Press Association and the Derby Informer.
The Senate Committee amended the bill concerning the
publication of resolutions, publication of constitutional
amendments in newspapers in each county, and the
certification of costs of such publication and subsequent
transfers of money to the Information Services Fee Fund of
the Secretary of State.
According to the fiscal note prepared by Division of the
Budget on the bill as introduced, the Office of the Secretary of
State indicates a full set of the Kansas Administrative
Regulations has not been published since 2009. Based on
pricing established under current rules and regulations, the
agency expects the costs, which were built into the FY 2020
and FY 2021 agency budgets, to exceed revenue by $34,078
in FY 2020 and $35,220 in FY 2021. Enactment of the bill
would enable the agency to increase the pricing to offset
4- 254
current costs and would result in a reduction to agency
expenditures by those amounts in each fiscal year. Any fiscal
effect associated with the bill is not reflected in The FY 2021
Governor’s Budget Report.


5- 254


Statutes affected:
As introduced: 45-107, 45-315, 64-103, 75-430, 75-433, 77-417, 77-430, 77-430a, 77-431, 77-438
As Amended by Senate Committee: 45-107, 45-315, 64-103, 75-430, 75-433, 77-417, 77-430, 77-430a, 77-431, 77-438