SESSION OF 2024
CONFERENCE COMMITTEE REPORT BRIEF
SENATE BILL NO. 15
As Agreed to January 23, 2024
Brief*
SB 15 would make several changes to a tax credit available for certain purchases from
qualifying vendors employing individuals with disabilities and create a matching grant program
to facilitate the transition of certain employers toward paying employees at least minimum wage.
The bill would be in effect upon publication in the Kansas Register.
Tax Credit Changes
Changes to the tax credit would include naming the credit, modifying the duration and
extent of the credit, expanding the definition of “individuals with disabilities,” and restructuring
the definition of “qualified vendor” from whom purchases may be made.
Name Change
The provisions of the tax credit would be named the Disability Employment Act (Act).
Duration and Extent of Credit
The bill would eliminate the provision specifying the credit to expire after tax year 2023.
The bill would provide for a cap on the aggregate amount of credits under the Act to be $5.0
million in tax years 2019 through 2023, $8.0 million in tax years 2024 through 2028, and $8.0
million for each successive five tax years starting in tax year 2029.
Individuals with Disabilities Definition
The bill would expand the definition of “individuals with disabilities” to include individuals
who are certified by a healthcare provider, as determined by the Kansas Department of
Revenue, who can substantiate an individual as having a physical or mental impairment that
constitutes a substantial barrier to employment. The bill would also eliminate a requirement that
____________________
*Conference committee report briefs are prepared by the Legislative Research Department and do not express
legislative intent. No summary is prepared when the report is an agreement to disagree. Conference committee
report briefs may be accessed on the Internet at http://www.kslegislature.org/klrd
1 - 15 individuals with disabilities work a minimum number of hours per week to qualify for health
insurance coverage.
Qualified Vendor Definition
The bill would provide for three options by which an entity may qualify as a qualified
vendor:
●A not-for-profit business qualifying as a certified business pursuant to KSA 75-3740
that:
○Does business primarily in Kansas or substantially all of its production in
Kansas;
○Employs at least 30.0 percent of its employees in an integrated setting;
○Offers to contribute at least 75.0 percent of the premium cost for health
insurance coverage for each eligible employee; and
○Does not employ individuals under a certificate issued by the U.S. Secretary of
Labor under 29 U.S. Code section 214(c) (214(c) Certificate);
●A qualified vendor pursuant to KSA 75-3317 that:
○Employs at least 30.0 percent of its employees in an integrated setting;
○Offers to contribute at least 75.0 percent of the premium cost for health
insurance coverage for each eligible employee, offers a company-sponsored
insurance plan under the Affordable Care Act, pays the required subsidy to the
Internal Revenue Service for employees to purchase insurance through the
open market, or offers assistance to employees to cover at least 75.0 percent of
their health insurance costs through legal and appropriate methodology; and
○Does not employ individuals under a 214(c) Certificate; and
●A division of a Kansas not-for-profit organization that:
○Does business primarily in Kansas or substantially all of its production in
Kansas;
○Within such division, employs at least 30.0 percent of its employees in an
integrated setting;
○Within such division, offers to contribute at least 75.0 percent of the premium
cost for health insurance coverage for each eligible employee, offers a
company-sponsored insurance plan under the Affordable Care Act, pays the
required subsidy to the Internal Revenue Service for employees to purchase
insurance through the open market, or offers assistance to employees to cover
at least 75.0 percent of their health insurance costs through legal and
appropriate methodology; and
○Does not employ individuals under a 214(c) Certificate.
Current law limits qualified vendors to not-for-profit businesses qualifying as certified
businesses pursuant to KSA 75-3740 and qualified vendors pursuant to KSA 75-3317 and
prohibits any employment by the vendor under a 214(c) Certificate.
2 - 15 Sheltered Workshop Transition Grant Program
The bill would create the Sheltered Workshop Transition Grant Program (Grant Program)
to assist Kansas sheltered workshop employers away from employing individuals with
disabilities under a 214(c) Certificate and toward paying all such employees at least the
minimum wage.
The bill would create the Kansas Sheltered Workshop Transition Fund (Fund), to be
administered by the Kansas Secretary of Labor (Secretary), and provide for an annual transfer
of $1.0 million to the Fund from the state Economic Development Initiatives Fund (EDIF).
Workshop employers that seek to receive grants would be required to provide a transition
plan to the Secretary demonstrating how the applicant will use the grant to transition away from
the use of a 214(c) Certificate. The workshop employers would be required to commit to
complete the plan and would be required to match grants on a dollar-for-dollar basis with non-
state funds. Workshop employers would be required to provide information to the Secretary
regarding the use of grant funds and associated non-state funds and the progress made toward
achieving the goal of the transition plan.
