Brief ⁽¹⁾

SB 10, as amended, concerns institutions under the jurisdiction of the State Board of Regents. The bill provides that the State Board of Regents shall develop core indicators of quality performance after consideration of the indicators recommended by each postsecondary institution. In the case of community colleges, the State Board shall identify core indicators for each community college separately, after considering the core indicators recommended by each community college's board of trustees. In the case of Washburn University, the area vocational schools, and the technical colleges, the State Board shall consider indicators that have been developed by the respective governing bodies of those institutions, based on the needs of each institution.

A second policy contained in SB 10 would make it clear that the responsibility for the operation and management of community colleges and for community college property resides with local community college boards of trustees, not with the State Board of Regents.

Background

SB 10 passed the Senate as two bills -- SB 10 and SB 6. SB 10, in its original version, concerned the development of core indicators of quality performance. SB 6 concerned the authority of local community college boards of trustees to operate and manage their institutions. Because both bills amended the same statute (KSA 2000 Supp. 74-3202c), it was necessary to combine the bills to reconcile the conflict. The only change the House Committee made to the bills was to amend SB 6 into SB 10.

Both bills, as introduced, were recommended by the Legislative Educational Planning Committee at the request of the State Board of Regents. Regarding SB 10 in its original version, the Kansas Higher Education Coordination Act provides that, beginning in FY 2003, public postsecondary institutions will be eligible to receive a performance funding grant of up to 2.0 percent of their State General Fund appropriation the prior year. Funding will be allocated on the basis of performance indicators selected and approved by the State Board of Regents for each institution. Institutions will be required to implement institutional improvement plans in FY 2002 that show how they will measure their performance on each indicator.

The House Committee amendment to SB 10 that formerly was SB 6 would amend the Kansas Higher Education Coordination Act to make it clear that, whatever duties the State Board of Regents has, they do not override the authority of local community college boards of trustees to be responsible for community college property and for the management of the institutions. According to supporters of the amendment, the amendment would reinforce existing provisions of the law by expressly listing the powers of community college boards of trustees as a limitation to the powers and duties of the State Board of Regents.

1. *Supplemental notes are prepared by the Legislative Research Department and do not express legislative intent. The supplemental note and fiscal note for this bill may be accessed on the Internet at http://www.ink.org/public/legislative/fulltext.cgi