SESSION OF 2025
CONFERENCE COMMITTEE REPORT BRIEF
SENATE BILL NO. 139
As Agreed to March 24, 2025
Brief*
SB 139 would amend the State Banking Code (Banking Code) as follows:
●Require administrative hearings to be held in accordance with the Kansas
Administrative Procedure Act (KAPA) when determining whether a bank is a holding
company and whether a cease-and-desist order should be issued by the State
Banking Board;
●Require notification to be provided to the State Bank Commissioner (Commissioner)
regarding changes to key leadership positions of bank and trust companies;
●Address when the charter of a bank or trust company would be void after an
approved merger;
●Exempt certain bank or trust companies from approval by the Commissioner to
lawfully engage in banking or trust business in the state;
●Remove the requirement that certain certified documents be provided with an
application for the contracting of trust services if certain conditions are met;
●Expand the allowable distance for the relocation of a trust office; and
●Amend the requirements for non-resident trust companies to do business in Kansas.
The bill would correct a statutory reference and make technical amendments.
Definition Pertaining to Bank Holding Companies (Section 1)
The bill would amend the definition of a “bank holding company” to specify that a hearing
to determine whether a bank is a holding company must be conducted in accordance with the
KAPA.
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*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 https://klrd.gov/
1 - 139 Branch Banking (Section 2)
The bill would correct a statutory reference.
Notification Requirements of Changes in Key Positions of Bank and Trust Companies
(Section 3)
The bill would require each bank and trust company to file an oath with the Commissioner
within 15 days of the election of any officer or director. The bill would require each bank and
trust company to notify the Commissioner of:
●Any newly appointed chief executive officer, president, or directors prior to the
commencement of such individuals’ duties; and
●Any executive officer, president, or director who is voluntarily or involuntarily relieved
from the position’s duties within five business days.
Mergers Resulting in a National Bank (Section 4)
The bill would require the charter of a bank or trust company that will cease to exist after
an approved merger to be deemed void on the next business day immediately following the
merger consummation date.
Administrative Hearing Requirement on Cease-and-desist Orders (Section 5)
The bill would require administrative hearings that determine whether a cease-and-desist
order should be issued by the State Banking Board be held in accordance with the KAPA.
Exemption from Commissioner’s Approval to Lawfully Engage in Banking or Trust
Company Business (Section 6)
The bill would exempt banks with federally insured deposits that are either chartered in
Kansas, another state, or the federal government from first having to obtain authority from the
Commissioner to lawfully engage in the banking business.
The bill would also provide that a federally insured bank or credit union with authorization
from another state or the federal government to engage in trust business in Kansas would be
exempt from the provision that makes it unlawful for any individual, firm, or corporation to
advertise, publish, or otherwise communicate that such entity is engaged in the trust business
without first having obtained authority from the Commissioner.
Documents Required for an Application for the Contracting of Trust Services (Section 7)
The bill would remove the requirement that the following certified copies be provided with
the application made to the Commissioner for the contracting of trust services:
2 - 139 ●The written action taken by the board of directors of the originating trustee or financial
institution approving the agreement; and
●Proof of publication of notice that the applicant intends to file or has filed an
application.
If the originating trustee or financial institution is transferring more than 50 percent of the
financial institution’s total fiduciary accounts, the bill would reinstate the requirement that
certified copies of the two documents referenced above be included with the application for the
contracting of trust services.
Relocation of a Trust Office (Section 8)
The bill would extend the Commissioner’s authority to exempt from the application process
a trust company proposing to relocate an existing trust service office to less than 10 miles from
the trust company’s existing location. [Note: Current law allows such an exemption only for a
relocation less than 1 mile from the existing location.]
If an exemption is granted, the bill would require each trust company to document the
written action taken by the board of directors of the trust company approving the proposed
relocation of the trust office and all other required regulatory approvals.