The Secretary would be required to consult with the Secretary for Children and Families
and the Secretary of Aging and Disability Services or other appropriate state agency in
determining the approval of grants. If the Secretary approves the transition plan and determines
the workshop employer has sufficient non-state funds, the Secretary would award the grant in
an amount determined by the Secretary. The Secretary would be permitted to award
subsequent grants to the same employer upon a showing of satisfactory progress toward the
employer’s transition plan.
The bill would define “Kansas sheltered workshop employer” and “workshop employer” to
be a private, non-profit, state, or local government institution that provides employment
opportunities for individuals with intellectual, developmental, or physical disabilities and provides
such employment opportunities for all or a portion of such individuals under a 214(c) Certificate.
The bill would require, beginning in January 2025, the Kansas Department of Labor to
provide annual reports to the House Committee on Commerce, Labor and Economic
Development and the Senate Committee on Commerce, or their successor committees, on the
amounts and uses of grant funds by employers and the progress made by each employer
towards paying all employees at least the minimum wage. The Grant Program would expire and
all funds in the Fund would be transferred to the State General Fund on July 1, 2034.
Conference Committee Action
The Conference Committee agreed to remove the contents of SB 15, as amended by
House Committee on Insurance, and insert the contents of HB 2275, as amended by the House
Committee of the Whole, and to further amend the bill to:
●Limit the aggregate amount of credits under the Act to be $8.0 million for each
successive five tax years beginning tax year 2024;
●Move the initial transfer, sunset, and reporting dates for the grant program forward by
one year;
3 - 15 ●Specify the provisions of the tax credit would apply to purchases made beginning
January 1, 2024; and
●Make the bill effective upon publication in the Kansas Register.
Background
The Conference Committee agreed to replace the contents of SB 15 with provisions of HB
2275, as amended by the House Committee of the Whole, and make further amendments as
described above. [Note: The provisions of SB 15, as amended by House Committee on
Insurance, were included in the Conference Committee Report for SB 119 during the 2023
Legislative Session.]
HB 2275
The bill was introduced by the House Committee on Commerce, Labor and Economic
Development at the request of Representative Mason.
House Committee on Commerce, Labor and Economic Development
In the House Committee hearing, proponent testimony was provided by representatives of
Cerebral Palsy Research Foundation of Kansas, Goodwill Industries of Kansas, and Interhab.
The proponents generally stated the bill would extend and expand a program that helps
facilitate employment opportunities for individuals with disabilities who would otherwise likely be
dependent on public support.
Written-only proponent testimony was provided by Representative Mason and
representatives of Envision, Multi Community Diversified Services, and the Wichita Regional
Chamber of Commerce.
Opponent testimony was provided by representatives of Disability Rights Center of
Kansas, Kansas Council on Developmental Disabilities, and the Self Advocate Coalition of
Kansas. The opponents generally stated changes in the bill would extend the benefits of the tax
credit to organizations who pay less than minimum wage to individuals with disabilities.
Written-only opponent testimony was provided by representatives of the Self Advocate
Coalition of Kansas and a private citizen.
The House Committee recommended the bill be passed on February 14, 2023, but the bill
was withdrawn from the House Calendar and referred to the House Committee on
Appropriations on February 23, 2023. The bill was then withdrawn from the House Committee
on Appropriations and rereferred to the House Committee on Commerce, Labor and Economic
Development on March 1, 2023. The House Committee again recommended the bill be passed
on March 6, 2023.
4 - 15 House Committee of the Whole
The House Committee of the Whole amended the bill to eliminate the extension of the tax
credit to organizations who pay less than minimum wages to individuals with disabilities and to
create the Grant Program.
Fiscal Information
According to the fiscal note prepared by the Division of the Budget on the bill, as
introduced, the Department of Revenue estimates enactment of the bill would reduce state
revenues by approximately $500,000 per year beginning in fiscal year 2025.
The House Committee of the Whole amendment would create an annual transfer of $1.0
million from the EDIF to the new Fund beginning in fiscal year 2025.
Any fiscal effect associated with the bill is not reflected in The FY 2025 Governor’s Budget
Report.
Taxation; income tax; tax credit; Disability Employment Act; matching grants; Sheltered Workshop Transition Grant Program; Kansas
Sheltered Workshop Transition Fund
ccrb_sb15_01232024.odt
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