Session of 1999
         
HOUSE BILL No. 2547
         
By Committee on Appropriations
         
3-4
         
  9             AN  ACT establishing the state official gifts commission; relating to cer-
10             tain gifts received by statewide elected officers; prescribing certain
11             guidelines and authorizing certain dispositions; amending K.S.A. 1998
12             Supp. 46-237 and repealing the existing section.
13      
14       Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Kansas:
15             New Section  1. (a) There is hereby established the state official gifts
16       commission to determine the disposition of gifts received by statewide
17       elected officers on behalf of the state of Kansas. The commission is com-
18       posed of the secretary of the state historical society, or the secretary's
19       designee, the chief justice of the supreme court, or the chief justice's
20       designee, and the executive director of the governmental ethics commis-
21       sion, or the director's designee. The members of the state official gifts
22       commission shall receive no compensation for service as members of the
23       commission. The secretary of the state historical society, or the person
24       serving as the secretary's designee, shall be the chairperson of the state
25       official gifts commission.
26             (b) The state official gifts commission shall meet upon call of any
27       statewide elected officer to review one or more gifts received by that
28       statewide elected officer on behalf of the state or, after the end of the
29       term of office of a person who was serving as a statewide elected officer,
30       upon the request of such person for the purpose of reviewing one or
31       more gifts received by that person. After a statewide elected officer re-
32       ceives any gift on behalf of the state, the statewide elected officer shall
33       notify the state official gifts commission and the commission shall sched-
34       ule an open public meeting to review the gift and to render the commis-
35       sion's decision and authorize the disposition of the gift. In reviewing each
36       such gift the commission shall consider, among other factors deemed
37       relevant by the commission, the following: (1) The historical, cultural and
38       other value or significance of the gift and the merits of preserving the gift
39       for the state by authorizing the placement of the gift with the state his-
40       torical society in a collection of the state historical museum or in a col-
41       lection in a museum of a state educational institution or other appropriate
42       state repository; and (2) the merit of allowing the gift to be retained by
43       the person who received it on behalf of the state.

HB 2547

2

  1             (c) Each decision and determination of the state official gifts com-
  2       mission shall be made in an open public meeting and a written report of
  3       all decisions by the commission shall be prepared by the secretary of the
  4       state historical society and shall be filed with the governmental ethics
  5       commission, the secretary of state and the legislative coordinating council.
  6             (d) The state official gifts commission is hereby authorized to make
  7       the following decisions and authorize the following dispositions of a gift
  8       received on behalf of the state by a statewide elected officer: (1) The gift
  9       may be determined to be appropriately preserved for the state by keeping
10       such gift in the office of the statewide elected officer; (2) the gift may be
11       determined to be appropriately preserved for the state by placing such
12       gift in the custody of the state historical society to be placed in the col-
13       lection of the state historical museum or in a museum of a state educa-
14       tional institution or other appropriate state repository, as determined by
15       the state historical society; (3) the gift may be transferred to the ownership
16       of the person who received such gift as a statewide elected officer for the
17       purpose of donating such gift to a charitable organization, as may be
18       specified by the commission; (4) the gift may be transferred to the own-
19       ership of the person who received such gift as a statewide elected officer,
20       to be disposed of at the discretion of such statewide elected officer; or
21       (5) the gift may be authorized and directed to be publicly sold by the
22       statewide elected officer in accordance with such procedures as may be
23       specified by the commission or the gift may be authorized and directed
24       to be disposed of in accordance with the provisions of the state surplus
25       property act.
26             (e) No gift received on behalf of the state shall be disposed of or
27       subject to the provisions of the state surplus property act, unless the state
28       official gift commission has specifically determined and authorized by
29       disposition of such gift to be in accordance with and subject to the state
30       surplus property act. In any case of a disposition determined and author-
31       ized by the state official gift commission to be in accordance with the
32       provisions of the state surplus property act, the proceeds shall be depos-
33       ited and credited as prescribed under the state surplus property act. In
34       any case of the sale of any such gift in accordance with the procedures
35       specified by the state official gift commission under this section, all mon-
36       eys received from such sale shall be deposited in the state treasury to the
37       credit of the state general fund.
38             (f) The provisions of this section shall apply to all gifts received by
39       statewide elected officers before the effective date of this act as well as
40       to all such gifts received by statewide elected officers on or after the
41       effective date of this act.
42             (g) As used in this section, "statewide elected officer" means the gov-
43       ernor, lieutenant governor, secretary of state, state treasurer, attorney

