Kansas committee advances bill extending protections to federal officers, creates misdemeanor for approaching first responders

The Kansas Senate Federal and State Affairs committee on Tuesday voted to advance Senate Bill 452, a bill that would expand the definition of "law enforcement officer" across several state statutes to include federal law enforcement officers and add related protections for federal vehicles.

Jason, the committee reviser, summarized the bill for members, saying it "expands the definition of law enforcement officer" in state traffic and abandoned-vehicle statutes to include federal officers and "amends the Tort Claims Act" so that enforcement of federal laws and executive orders can be covered by the state's immunity framework. Jason added that the bill "expands the crime of interference with the law enforcement officer to include federal law enforcement officers and so on."

Committee members focused on two sets of changes that were added or clarified in committee: language covering federal vehicles and an amendment that would create a new misdemeanor for approaching…