SESSION OF 2024
SUPPLEMENTAL NOTE ON HOUSE BILL NO. 2680
As Amended by House Committee on
Transportation
Brief*
HB 2680, as amended, would create a traffic infraction
for a parent, legal guardian, or other person responsible for a
child who knowingly leaves a child age 6 or younger inside a
motor vehicle unless the child is supervised by a person age
12 or older. The infraction would be included within the
Uniform Act Regulating Traffic on Highways.
The provisions would not apply to a private driveway or
parking lot or private parking facility of any property used for
residential purposes (private facility). The bill would apply to
any highway, public property, private property open to the
public, or parking lot or facility that is not a private facility.
The bill would require a law enforcement officer to issue
a warning citation for any violation until July 1, 2025. In the
Uniform Fine Schedule, the bill would establish a fine of $100
for leaving a child unattended in a motor vehicle. The bill
would increase the fine to $200 for a second violation within 5
years after a prior conviction and to $500 for a third or
subsequent violation within 5 years after two prior
convictions. The bill would direct those fines to the Children
and Family Trust Account of the Family and Children
Investment Fund. [Note: Continuing law directs moneys in the
Children and Family Trust Account to child abuse and neglect
prevention activities.]
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*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 The bill would specify a person who violates these
provisions could also be prosecuted for, convicted of, and
punished for any offense in Kansas criminal statutes
resulting from leaving a child unattended in a motor vehicle.
The bill would direct the Division of Vehicles (Division),
Department of Revenue, to include information on the
dangers of leaving children unattended in motor vehicles, on
topics including, but not limited to, the effect of solar heat on
the temperature of motor vehicle interiors and the penalties
for violating these provisions, in specified materials or
courses:
●The Kansas Driving Handbook;
●Drivers’ training schools;
●Driver training courses conducted by any school
district board of education, governing authority of
any non-public K-12 school, or the board of
trustees of any community college;
●Driver improvement clinics; and
●Materials provided to community driving public
awareness or education programs by agencies
including, but not limited to, the Division, the
Kansas Department of Transportation, the
Department for Children and Families, and the
Kansas Highway Patrol.
Background
The bill was introduced by the House Committee on
Transportation at the request of Representative Essex on
behalf of a representative of Kids and Car Safety.
2- 2680 House Committee on Transportation
In the House Committee hearing, proponent testimony
was provided by representatives of Kids and Car Safety and
Safe Kids Kansas and a private citizen. The proponents
described the dangers to which children are exposed in an
unattended vehicle, the need to educate families about those
dangers, and the tragic effects on families of losing a child in
this manner.
Written-only proponent testimony was provided by
representatives of AAA Kansas; DCCCA; Kansas Association
of Chiefs of Police, Kansas Peace Officers Association, and
Kansas Sheriffs Association; Kansas Chapter of the American
Academy of Pediatrics; Kids and Car Safety; League of
Kansas Municipalities; and Safe Kids Kansas, and on behalf
of a coalition of AAA Kansas, Families for Safe Streets, Geary
County Health Department, Kansas Action for Children, the
Kansas Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics, Kids
and Car Safety, and National Consumers League.
No other testimony was provided.
The House Committee amended the bill to:
●Reduce from 8 years to 6 years the age of a child
who could not be left unsupervised in a motor
vehicle;
●Add provisions specifying on what property the
violation could occur;
●Require issuance of warning citations until July 1,
2025; and
●Increase fines for subsequent violations within 5
years.
3- 2680 Fiscal Information
According to the fiscal note prepared by the Division of
the Budget on the bill, as introduced, the Office of Judicial
Administration indicates enactment of the bill could have a
fiscal impact on Judicial Branch operations, but that effect
cannot be estimated until the courts have had an opportunity
to operate under the bill’s provisions. Enactment could result
in the collection of docket fees and fines, which would be
credited to the State General Fund and other funds.
The Department for Children and Families indicates
revenues to the Children and Families Trust Account would
increase, but it cannot estimate how much revenue would be
collected.
The Department of Revenue, Kansas Highway Patrol,
and Kansas Department of Transportation all state enactment
of the bill would have no fiscal effect on the operations of any
of the respective agencies.
Any fiscal effect associated with enactment of the bill is
not reflected in The FY 2025 Governor’s Budget Report.
The Kansas Association of Counties and the League of
Kansas Municipalities stated they could not estimate a
precise fiscal effect. The League of Kansas Municipalities
indicated enactment of the bill would increase costs for local
law enforcement agencies for the enforcement of the bill’s
provisions.
Child in vehicle; vehicle; education; fine; Uniform Act Regulating Traffic on Highways
4- 2680