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Senate Commerce panel advances SB197 with new Star Bonds limits, bonding change
Summary
The Senate Commerce Committee voted to advance a substitute for SB197 that changes the Star Bonds program, including a three-year sunset on reauthorization, a narrow allowance for vertical construction in small cities, and authority for special-obligation bonds through the Kansas Development Finance Authority.
The Senate Commerce Committee on an undisclosed date approved a substitute for Senate Bill 197 that changes the scope and oversight of the state's Star Bonds program, including shortening the program's reauthorization from five years to three and adding authority for special-obligation bonds through the Kansas Development Finance Authority.
The substitute bill was recommended favorably for passage after debate and several amendments. Committee members split over adding an explicit requirement that the State Finance Council approve Star Bond projects; an effort to reopen that amendment failed 6-5.
The committee-approved substitute includes at least three substantive changes: a sunset provision shortening the reauthorization period to three years, a narrowly tailored allowance that would let the Secretary of Commerce approve vertical construction inside an approved Star Bond district in cities with populations under 60,000 if approved before Dec. 31, 2025, and a new Section 2 authorizing the Kansas Development Finance Authority to issue special-obligation bonds for Star Bond projects that…
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