Kansas bill would remove several routine filing requirements with secretary of state

At a hearing of the Committee on Government Efficiency, proponents described a bill that would repeal several statutory requirements to file documents with the Kansas Secretary of State, saying the filings are rarely used and impose administrative costs.

Proponents told the committee the measure would remove requirements that a range of records — from certain labor-organization materials to university reciprocal agreements, specific tax-abatement records, water-office easements and bonded-warehouse licensing papers — be filed with the Secretary of State’s office. Clay Barker, general counsel for the Office of the Secretary of State, said the filings “are just one less thing for us to do” and that his office rarely receives public requests for the records.

The bill would repeal three categories of labor-organization filing requirements: submission of constitutions and bylaws, an annual financial/reporting form, and registration of a business agent. Barker said his office proposed an amendment during committee negotiations to retain the business-agent certificate requirement after learning business agents often carry the state-issued certificate as one form of proof of representation. "I want to lower expectations that this bill will not revolutionize state government. It's trying to get rid of a lot of small filings that...no one ever goes to our office to look at," Barker said.

Barker described other filing removals targeted by the bill: statutes that currently require the Kansas Board of Regents to file reciprocal agreements with out-of-state institutions (identified in testimony as K.S.A. 74-3220 and 74-3221), three types of tax-abatement approvals processed by the Department of Revenue's Board of Tax Appeals, easements the Kansas Water Office records for conservation projects, and licensing paperwork for bonded warehouse operators. He said those originating agencies typically retain the operative records and that the Secretary of State’s copies are rarely consulted.

Barker gave examples to illustrate volume and burden: his office found a tax-abatement filing from 1992 in its files while cleaning, and said drafting online filing capability for these items would require roughly 200 hours of IT work per filing type. When asked about savings, Barker estimated the bill would avoid about 400 hours of one-time IT development and free roughly 50 staff hours per year; he also said eliminating filings was unlikely to reduce full-time positions.

Bonded-warehouse filings were described as a near-century-old relic: Barker said the bond-linked tax advantage that once justified many bonded warehouses no longer exists and that the number of bonded warehouses had fallen to about 11. He said the bill would remove the state's role in issuing a license while keeping criminal penalties for falsely claiming bonded-warehouse status if a business lacks the required bond.

Jake Miller, executive director of the Working Kansas Alliance, filed written testimony in support of the bill as amended. Committee members asked clarifying questions about the amendment that would restore the business-agent certificate requirement; committee staff confirmed the amendment language on the committee S‑drive corresponds to that "unrepeal" of the business-agent certificate provision.

No formal vote was recorded at the hearing. Committee members were told the insurance department will appear at a subsequent meeting to discuss its efficiency efforts and that similar consolidation bills could be brought forward by other agencies.

The committee may work amendments before deciding whether to advance the bill.