Session of 1998
                   
HOUSE BILL No. 2845
         
By Representative Kirk, Alldritt, Ballard, Burroughs, Correll, Crow,
                Dean, Dillon, Feuerborn, Findley, Flaharty, Flora, Garner, Gilbert,
                Haley, Helgerson, Henderson, Kuether, McClure, McKechnie, Nich-
                ols, Pauls, E.Peterson, Phelps, Reardon, Reinhardt, Ruff, Sawyer,
                Sharp, Showalter, Shriver, Storm, Toelkes, Wells and Welshimer
               
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          13             AN ACT establishing the early childhood development trust fund; cre-
14             ating a board of trustees; prescribing powers, duties and functions;
15             prescribing guidelines for grants.
16            
17       Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Kansas:
18           Section 1. The provisions of sections 1 through 7 and amendments
19       thereto shall be known and may be cited as the early childhood devel-
20       opment trust fund act.
21           Sec. 2. As used in the early childhood development trust fund act:
22           (a) ``Board of trustees'' means the board of trustees established by
23       section 3 and amendments thereto; and
24           (b) ``early childhood development program or activity'' includes such
25       programs and services provided or administered by businesses, govern-
26       mental entities or other entities or organizations that are community pro-
27       viders of early childhood development programs or services which include
28       health, nutrition, education, social services or other components designed
29       to provide for the healthy and educational growth and development of
30       preschool aged Kansas residents.
31           Sec. 3. (a) There is hereby established a board of trustees for the
32       early childhood development trust fund. The board of trustees shall be
33       composed of 11 members as follows:
34           (1) One member shall be a member of the senate appointed by the
35       president of the senate;
36           (2) one member shall be a member of the senate appointed by the
37       minority leader of the senate;
38           (3) one member shall be a member of the house of representatives
39       appointed by the speaker of the house of representatives;
40           (4) one member shall be a member of the house of representatives
41       appointed by the minority leader of the house of representatives;
42           (5) three members shall be officers or employees of agencies in the
43       executive branch of state government appointed by the governor; and

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  1           (6) four members shall be persons who have recognized expertise in
  2       early childhood development programs or services.
  3           (b) Each member of the board of trustees who is a member of the
  4       senate or house of representatives appointed in accordance with para-
  5       graph (1), (2), (3) or (4) of subsection (a) shall serve for a term of office
  6       ending on the first day of the regular session of the legislature occurring
  7       in odd-numbered years.
  8           (c) The members of the board of trustees appointed by the governor
  9       in accordance with paragraph (5) of subsection (a) shall serve at the plea-
10       sure of the governor.
11           (d) Each member of the board of trustees appointed by the governor
12       in accordance with paragraph (6) of subsection (a) shall serve for a term
13       of office of four years, except that the first persons appointed shall serve
14       for terms of office as follows:
15           (1) One member shall serve for a term of office ending on July 1,
16       1999;
17           (2) one member shall serve for a term of office ending on July 1,
18       2000;
19           (3) one member shall serve for a term of office ending on July 1,
20       2001; and
21           (4) one member shall serve for a term of office ending on July 1,
22       2002.
23           (e) Each member of the board of trustees shall hold office until a
24       successor is appointed and qualified. Whenever a vacancy occurs in the
25       office of a member of the board of trustees it shall be filled by appoint-
26       ment for the remainder of the unexpired term in the same manner as the
27       original appointment to the office.
28           (f) Members of the board of trustees shall serve without compensa-
29       tion. Members of the board of trustees attending meetings of the board,
30       or attending a subcommittee meeting thereof authorized by the board of
31       trustees, shall be paid travel expenses and subsistence expenses or allow-
32       ances as provided in K.S.A. 75-3212 and amendments thereto.
33           Sec. 4. The board of trustees shall appoint an executive director who
34       shall keep a record of all proceedings, communications and official acts
35       of the board of trustees and shall perform such other duties as the board
36       of trustees may prescribe. The executive director shall be in the unclas-
37       sified service under the Kansas civil service act. Subject to the provisions
38       of appropriation acts, the board of trustees may appoint other employees
39       who shall be in the classified service under the Kansas civil service act.
40           Sec. 5. For the purposes of the early childhood development trust
41       fund act, the board of trustees is hereby authorized to solicit or apply for
42       and to accept gifts, grants and donations from any person, firm, associa-
43       tion, foundation or corporation or from any federal, state or local govern-