HB 2547

3

  1       general or commissioner of insurance.
  2             Sec.  2. K.S.A. 1998 Supp. 46-237 is hereby amended to read as fol-
  3       lows: 46-237. (a) No state officer or employee, candidate for state office
  4       or state officer elect shall accept, or agree to accept any economic op-
  5       portunity, gift, loan, gratuity, special discount, favor, hospitality, or service
  6       having an aggregate value of $40 or more in any calendar year from any
  7       one person known to have a special interest, under circumstances where
  8       such person knows or should know that a major purpose of the donor is
  9       to influence such person in the performance of their official duties or
10       prospective official duties.
11             (b) No person with a special interest shall offer, pay, give or make
12       any economic opportunity, gift, loan, gratuity, special discount, favor, hos-
13       pitality or service having an aggregate value of $40 or more in any calendar
14       year to any state officer or employee, candidate for state office or state
15       officer elect with a major purpose of influencing such officer or employee,
16       candidate for state office or state officer elect in the performance of of-
17       ficial duties or prospective official duties.
18             (c) No person licensed, inspected or regulated by a state agency shall
19       offer, pay, give or make any economic opportunity, gift, loan, gratuity,
20       special discount, favor, hospitality, or service having an aggregate value
21       of $40 or more in any calendar year to such agency or any state officer
22       or employee, candidate for state office or state officer elect of that agency.
23             (d) Hospitality in the form of recreation, food and beverages is pre-
24       sumed not to be given to influence a state officer or employee, candidate
25       for state office or state officer elect in the performance of official duties
26       or prospective official duties, except when a particular course of official
27       action is to be followed as a condition thereon. For the purposes of this
28       subsection, the term recreation shall not include the providing or the
29       payment of the cost of transportation or lodging.
30             (e) Except when a particular course of official action is to be followed
31       as a condition thereon, this section shall not apply to: (1) Any contribution
32       reported in compliance with the campaign finance act; or (2) a commer-
33       cially reasonable loan or other commercial transaction in the ordinary
34       course of business.
35             (f) No state officer or employee shall accept any payment of honoraria
36       for any speaking engagement except that a member of the state legislature
37       or a part-time officer or employee of the executive branch of government
38       shall be allowed to receive reimbursement in the preparation for and the
39       making of a presentation at a speaking engagement in an amount fixed
40       by the commission prior to the acceptance of the speaking engagement.
41       Nothing in this section shall be construed to prohibit the reimbursement
42       of state officers and employees for reasonable expenses incurred in at-
43       tending seminars, conferences and other speaking engagements.

HB 2547

4

  1             (g) The provisions of this section shall not be applicable to or prohibit
  2       the acceptance of gifts from governmental agencies of foreign nations
  3       except that any gift accepted from such foreign governmental agency,
  4       having an aggregate value of $100 or more, shall be accepted on behalf
  5       of the state of Kansas.
  6             (h) No legislator shall solicit any contribution to be made to any or-
  7       ganization for the purpose of paying for travel, subsistence and other
  8       expenses incurred by such legislator or other members of the legislature
  9       in attending and participating in meetings, programs and activities of such
10       organization or those conducted or sponsored by such organization, but
11       nothing in this act or the act of which this act is amendatory shall be
12       construed to prohibit any legislator from accepting reimbursement for
13       actual expenses for travel, subsistence, hospitality, entertainment and
14       other expenses incurred in attending and participating in meetings, pro-
15       grams and activities sponsored by the government of any foreign nation,
16       or any organization organized under the laws of such foreign nation or
17       any international organization or any national, nonprofit, nonpartisan or-
18       ganization established for the purpose of serving, informing, educating
19       and strengthening state legislatures in all states of the nation, when paid
20       from funds of such organization and nothing shall be construed to limit
21       or prohibit the expenditure of funds of and by any such organization for
22       such purposes.
23             (i) This section shall not apply to any gift received on behalf of the
24       state by a statewide elected offices, as defined in section 1 and amend-
25       ments thereto, that is authorized by the state official gifts commission to
26       be retained by the person who received such gift on behalf of the state. 
27       Sec.  3. K.S.A. 1998 Supp. 46-237 is hereby repealed.
28         Sec.  4. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after its
29       publication in the statute book.