SESSION OF 2021
SUPPLEMENTAL NOTE ON HOUSE BILL NO. 2158
As Amended by Senate Committee on Public
Health and Welfare

Brief*
HB 2158, as amended, would amend provisions in the
statute governing the State Child Death Review Board
(Board) regarding confidentiality of information acquired by
and records of the Board. The bill would also remove the
sunset date for the Advisory Committee on Trauma (ACT) of
the Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE)
and regional trauma councils regarding the ability to conduct
closed session meetings when reviewing trauma cases and
any records or findings that are privileged.
The bill would also make technical amendments.

State Child Death Review Board (Section 1)
The bill would clarify the language of a current exception
to the confidentiality for certain legislators and legislative
committees and would add exceptions to confidentiality to
allow the Board, or the Board’s designee, to disclose
information and records to:
● Any person or entity contracting with the Board, if
the Board determines disclosure is essential for
completion of the contract and has taken
appropriate steps to preserve confidentiality;
● Any person or entity, if the information and records
being disclosed are statistics or conclusions of the
____________________
*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
 Board of the same type included in the Board’s
annual report; and
● Any Kansas state or local law enforcement agency,
if the Board determines the information and
records being disclosed were not previously
available to the law enforcement agency for the
investigation of the cause of the child’s death; and
○ The Board determines the cause of the child’s
death was from abuse or neglect; or
○ The Board does not determine the child’s
death was from abuse or neglect and has
knowledge of a law enforcement investigation
based on an official offense report as required
in statute of abuse or neglect involving the
death of a child;
● Any county or district attorney, if the Board
determines the information and records being
disclosed were not previously available to the
county or district attorney for the prosecution of any
crimes related to the cause of the child’s death;
and
○ The Board determines the cause of the child’s
death was from abuse or neglect; or
○ The Board does not determine the child’s
death was from abuse or neglect and has
knowledge of a law enforcement investigation
based on an official offense report as required
in statute of abuse or neglect involving the
death of a child;
● Any entity established by a city or county for the
express purpose of providing a local review of child
deaths if the information and records being
disclosed are related to a child’s death where
either:
○ Such death occurred in such city or county; or

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 ○ Such child was a resident of such city or
county;
● Any licensing body, as defined elsewhere in
statute, if:
○ The information and records being disclosed
are related to a disciplinary complaint against
a person licensed by such licensing body;
○ Any member of the Board is under a
professional obligation to make a disciplinary
complaint against a person licensed by such
licensing body; or
○ A person licensed by such licensing body may
have caused or contributed to the child’s
death; and
● A governmental agency or an organization that has
a federal-wide assurance (FWA) for the protection
of human subjects in good standing with the U.S.
Department of Health and Human Services Officer
for Human Research Protections, if:
○ The agency or organization provides
documents that an institutional review board
designated in the FWA has reviewed the
organization’s research proposal;
○ Personally identifiable information is redacted
from the disclosure;
○ The disclosure is only for the purpose of
health or education; and
○ The agency or organization requires all
persons granted access to the disclosed
information and records to sign a
confidentiality agreement prior to receipt of
the information and records.


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Advisory Committee on Trauma (Section 2-3)
The bill would remove the sunset date for the ACT and
regional trauma councils regarding the ability to conduct
closed session meetings when reviewing trauma cases and
any records or findings that are privileged. In current law,
these provisions will sunset on July 1, 2021.

Background
HB 2158, as introduced, would have removed the
sunset date for the ACT and regional trauma councils
regarding the ability to conduct closed session meetings
when reviewing trauma cases and any records or findings
that are privileged. The Senate Committee on Public Health
and Welfare amended the bill to add the contents of HB 2062,
as amended by the Senate Committee, regarding the
exceptions to confidentiality of the Board.

HB 2062 (State Child Death Review Board)
The bill was introduced by the House Committee on
Children and Seniors at the request of the Office of the
Attorney General.
House Committee on Children and Seniors
In the House Committee hearing, representatives of the
Board testified as proponents of the bill, stating the bill would
allow information related to the Board’s work to be disclosed
for additional limited purposes related to law enforcement
investigations, professional licensure disciplinary complaints,
record keeping, and approved research projects. Written-only
proponent testimony was submitted by representatives of
the Kansas Association of Chiefs of Police, Kansas County
and District Attorneys Association, Kansas Peace Officers
Association, Kansas Sheriffs Association, and Safe Kids

