SESSION OF 2021
SUPPLEMENTAL NOTE ON HOUSE BILL NO. 2381
As Amended by House Committee on Energy,
Utilities and Telecommunications

Brief*
HB 2381, as amended, would establish the State Energy
Plan Task Force (Task Force) and provide for the Task
Force’s membership, requirements, duties, and organization.
The bill would contain several whereas clauses stating
the goals for a state energy plan and providing further context
for the establishment of the Task Force.

Task Force Membership
The Task Force would be composed of 17 voting
members and 8 nonvoting members. The voting members
would consist of:
● Six legislative members:
○ The chairperson, vice-chairperson, and
ranking minority member of the House
Committee on Energy, Utilities and
Telecommunications; and
○ The chairperson, vice-chairperson, and
ranking minority member of the Senate
Committee on Utilities;
● One member who has expertise in energy
economics, appointed by the Governor; and

____________________
*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
● Ten other members, one appointed by each of the
following organizations:
○ The investor-owned electric utility with the
largest service territory in the state;
○ Kansas Electric Cooperatives, Inc. (KEC);
○ Kansas Municipal Utilities (KMU);
○ The natural gas public utility with the largest
service territory in the state;
○ Kansas Independent Oil and Gas Association;
○ Climate and Energy Project;
○ Renew Kansas Biofuels Association;
○ Kansas Economic Development Alliance;
○ Kansas Farm Bureau (KFB); and
○ Kansas Advanced Power Alliance (KAPA).

The Task Force’s eight nonvoting members would be:
● The chairperson of the Kansas Corporation
Commission (KCC), or their designee;
● The Secretary of Commerce, or their designee;
● The Secretary of Transportation, or their designee;
● The Secretary of Health and Environment, or their
designee;
● The State Geologist, or their designee;
● The Secretary of Agriculture, or their designee;
● One member appointed by the U.S. Department of
Defense; and
● One member appointed by the Citizens’ Utility
Ratepayer Board (CURB).
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Energy Plan Components
The bill would require the Task Force, on or before
January 31, 2023, to submit a comprehensive state energy
plan and recommendations to the Governor; the Legislature;
the House Committee on Energy, Utilities and
Telecommunications; and the Senate Committee on Utilities.
The bill would require the plan to contain statewide
strategies to:
● Assess current and future energy technologies and
needs;
● Enhance energy efficiency and plan for electric
vehicle infrastructure as part of a comprehensive
strategy for vehicle fueling infrastructure that
includes biofuels, alternative fuels, and petroleum
fuels;
● Stimulate economic development;
● Expand economic opportunity and workforce
development;
● Stimulate development of new and emerging
energy technologies and systems; and
● Promote diversity of the resources that supply
energy to and within Kansas while promoting
affordability for consumers and protecting the
environment and the state’s natural resources.
Task Force Recommendations
The Task Force would be required to make
recommendations on the initiation, design, implementation,
and evaluation of the state energy plan. The bill would require
the Task Force’s recommendations to:

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 ● Take into consideration a comprehensive
perspective of the state’s energy profile, including
all energy resources and end-use sectors;
● Project future energy supply and demand and the
potential impacts of supply shifts, geopolitical risks
and uncertainties, technological changes, and
other factors that affect short-term and long-term
energy needs;
● Provide a framework that allows leaders across the
state to make informed decisions based on a
defined and structured plan;
● Offer a plan of action with clear recommendations
and achievable goals; and
● Propose future activities, actions, or legislation that
may be necessary to ensure continued viability and
long-term implementation of the state energy plan,
including whether such plan should be
implemented and administered by any certain state
agency or division.
Task Force Organization and Assistance
The bill would provide that, in odd-numbered years, the
chairperson of the House Committee on Energy, Utilities and
Telecommunications would be the chairperson of the Task
Force, and the chairperson of the Senate Committee on
Utilities would be the vice-chairperson of the Task Force.
These roles would alternate in even-numbered years.
Vacancies
Member vacancies on the Task Force would be filled in
the same manner as the original appointment.


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Meetings and Subsistence
The Task Force would have the authority to meet on call
of the chairperson at any time and at any place within the
state. Legislative members of the Task Force would be paid
for expenses, mileage, and subsistence, as provided for in
continuing law, for attending a Task Force meeting if
approved by the Legislative Coordinating Council.
Assistance
The State Energy Office, a division of the KCC, would
be required to provide administrative assistance to help
facilitate and organize meetings. Assistance would include,
but not be limited to:
● Providing a meeting facilitator;
● Publishing meeting agendas, public notices, and
meeting minutes; and
● Providing any research, data, or information
requested by the Task Force.
Additionally, the bill would require staff of the Office of
Revisor of Statutes, Legislative Research Department, and
Legislative Administrative Services to provide assistance as
requested by the Task Force.

Sunset
The provisions of the bill would sunset on July 1, 2023.

Background
The bill was introduced by the House Committee on
Energy, Utilities and Telecommunications at the request of
Representatives Schreiber and Kuether.

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House Committee on Energy, Utilities and
Telecommunications
In the House Committee hearing, proponent testimony
was provided by Representative Schreiber; a legislative
liaison for KMU and Atmos Energy, Black Hills Energy,
Evergy, ITC Great Plains, Kansas City Board of Public
Utilities, Kansas Electric Power Cooperative, Kansas Gas
Service, Liberty Utilities, Midwest Energy, and Sunflower
Electric Power Corporation; and representatives of the
Citizens’ Utility Ratepayer Board, the Clean Energy Business
Council, KAPA, Kansas Interfaith Action, Renew Kansas
Biofuels Association, and the Sierra Club.
Written-only proponent testimony was provided by
representatives of KEC, KFB, Little Government Relations,
and the Metropolitan Energy Center.
Proponents generally stated the development of a state
energy plan would help Kansas better manage its energy
resources and create long-term value for the state by fully
capitalizing on the energy transformation that has been
occurring in the past decade. Further, proponents noted the
bill would be a first step toward adopting a statewide energy
plan that could serve as a road map for meeting changing
energy needs, promoting economic growth, and ensuring
access to affordable, diverse, and reliable energy.
Proponents stated an energy plan was one of the
recommendations of the electric rate study conducted by
London Economics International.
Opponent testimony was provided by a representative
of the Kansas Industrial Consumers Group and Kansans for
Lower Electric Rates. The opponent stated it is unclear what
the bill would accomplish that Kansas is not already doing,
and the bill would incentivize the acquisition of unnecessary
investments.
No other testimony was provided.

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 The House Committee amended the bill to expand
language regarding vehicle fueling infrastructure.____

Fiscal Information
According to the revised fiscal note prepared by the
Division of the Budget on the bill, as introduced, the KCC
states enactment of the bill would result in annual
expenditures of $220,000 to provide a meeting facilitator and
research, data, and information and to maintain a 1.0 FTE
administrative support position. The KCC estimates the
annual cost would be $50,000 (from federal funds) for the
administrative support position, $120,000 for a facilitator, and
$50,000 for a research consultant. The annual cost for the
facilitator and research consultant ($170,000) would be paid
from assessments on utilities.
Legislative Administrative Services indicates enactment
of the bill would result in annual expenditures of $33,722 from
the State General Fund, assuming the legislative membership
attends a maximum of eight Task Force meetings annually.
The Legislative Research Department indicates any
costs to the Department could be paid from existing
resources.
Any fiscal effect associated with the bill is not reflected
in The FY 2022 Governor’s Budget Report.
Energy plan; task force; utilities


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