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  1       mental agency or authority. In addition to other contracts and agreements
  2       that may be necessary or convenient for the board of trustees to enter
  3       into, the board of trustees may enter into agreements with any such per-
  4       sons, organizations, agencies or other entities in connection with any such
  5       gifts, grants or donations. All moneys received by or on behalf of the
  6       boards of trustees as gifts, grants or donations shall be deposited in the
  7       state treasury to the credit of the early childhood development trust fund.
  8           Sec. 6. (a) The board of trustees shall develop and administer a com-
  9       petitive grant program for early childhood development programs and
10       activities in Kansas. At least annually, the board of trustees shall deter-
11       mine the amount of earnings on the moneys credited to the early child-
12       hood development trust fund that is available for grants. If the board of
13       trustees determines that the amount available in the early childhood de-
14       velopment trust fund is sufficient to award one or more early childhood
15       development grants, the board of trustees shall issue requests for pro-
16       posals for grant awards in accordance with the early childhood develop-
17       ment trust fund act.
18           (b) Each early childhood development grant awarded by the board
19       of trustees shall be for an early childhood development program or activ-
20       ity that the board of trustees determines will provide for or otherwise
21       directly assist in assuring the healthy development of preschool aged Kan-
22       sas residents. In issuing requests for proposals and making such grants,
23       the board of trustees shall encourage proposals for new or creative pro-
24       grams or activities in addition to established or current programs or ac-
25       tivities. Prior to January 1, 1999, the board of trustees shall issue the
26       request for proposals for the first childhood development grant to be
27       awarded under this act.
28           (c) In addition to other criteria prescribed by the board of trustees,
29       the board of trustees shall require each proposal for a grant to demon-
30       strate that the proposal has been developed with substantial and effective
31       collaboration and coordination between the applicant and the public and
32       private organizations in the community that are directly involved or oth-
33       erwise recognized as interested in the development and operation of early
34       childhood development programs or activities, including schools, com-
35       munity mental health centers and organizations, community develop-
36       mental disability organizations, public health and social services agencies
37       and other local governmental entities, and eleemosynary organizations
38       and entities.
39           Sec. 7. (a) There is hereby established in the state treasury the early
40       childhood development trust fund which shall be administered by the
41       board of trustees established under section 2 and amendments thereto.
42       Moneys credited to the early childhood development trust fund may be
43       expended by the board of trustees only for operating expenses of the

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  1       board of trustees and the executive director and other employees of the
  2       board and for grants in accordance with the provisions of the early child-
  3       hood development trust fund act. All expenditures from the early child-
  4       hood development trust fund shall be made in accordance with appro-
  5       priation acts upon warrants of the director of accounts and reports issued
  6       pursuant to vouchers approved by the chair of the board of trustees or
  7       by a person or persons designated by the board of trustees.
  8           (b) On or before the 10th day of each month, the director of accounts
  9       and reports shall transfer from the state general fund to the early child-
10       hood development trust fund interest earnings based on:
11           (1) The average daily balance of moneys in the early childhood de-
12       velopment trust fund for the preceding month; and
13           (2) the net earnings rate of the pooled money investment portfolio
14       for the preceding month.
15           (c) On July 1, 1998, the director of accounts and reports shall transfer
16       $15,000,000 from the state general fund to the early childhood develop-
17       ment trust fund, which shall constitute the principal amount of the trust
18       fund. On and after July 1, 1998, in no case shall the amount credited to
19       the early childhood development trust fund be less than $15,000,000,
20       except as authorized by this section for operating expenditures during the
21       fiscal year ending June 30, 1999.
22           (d) All expenditures from the early childhood development trust fund
23       shall be from moneys transferred and credited to the fund for interest
24       earnings under this section, except that expenditures may be made during
25       the fiscal year ending June 30, 1999, from the moneys constituting the
26       principal amount of the trust fund for the operating expenditures of the
27       board of trustees, including expenditures for the executive director and
28       other employees of the board. All amounts expended for such operating
29       expenditures for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1999, from the principal
30       amount of the early childhood development trust fund shall be restored
31       to the principal amount of the trust fund from interest earnings trans-
32       ferred and credited to the trust fund under this section as soon as prac-
33       ticable so that the principal amount is restored to the amount prescribed
34       by subsection (c).
35           Sec. 8. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after its
36       publication in the statute book.
37      
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