TOPEKA — Gov. Laura Kelly signed a bill doubling campaign contribution limits to statewide and legislative candidates and a separate bill establishing new boundaries for the state commission responsible for enforcing campaign finance law.
The content of House Bill 2054 and House Bill 2206 was a point of contention at the Capitol because the Kansas Governmental Ethics Commission — renamed the Kansas Public Disclosure Commission by the legislation — had launched a controversial and politically sensitive investigation of Republican officials, consultants and activists for potentially coordinating campaign cash in ways contrary to state law.
The final version of HB 2054, which passed the House on a vote of 72-52 and the Senate by a margin of 26-14, increased aggregate limits for donations in primary and general elections from $2,000 to $4,000 for candidates for statewide office, including governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general, secretary of state, insurance commissioner and state treasurer.
Donations to candidates for Kansas House, district court judge, district attorney and local offices in jurisdictions of less than 50,000 people were doubled to $1,000 from the current cap of $500. In contests for Kansas Senate, the state Board of Education as well as local office candidates in positions with a population greater than 50,000, the limit also doubled to $2,000 from $1,000.
The bill raised the amount of cash a person could donate to a candidate or candidate committee for any primary or general election from $100 to $200.
In addition, the law eliminated limits on political party committees making donations to candidates in general elections. The bill declared expenditures by a Republican or Democratic committee in support of a candidate wouldn’t be counted as contributions. The law raised to $35,000 per calendar year how much a person could give to a state party committee and political committee of the House and Senate.
The governor also signed HB 2206, which was development to constrain the state commission tasked with regulating Kansas campaign-finance law.
This bill created a new definition for “cooperation or consent” in relation to express advocacy expenditures. For example, it would exclude a candidate’s or political party’s expenditures in response to inquiries about positions on legislative issues or the endorsement of a candidate.
This legislation also changed the way Kansas viewed contributions given in the name of another person. The bill raised the limit from $10 to $50 the amount political contribution an individual could accept without knowing the identity of the donor.
Municipal whistleblower
Meanwhile, Kelly signed House Bill 2160 to establish the Municipal Employee Whistleblower Act. It extended legal protection for municipal employees who reported or revealed unlawful or dangerous conduct.
“This bipartisan bill will enhance transparency and accountability in local government, ensuring that municipal employees can report wrongdoing without fear of retaliation,” Kelly said. “Protecting whistleblowers is vital for maintaining public trust, safeguarding taxpayer resources, and promoting ethical governance.”
Historically, whistleblower protections had been limited to state and federal employees and were aimed at protecting people who reported misconduct or corruption from retaliatory actions. The bill sought to distinguish whistleblowers from disgruntled employers unhappy with lawful decisions.
“Municipal employees don’t have to fear reprisal any more for exposing wrongdoing, unlawful behavior, or misappropriation of funds,” said Sen. Tim Shallenburger, a Republican from Baxter Springs. “This piece of legislation gives the necessary protection to those, who in good faith, bring to light what the government wants to keep in the dark.”
The governor signed House Bill 2134 to limit fees charged by a public agency in response to Kansas Open Records Act requests and allowed a person requesting a record to appeal a fee’s reasonableness to the secretary of the Kansas Department of Administration if the material in question was linked to the executive branch.
In addition, the bill altered state law so a public agency wouldn’t be required to disclose closed investigations of violations of civil law or administrative regulations when no violation was found. In addition, the list of exempted records was expanded to include material viewed as obscene.
Kelly signed House Bill 2149 to modernize state law on installation of solar panels on a home or business. She endorsed Senate Bill 114 to authorize nonpublic and virtual school students to take part in public school activities.
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