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Kansas. A representative of the National Center for Fatality
Review and Prevention testified as a neutral conferee.
No other testimony was provided.
Senate Committee on Public Health and Welfare
In the Senate Committee hearing, proponent testimony
was provided by a representative of the Kansas Association
of Chiefs of Police, Kansas Sheriffs Association, and the
Kansas Peace Officers Association and the Senior Assistant
Attorney for the Board. Proponents generally stated the
allowance of the limited exceptions will assist the State Child
Death Review Board in its goal of working to prevent future
child deaths. The representative of the law enforcement
associations expressed their desire to work on a clarifying
amendment on the confidentiality exception to law
enforcement.
Written-only proponent testimony was provided by Safe
Kids Kansas.
No other testimony was provided.
The Senate Committee amended the bill to add one
exception to confidentiality to allow the Board, or the Board’s
designee, to disclose information and records to any entity
established by a city or county for the express purpose of
providing a local review of child deaths if the information and
records being disclosed are related to a child’s death where
either:
● Such death occurred in such city or county; or
● Such child was a resident of such city or county.
Additionally, the Senate Committee amended the
confidentiality exception to law enforcement and any county
or district attorney by clarifying the language by stating:

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 ● Any Kansas state or local law enforcement agency
if the Board determines the information and
records being disclosed were not previously
available to such law enforcement agency for the
investigation of the cause of the child’s death; and
either:
○ The Board determines that the cause of the
child’s death was from abuse or neglect; or
○ The Board does not determine the child’s
death was from abuse or neglect and has
knowledge of a law enforcement investigation
based on an official offense report as required
in statue of abuse or neglect involving the
death of a child;
● Any county or district attorney if the Board
determines the information and records being
disclosed were not previously available to such
county or district attorney for the prosecution of any
crimes related to the cause of the child’s death;
and either:
○ The Board determines the cause of the child’s
death was from abuse or neglect; or
○ The Board does not determine the child’s
death was from abuse or neglect and has
knowledge of a law enforcement investigation
based on an official offense report as required
in statute of abuse or neglect involving the
death of the child.
HB 2158 (Advisory Committee on Trauma)
The bill was introduced by the House Committee on
Health and Human Services at the request of Representative
Arnberger.


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 [Note: The provisions of HB 2158 are similar to the
provisions of 2020 HB 2527, as recommended by the House
Committee on Rural Revitalization.]

House Committee on Financial Institutions and Rural
Development
In the House Committee hearing, the Executive Director
of the Emergency Medical Services Board, Director of the
Trauma Program at KDHE, and the State Chair of the Kansas
Chapter of the Committee on Trauma of the American
College of Surgeons provided proponent testimony. The
proponents stated the closed session meetings and privileged
records and findings are part of the ACT’s and regional
trauma councils’ peer review process, in which there is critical
assessment of trauma system access and function, incident
care delivery, and monitoring of the implementation of site-
specific trauma protocols.
Written-only proponent testimony was provided by the
Chairperson of ACT and representatives of the Kansas
Chapter of the American College of Emergency Physicians,
Kansas Chapter of the American College of Surgeons,
Kansas Emergency Medical Services Association, Kansas
Hospital Association, Kansas Medical Society, and Southeast
Kansas Rural Trauma Council.
No other testimony was provided.

Senate Committee on Public Health and Welfare
In the Senate Committee hearing, proponent testimony
was provided by the Executive Director of the Emergency
Medical Services Board and the Director of the Trauma
Program at KDHE.
Written-only proponent testimony was provided by the
Chairperson of ACT and the Vice Chairperson of the North

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East Regional Trauma Council, and representatives of the
Kansas Association of Osteopathic Medicine, Kansas
Emergency Medical Services Association, Kansas Hospital
Association, and Kansas Medical Society.
No other testimony was provided.
The Senate Committee amended the bill to insert the
contents of HB 2062, as amended by the Senate Committee,
that pertain to the State Child Death Review Board.

Fiscal Information
According to the fiscal note prepared by the Division of
the Budget on HB 2062 as introduced, the Office of the
Attorney General (Office) indicates enactment of the bill
would allow the Board to participate in a national database
which is free for participating states to use. The Office may
receive case referrals from county or district attorneys to
request case prosecution, but the Office cannot predict the
number of additional cases that could arise and a fiscal effect
cannot be estimated. The Department for Children and
Families indicates there could be an increase in records
requests; however, the number cannot be estimated and any
additional costs would be absorbed within existing resources.
The Kansas Association of Counties states a fiscal effect
cannot be determined because it cannot estimate the number
of additional requests it could receive. Any fiscal effect is not
reflected in The FY 2022 Governor’s Budget Report.
According to the fiscal note prepared by the Division of
the Budget on HB 2158 as introduced, KDHE indicates the
bill would have no fiscal effect on agency operations, and
support for ACT would continue within existing resources.
Advisory Committee on Trauma; meetings; sunset; Child Death Review Board;
confidential information; records


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Statutes affected:
As introduced: 75-5664, 75-5665
As Amended by Senate Committee: 75-5664, 75-5665
{As Amended by Senate Committee of the Whole}: 38-2226, 39-709, 21-5701, 65-516, 75-5664, 75-3223, 75-5665