SESSION OF 2021
SUPPLEMENTAL NOTE ON HOUSE BILL NO. 2297
As Recommended by House Committee on
Commerce, Labor and Economic Development

Brief*
HB 2297 would amend publication requirements for the
Office of the Secretary of State (Secretary). Specifically, the
bill would amend or remove provisions concerning publication
requirements for the Kansas Session Laws, Kansas
Administrative Regulations, Kansas Register, and Kansas
Statutes Annotated. The bill would also permit the Secretary
in fulfilling public printing requirements to utilize the Division
of Printing or to contract for outside services in accordance
with applicable laws for state agencies and remove the
current requirement for cost-recovery fees associated with
the distribution of printed materials to be set by adoption of
rules and regulations.

Kansas Session Laws
Current law requires printed copies of the Session Laws
to be distributed to certain Kansas officials. The bill would
modify this requirement to be only upon request.
The bill would require the 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
____________________
*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
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
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).


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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
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 expended 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 moneys 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.
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 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
documents, the bill would remove a requirement that
agencies must file such index in a manner prescribed by the
Secretary.

Kansas Statutes Annotated
Current law requires two complete sets of the Kansas
Statutes Annotated to be distributed to each member of the
Legislature at each legislative session, with the name of the
member printed on one of the copies. The bill would modify
this to require that only new members receive one complete
set, with their name printed on it only if requested.

Background
The bill was introduced by the House Committee on
Commerce, Labor, and Economic Development.
[Note: The bill contains the provisions of 2020 SB 254
as amended by the Senate Committee on Federal and State
Affairs, in addition to several new provisions.]

House Committee on Commerce, Labor, and Economic
Development
In the House Committee hearing, proponent testimony
was provided by a Deputy Assistant Secretary of State and a
representative of Coalition for Opportunity.

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 No other testimony was provided.

Fiscal Information
According to the fiscal note prepared by Division of the
Budget on the bill , the Office of the Secretary of State
indicates enactment of the bill would result in agency savings
of approximately $35,000 in fiscal years 2021 and 2022. Any
fiscal effect associated with the bill is not reflected in The FY
2022 Governor’s Budget Report.
Secretary of State; printing


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Statutes affected:
As introduced: 45-106, 45-107, 45-315, 64-103, 75-430, 75-433, 75-436, 75-1005, 77-138, 77-417, 77-430, 77-430a, 77-431, 77-438