KS
Kansas House Bill HB2237

Kansas 2025-2026 Regular Session

Kansas House Bill HB2237 Compare Versions

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11 Session of 2025
22 HOUSE BILL No. 2237
33 By Committee on Appropriations
44 Requested by Representative Francis on behalf of the Department of
55 Administration
66 2-4
77 AN ACT concerning state agencies; relating to the employee award and
88 recognition program; authorizing hiring, recruitment and retention
99 bonuses; increasing the limitation on such award or bonus to $10,000;
1010 eliminating the secretary of administration's authority to adopt rules
1111 and regulations; requiring such secretary to submit an annual report to
1212 certain legislative committees concerning such awards and bonuses;
1313 amending K.S.A. 75-37,105 and repealing the existing section.
1414 Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Kansas:
1515 Section 1. K.S.A. 75-37,105 is hereby amended to read as follows:
1616 75-37,105. (a) As used in this section,:
1717 (1) "Award" and "monetary award" include a bonus given to an
1818 employee pursuant to this section; and
1919 (2) "state agency" has the meaning ascribed thereto by means the
2020 same as defined in K.S.A. 75-3701, and amendments thereto, and includes
2121 the governor's department, lieutenant governor, attorney general, secretary
2222 of state, state treasurer, commissioner of insurance, each agency of the
2323 executive branch, the legislature and each agency of the legislative branch,
2424 the judicial branch and each agency of the judicial branch and any
2525 appointed state council or state commission.
2626 (b) (1) There is established an employee award and recognition
2727 program for state employees. Under this program, monetary or non-
2828 monetary nonmonetary awards may be made to state employees. An
2929 appointing authority may implement a program of award and recognition
3030 for classified and unclassified employees or teams of employees. Such
3131 program may include a hiring, recruitment and retention bonus, as well as
3232 awards for distinguished accomplishment, meritorious service,
3333 innovations, Kansas quality management, volunteerism or length of
3434 service. Under this program, monetary or non-monetary nonmonetary
3535 awards may be made to state employees. Non-monetary Nonmonetary
3636 awards may include, but are not be limited to, a medal, an annual award
3737 luncheon held by the employee's respective state agency or public
3838 recognition by the Kansas house of representatives or the Kansas senate.
3939 (2) All awards and recognition provided under this section shall meet
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7474 the conditions for a discretionary bonus set out in 29 C.F.R. § 778.211.
7575 (c) (1) The total gross value of awards to any employee of the state
7676 during a single fiscal year shall not exceed $3,500 except as provided in
7777 subsection (g) $10,000.
7878 (2) Any monetary award or series of such awards in excess of $3,500
7979 that is proposed for an employee in the classified service or an employee
8080 in the unclassified service whose salary is subject to approval in
8181 accordance with K.S.A. 75-2935b, and amendments thereto, shall be
8282 subject to approval by the governor and shall not be paid until approved
8383 by the governor, except as provided in subsection (g).
8484 (d) No award paid pursuant to this section during the fiscal year shall
8585 be compensation, within the meaning of K.S.A. 74-4901 et seq., and
8686 amendments thereto, for any purpose under the Kansas public employees
8787 retirement system and shall not be subject to deductions for employee
8888 contributions thereunder. Each taxable award paid under this section shall
8989 be a discretionary bonus, as defined by 29 C.F.R. § 778, and shall be in
9090 addition to the regular earnings to which that employee may be entitled or
9191 for which the employee may become eligible. Monetary awards are subject
9292 to taxes in accordance with federal internal revenue code regulations. The
9393 value of non-monetary nonmonetary awards shall be reported by state
9494 agencies in accordance with sections 74 and 132 of the federal internal
9595 revenue code and procedures prescribed by the director of accounts and
9696 reports.
9797 (d)(e) The award and recognition program shall be paid from moneys
9898 appropriated and available for operating expenditures of the state agency
9999 or from other funding sources as appropriated. In the case of employee
100100 suggestions, the award or recognition for each employee shall be paid or
101101 provided by the state agency that benefited from and implemented the
102102 suggestion.
103103 (e) The regulations of the employee award board adopted pursuant to
104104 K.S.A. 75-37,108, and amendments thereto, are hereby revoked.
105105 (f) The secretary of administration shall adopt rules and regulations
106106 that provide oversight and administrative review of state agency award and
