Session of 2023
HOUSE BILL No. 2253
By Committee on Commerce, Labor and Economic Development
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AN ACT concerning public employees; relating to the executive branch of
state government; hiring and promotion preferences; providing for a
preference for persons with a disability.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Kansas:
Section 1. Sections 1 through 3, and amendments thereto, shall be
known and may be cited as Kathy's bill.
Sec. 2. For purposes of sections 1 through 3, and amendments
thereto:
(a) "Disability" means a physical or mental impairment that
substantially limits one or more major life activities of an individual.
(b) "Major life activities" includes, but is not limited to, the activities
of caring for oneself, performing manual tasks, seeing, hearing, eating,
sleeping, walking, standing, lifting, bending, speaking, breathing, learning,
reading, concentrating, thinking, communicating and working. "Major life
activities" also includes the operation of major bodily functions, including,
but not limited to, the immune system, normal cell growth, digestive
system, bowel, bladder, neurological system, brain, respiratory system,
circulatory system, endocrine system and reproductive system.
(c) "Reasonable accommodation" means:
(1) Making existing facilities used by employees readily accessible
and usable by individuals with disabilities; and
(2) job restructuring, part-time or modified work schedules,
reassignment to a vacant position, acquisition or modification of
equipment or devices, appropriate adjustment or modifications of
examinations, training materials or policies, the provision of qualified
readers or interpreters or other similar accommodations for individuals
with disabilities.
(d) "State government" means any department, bureau, division,
board, authority, agency, commission or institution of this state, except the
judicial and legislative branches of state government and political
subdivisions of the state.
Sec. 3. (a) Persons with disabilities shall be preferred for employment
and promotion in the state government of Kansas if qualified, with or
without a reasonable accommodation, to meet the performance standards
of the position. In the event that a person with a disability meeting the
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requirements of this act and a veteran meeting the requirements of the
veteran's preference established by K.S.A. 73-201, and amendments
thereto, apply for the same position, the person having the highest
qualifications meeting the performance standards of the position shall
receive the primary preference.
(b) State government job opening notices and application forms shall
state that the position is subject to the disability preference and explain
how applicants with disabilities may take advantage of the preference,
including information regarding the documentation of a disability that
shall be provided pursuant to subsection (c) and the process that will be
used for selection.
(c) An applicant who is a person with a disability shall provide
documentation of the person's disability to the state government hiring
authority when applying for the disability preference by providing a copy
of one of the following documents:
(1) Supplemental security income or social security disability
insurance determination letter;
(2) letter from a managed care organization or a qualified medical
professional attesting to the disability;
(3) home and community-based services waiver approval letter; or
(4) vocational rehabilitation letter from a vocational rehabilitation
counselor.
(d) The state government hiring authority shall offer an interview to a
person who has applied for an open position who is qualified, with or
without reasonable accommodation, to meet the performance standards of
the position and who has presented proof of disability as provided in
subsection (c).
(e) In any reduction in personnel by the state government employer,
employees who are persons with disabilities shall be retained in preference
to all other employees in the same job classification or job title with equal
qualifications, seniority, status and performance reviews.
(f) A person with a disability has the right to not disclose that person's
disability at the time of hire but may not assert a right to a retention
preference pursuant to subsection (e) at a later date unless the disability is
disclosed prior to the announcement of a layoff by submission of
documentation as provided in subsection (c). Disclosure may be made to
the state government human resources office where the employee is
employed and shall remain confidential unless disclosure is required for
the provision of a reasonable accommodation for the person with a
disability or for emergency preparedness planning.
(g) The provisions of sections 1 through 3, and amendments thereto,
shall not apply to positions that are filled by elected officers or vacancies
in such elected offices, personal secretaries of such officers, members of
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boards and commissions, persons employed on a temporary basis,
positions held by patients in state institutions, inmates in the custody of the
secretary of corrections, students enrolled at a state educational institution,
heads of departments, positions that require licensure as a physician and
positions that require that the employee be admitted to practice law in
Kansas.
Sec. 4. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after its
publication in the statute book.
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