Session of 2025
HOUSE BILL No. 2349
By Committee on Judiciary
Requested by Marlee Carpenter on behalf of the City of Wichita and Wichita
Police Department
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AN ACT concerning the scrap metal theft reduction act; authorizing law
enforcement officers to conduct investigations of violations of the act;
establishing criminal penalties for certain violations of the act;
permitting municipalities to enact or enforce ordinances, resolutions
and regulations relating to scrap metal that are not in conflict with the
act; amending K.S.A. 2024 Supp. 50-6,109a, 50-6,109c and 50-6,109f
and repealing the existing sections.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Kansas:
Section 1. K.S.A. 2024 Supp. 50-6,109a is hereby amended to read as
follows: 50-6,109a. (a) (1) Except as provided in paragraphs (2) and (3),
the attorney general is hereby given jurisdiction and authority over all
matters involving the implementation, administration and enforcement of
the provisions of the scrap metal theft reduction act including to:
(1)(A) Employ or appoint agents as necessary to implement,
administer and enforce the act;
(2)(B) contract;
(3)(C) expend funds;
(4)(D) license and discipline;
(5)(E) investigate;
(6)(F) issue subpoenas;
(7)(G) keep statistics; and
(8)(H) conduct education and outreach programs to promote
compliance with the act.
(2) Kansas law enforcement officers are hereby authorized to conduct
investigations of violations of the scrap metal theft reduction act. Upon
conclusion of an investigation, investigative reports shall be submitted to
the attorney general regardless of whether any local action was taken as a
result of such investigation.
(3) Any local enforcement action taken for a violation of the scrap
metal theft reduction act shall be reported to the attorney general.
(b) In accordance with the rules and regulations filing act, the
attorney general is hereby authorized to adopt rules and regulations
necessary to implement the provisions of the scrap metal theft reduction
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act.
(c) There is hereby established in the state treasury the scrap metal
theft reduction fee fund to be administered by the attorney general. All
moneys received by the attorney general from fees, charges or penalties
collected under the provisions of the scrap metal theft reduction act shall
be remitted to the state treasurer in accordance with the provisions of
K.S.A. 75-4215, and amendments thereto, who shall deposit the entire
amount thereof in the state treasury to the credit of the scrap metal theft
reduction fee fund. All expenditures from such fund shall be made in
accordance with appropriation acts upon warrants of the director of
accounts and reports issued pursuant to vouchers approved by the attorney
general or the attorney general's designee. All moneys credited to the scrap
metal theft reduction fee fund shall be expended for the administration of
the duties, functions and operating expenses incurred under the provisions
of the scrap metal theft reduction act.
(d) There is hereby established in the state treasury the scrap metal
data repository fund to be administered by the director of the Kansas
bureau of investigation. All expenditures from such fund shall be made in
accordance with appropriation acts upon warrants of the director of
accounts and reports issued pursuant to vouchers approved by the director
of the Kansas bureau of investigation or the director's designee. All
moneys credited to the scrap metal data repository fund shall be expended
for the administration of the duties, functions and operating expenses
incurred under the provisions of the scrap metal theft reduction act.
(e) The attorney general may transfer any moneys from the scrap
metal theft reduction fee fund to the scrap metal data repository fund. The
attorney general shall certify each such transfer to the director of accounts
and reports and shall transmit a copy of each such certification to the
director of the budget and the director of legislative research.
(f) On July 1, 2020, the Kansas bureau of investigation shall establish
and maintain a database which shall be a central repository for the
information required to be provided under K.S.A. 2024 Supp. 50-6,110,
and amendments thereto. The database shall be maintained for the purpose
of providing information to law enforcement and for any other purpose
deemed necessary by the attorney general to implement and enforce the
provisions of the scrap metal theft reduction act.
(g) The information maintained in such database by the Kansas
bureau of investigation, or by any entity contracting with the Kansas
bureau of investigation, submitted to, maintained or stored as part of the
system may be provided to the attorney general and shall:
(1) Be confidential, shall only be used for investigatory, evidentiary
or analysis purposes related to criminal violations of city, state or federal
law and shall only be released to law enforcement in response to an
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official investigation or as permitted in subsection (f); and
(2) not be a public record and shall not be subject to the Kansas open
records act, K.S.A. 45-215 et seq., and amendments thereto.