Requirements for Non-resident Trust Companies to Do Business in Kansas (Section 9)
The bill would allow the Commissioner to require any non-resident trust company to meet
the greater of the requirements stated under the Banking Code or the laws of the non-resident
trust company’s home state required for a Kansas trust company to do business in the non-
resident trust company’s home state.
Additional Statutes Repealed
The bill would repeal the following statutes not amended in the bill:
●KSA 9-2101, pertaining to the issuance by the Commissioner of a certificate of
authority as a bank to a trust company authorized to accept deposits upon the
surrender of such trust company’s charter; and
●KSA 16-842, pertaining to when a credit card holder is liable for unauthorized use and
the actions for enforcement of liability.
Conference Committee Action
The Conference Committee agreed to SB 139 as passed by the Senate Committee of the
Whole, removing the amendment made by the House Committee on Financial Institutions and
Pensions changing the bill’s effective date.
3 - 139 Background
The bill was introduced by the Senate Committee on Financial Institutions and Insurance at
the request of a representative of the Office of the State Bank Commissioner (OSBC).
Senate Committee on Financial Institutions and Insurance
In the Senate Committee hearing, proponent testimony was provided by representatives
of the Kansas Bankers Association (KBA) and the OSBC.
The OSBC representative stated the bill would make key changes that affect trust
companies. The OSBC representative stated allowing an originating trustee to transfer fiduciary
assets to a contracting trustee without written action by the originating trustee’s board of
directors or proof of publication in a newspaper if less than 50 percent of the originating
trustee’s fiduciary assets could allow a top-ten bank by asset size to transfer fiduciary assets to
a Kansas trust company.
The OSBC representative stated the bill would increase the distance allowed when a trust
company relocates, making it easier to find a new office location. The OSBC representative
noted the bill could ensure out-of-state trust companies doing business in Kansas adhere to the
same requirements as a Kansas trust company doing business in its home state if such
requirements are stricter than the Banking Code.
The KBA representative stated the bill would clean up provisions within the Banking Code
and other banking statutes to keep them streamlined and up-to-date. The KBA representative
stated the amendment proposed in the KBA testimony was withdrawn.
No other testimony was provided.
House Committee on Financial Institutions and Pensions
In the House Committee hearing, proponent testimony was provided by a representative
of the OSBC, who generally stated the bill would make Kansas more attractive to certain trusts
and make minor changes to the Banking Code.
Written-only proponent testimony was provided by a representative of the KBA.
No other testimony was provided.
The House Committee amended the bill to change the effective date to upon publication in
the Kansas Register. [Note: The Conference Committee did not retain this amendment.]
Fiscal Information
According to the fiscal note prepared by the Division of the Budget on the bill, as
introduced, the OSBC indicates that it has only had one trust company relocate in the last three
years from its previous location. The OSBC indicates the agency would be able to use existing
resources to approve these relocations.
4 - 139 The Judicial Branch indicates enactment of the bill could increase the number of cases
filed in district courts because it expands the crime of unlawfully engaging in banking or trust
company business. These provisions of the bill would increase time spent by district court
judicial and non-judicial personnel in processing, researching, and hearing cases. Because the
crime committed under the bill would carry a class A nonperson misdemeanor penalty, there
could be additional supervision of offenders. The enactment of the bill could increase the
collection of docket fees, fines, and supervision fees that would be deposited into the State
General Fund. The agency indicates it is unable to estimate a fiscal effect.
The Office of Administrative Hearings believes the number of additional cases that might
come before the agency and require an actual hearing under KAPA would be minimal. The
agency states it would be able to absorb the increased caseload within existing resources.
Any fiscal effect associated with the bill is not reflected in The FY 2026 Governor’s Budget
Report.
State Banking Code; definitions, terms, and conditions; hearings; Kansas Administrative Procedure Act; board member change
notification; bank charters; mergers; State Bank Commissioner
ccrb_sb139_01_0324259am.odt
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