Kansas Committee Hears Move‑Over Bill to Protect Disabled Vehicles; $75 Fine Proposed

The House Committee on Transportation heard testimony on Senate Bill 8 on Senate Bill 8 on a proposal that would require drivers to proceed with "due caution" and, where safe and practicable, change lanes when passing stationary vehicles displaying hazard lights, road flares or other caution signals.

Supporters said the measure would create a clear, statewide standard for motorists and noted a $75 fine placed in the bill's uniform fine schedule. "This bill is a two‑prong approach that would protect drivers stranded on the side of the road by disabled vehicles," said Travis Lowe of AAA Kansas. The committee chair said members plan to take final action on the bill at next week's meeting and encouraged placing the bill on the consent calendar.

Committee proponents, including the Kansas Department of Transportation and the Kansas Highway Patrol, framed the bill as a safety and messaging measure. Catherine Magana, legislative policy analyst for the Kansas Department of Transportation, said KDOT crash data for the state system from 2018 to 2023 showed nearly 1,000 crashes in which unoccupied vehicles on the shoulder were struck, resulting in eight fatalities and 25 serious injuries; an additional 82 crashes involved people inside vehicles on the shoulder and produced two fatalities and four serious injuries. "This is first and foremost a safety bill," Magana said.

Captain Candace Brashears of the Kansas Highway Patrol described trooper experience working at the roadside and urged the committee to adopt the same protections now given to emergency and maintenance vehicles. "If you see flashing lights, move over and slow down," Brashears said, adding that troopers have been struck or nearly struck while working on highways.

What the bill would do

Senate Bill 8 would require a driver approaching a stationary vehicle displaying hazard lights, road flares, or caution signals (the bill lists examples such as traffic cones, signs or reflective triangles) to: change lanes away from the stopped vehicle when traveling on a highway with at least two lanes in the same direction if doing so is safe, taking into account traffic and weather; or, if changing lanes would be unsafe or the highway lacks an additional lane, approach with due caution and reduce speed. The bill places the new traffic infraction in the uniform fine schedule with a $75 penalty and, according to testimony, would become effective upon publication of the statute book on July 1, 2025.

Support and legislative history

Proponents noted prior iterations. Committee staff said the bill's language is identical to Senate Bill 142 from last session, which reached conference; committee members and proponents supplied prior vote counts: testimony referenced Senate Committee of the Whole passage of 39‑2‑0 and earlier Senate passage figures reported as 38‑2. House floor votes for the prior package were reported as 104‑18 (and the conference committee report 102‑18) in one committee response. Witnesses said the package that stalled previously included additional distracted‑driving provisions that created controversy; several speakers told the committee that the narrow move‑over language has had broad support.

Questions and concerns

Members asked about the scope and enforcement of the bill. Representative Ballard and others noted the statutory trigger in the draft — that the stopped vehicle must be displaying hazard warning devices — and asked whether a stalled vehicle without lights would be covered. "That's correct," Magana said, adding the bill would not apply to an abandoned vehicle marked by law enforcement tape. Captain Brashears and law‑enforcement witnesses said officers would use discretion in enforcement and consider the totality of circumstances in determining whether a driver had complied.

Several members raised questions about electric vehicles and stalled cars whose batteries might be dead and hazard lights nonfunctional; witnesses suggested educational steps such as encouraging drivers to carry flares or reflective triangles. Ed Klump, legislative liaison for several law‑enforcement associations, warned that making the rule apply to every stopped or parked vehicle would complicate the law (for example, by sweeping in many in‑town, residential parking situations) and said the bill as written struck a balance between clarity and enforceability.

Other testimony and process notes

Written proponent testimony was submitted by the League of Kansas Municipalities and Safe Kids for Kansas, and AAA personnel and Kansas Highway Patrol representatives indicated plans for public education campaigns should the law pass. At the end of the hearing the chair closed testimony on SB 8; the committee later approved a set of previously distributed Transportation minutes by voice vote (motion by Representative Essex, second by Representative Bauhai). The chair reiterated that the committee expects to take final action on Senate Bill 8 at next week's meeting and encouraged members to pursue the consent calendar to minimize repeated floor votes.

Ending

No formal committee vote on Senate Bill 8 occurred at the hearing. The bill remains pending; committee members said they expect to take a final vote at the next scheduled meeting and consider placement on the consent calendar.