(h) On or before February 1, 2021, and annually on or before
February 1 thereafter, the attorney general shall submit a report to the
president of the senate, the speaker of the house of representatives and the
standing committees on judiciary in the senate and the house of
representatives on the implementation, administration and enforcement of
the provisions of the scrap metal theft reduction act.
(i) Any entity contracting with the attorney general or the Kansas
bureau of investigation to provide or maintain the database required by this
section shall not require a scrap metal dealer to contract with such entity
for the authority to release proprietary or confidential data, including, but
not limited to, customer information. Such entity shall not charge any fee
to the scrap metal dealer as a condition of providing information to the
database as required by the scrap metal theft reduction act, including, but
not limited to, a fee for electronic submission of information.
(j) A scrap metal dealer providing information to the database as
required by the scrap metal theft reduction act shall not be subject to civil
liability for any claim arising from the negligence or omission by the state
of Kansas or any contracting entity in the collection, storing or release of
information provided by such scrap metal dealer to the database.
Sec. 2. K.S.A. 2024 Supp. 50-6,109c is hereby amended to read as
follows: 50-6,109c. (a) Any scrap metal dealer who violates any of the
provisions of the scrap metal theft reduction act, in addition to any other
penalty provided by law, may incur a civil penalty imposed pursuant to
subsection (b) in an amount not less than $100 nor more than $5,000 for
each violation.
(b) The attorney general, upon a finding that a scrap metal dealer or
any employee or agent thereof or any person or entity required to be
registered as a scrap metal dealer has violated any of the provisions of the
scrap metal theft reduction act may impose a civil penalty as provided in
this subsection upon such scrap metal dealer.
(c) A civil penalty shall not be imposed pursuant to this section
except upon the written order of the attorney general to the scrap metal
dealer who is responsible for the violation. Such order is a final order for
purposes of judicial review and shall state the violation, the penalty to be
imposed and the right of such dealer to appeal as provided in the Kansas
judicial review act.
(d) (1) It shall be unlawful for any person to knowingly commit a
violation of K.S.A. 50-6,110 or 50-6,111, and amendments thereto, by:
(A) Avoiding the reporting requirements of such section;
(B) using a false description of the items sold or purchased;
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(C) concealing the true identity of the seller; or
(D) accepting items a scrap metal dealer is prohibited from accepting
pursuant to such section.
(2) Violation of this subsection is a:
(A) Class B nonperson misdemeanor, except as provided in
subsection (d)(2)(B); and
(B) class A nonperson misdemeanor upon a second or subsequent
conviction.
(e) (1) It shall be unlawful for any person to knowingly commit a
violation of K.S.A. 50-6,112, and amendments thereto, by:
(A) Purchasing scrap metal while the registration required in K.S.A.
50-6,112, and amendments thereto, is suspended or revoked; or
(B) committing two or more violations of purchasing scrap metal
without registering as required in K.S.A. 50-6,112, and amendments
thereto.
(2) Violation of this subsection is a class A nonperson misdemeanor.
Sec. 3. K.S.A. 2024 Supp. 50-6,109f is hereby amended to read as
follows: 50-6,109f. (a) A municipality shall not enact or enforce any
ordinance, resolution or regulation relating to the implementation,
administration and enforcement of the provisions of the scrap metal theft
reduction act that is in conflict with this act and any criminal or civil
penalty for violation of such ordinance, resolution or regulation shall be
the same as the penalty prescribed for the comparable violation of this act.
(b) Any ordinance, resolution or regulation prohibited by subsection
(a) that was adopted prior to July 1, 2015, shall be null and void. On and
after July 1, 2025, a municipality may enact and enforce any ordinance,
resolution or regulation permitted by subsection (a).
(c) No action shall be commenced or prosecuted against any
individual for a violation of any ordinance, resolution or regulation that is
prohibited by subsection (a) and which was adopted prior to July 1, 2015,
if such violation occurred on or after July 1, 2014.
(d) As used in this section, "municipality" has the means the same
meaning as defined in K.S.A. 75-6102, and amendments thereto.
Sec. 4. K.S.A. 2024 Supp. 50-6,109a, 50-6,109c and 50-6,109f are
hereby repealed.
Sec. 5. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after its
publication in the statute book.
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