107107 recognition programs for executive branch agencies and appointed state
108108 councils and commissions. The secretary of administration shall adopt
109109 rules and regulations to Such oversight shall provide safeguards to
110110 preclude opportunities for abuse within the employee award and
111111 recognition program in each state agency and to programs and provide for
112112 consistency of such programs among such agencies, councils and
113113 commissions as well as ensure objective decision-making procedures in
114114 award and recognition determinations for all participating employees.
115115 (g) (1) (A) The secretary of administration shall establish a state
116116 employee suggestion program through which state employees may submit
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160160 suggestions for cost reductions to their respective state agency through
161161 increased efficiencies or other economies or savings in the operations of
162162 the state agency.
163163 (B) Each employee making a suggestion for cost reduction shall be
164164 awarded a monetary or non-monetary nonmonetary employee award or
165165 awards for innovation pursuant to subsection (b) of this section upon
166166 adoption of the suggestion by the state agency. Monetary awards for
167167 innovation shall be nondiscretionary and shall be in the amount of 10% of
168168 the cost reduction, accrued during the first 12 months after implementation
169169 of the suggestion, as documented to the division of the budget, up to a
170170 maximum of $5,000. Should multiple employees make similar suggestions
171171 for cost reduction, as determined by the state agency, each employee shall
172172 submit to the head of the state agency a list of each employee's percentage
173173 contribution to the suggestion for cost reduction. Upon adoption of the
174174 suggestion by the state agency, the head of the state agency shall make the
175175 final determination as to each employee's percentage contribution. Such
176176 multiple employees shall then share the documented cost reduction in such
177177 percentage shares as determined by the head of the state agency, up to a
178178 maximum of $5,000 per employee.
179179 (C) The state agency shall retain 10% of the documented cost
180180 reduction. Savings achieved through this cost reduction shall be placed in
181181 a separate special revenue fund or funds for such purpose to be
182182 administered by that state agency. The remaining balance of the savings
183183 achieved through this cost reduction shall revert to the state general fund.
184184 (2) Each state agency shall submit each suggestion it that such
185185 agency receives, together with the state agency's estimated cost reduction,
186186 if any, and dispensation of the suggestion to the division of the budget. The
187187 director of the budget shall file copies with the director of the legislative
188188 research department, who shall report annually on the information to
189189 members of the legislative budget committee.
190190 (3) Each state agency that has awarded an employee under the state
191191 agency's employee suggestion program pursuant to this subsection shall
192192 report all information related to the award to the secretary of
193193 administration.
194194 (4) At the beginning of each regular session of the legislature, the
195195 secretary of administration shall provide all information received by state
196196 agencies pursuant to subsection (g)(3) to the appropriate committees of the
197197 legislature.
198198 (5) The secretary of administration shall provide all information
199199 regarding the state employee suggestion program to all state agencies by a
200200 pamphlet, brochure or by publication on the official website of the
201201 department of administration.
202202 (h) Awards and incentives and other recognition pursuant to this
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246246 section shall not be deemed in violation of K.S.A. 46-237a, and
247247 amendments thereto.
248248 (i) Any person elected or appointed to a state agency position shall
249249 not be a recipient of a monetary award under this section.
250250 (j) Annually, on August 1, each state agency that has awarded an
251251 employee with a monetary award pursuant to this section shall submit to
252252 the secretary of administration a report on the number of monetary
253253 awards paid in each category of awards or bonuses and the total dollar
254254 amount of each such award or bonus for the previous fiscal year. At the
255255 beginning of each regular session of the legislature, the secretary shall
256256 compile and report such information to the house of representatives
257257 committee on appropriations and the senate committee on ways and
258258 means.
259259 Sec. 2. K.S.A. 75-37,105 is hereby repealed.
260260 Sec. 3. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after its
261261 publication in the statute book.
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