Voucher bill passes out of Senate Ed Committee; Senate passes cell phone bill

By Ann Marie Bush
Director of Communications

Sen. Renee Erickson, R-Wichita, reacts to a comment made Thursday, March 5, by Sen. Adam Thomas, R-Olathe.

The voucher bill – House Bill 2468 – was passed out of the Senate Education Committee on Thursday, March 5.

“I move we pass out House Bill 2468 – who do we appreciate – favorably as amended,” Sen. Adam Thomas, R-Olathe, said to Sen. Renee Erickson, R-Wichita, Chair of the Senate Committee on Education.

Erickson smiled, shook her head, and replied: “Today has been a day. We have a motion. Do we have a second on that?”

The motion was seconded by Sen. Michael Murphy, R-Sylvia.

The bill would allow Kansas to participate in a federal tax credit program for contributions to scholarship‑granting organizations (SGOs) and would increase the tax credit limit under the Low‑Income Student Scholarship Program.

While described as a tax credit, the program functions similarly to a voucher by using public tax policy to subsidize private school tuition.

The House in final action Feb. 12 passed HB 2468 as amended, 70-49. It was referred to the Senate Committee on Education on Feb. 13.

The Senate Committee on Education had a hearing on HB 2468 on Feb. 24. The Kansas National Education Association presented in-person testimony opposing the bill. There were six other people who spoke in opposition to the bill. The committee also received 47 pieces of written testimony in opposition.

Next steps may include floor debate by the Senate, followed by a conference committee.

Senate passes legislation addressing student cell phone use

In emergency final action Thursday, March 5, legislation addressing student cell phone use in public schools and accredited nonpublic schools was passed by the Senate, 32-4.

Senate Substitute for House Bill 2299 passed out of the Senate Committee on Education on Wednesday, March 4. It was debated on the Senate floor on Thursday.

The committee amended HB 2299 through a substitute bill that replaced the contents of the underlying measure before advancing it out of committee - a legislative process commonly referred to as a gut and go. The substitute bill now carries provisions originally introduced in SB 302, which addressed student use of personal electronic communication devices during the school day.

The revised proposal would require school districts and accredited nonpublic schools to adopt policies regulating students’ use of personal electronic communication devices during the school day.

The bill also includes provisions addressing communication between school employees and students through social media platforms and changes statutory language related to the definition of accredited nonpublic schools.

The bill was also amended to include liability protections for school districts and educators for damage to personal electronic devices that may occur while these devices are stored by the school or confiscated during the enforcement of school policies.

Since the measure originated in the House, if the House agrees to the Senate’s changes, the chamber could vote to concur with the Senate version and send the bill directly to Gov. Laura Kelly for consideration without the need for a conference committee.

Visit Under The Dome at www.ksutd.org for updates, bill resources and member legislative tools.

Ann Marie Bush can be reached by email at ann.bush@knea.org.