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Minutes for SB113 - Committee on Transportation
Short Title
Including operating a motor vehicle at a speed of 100 miles per hour or more and 35 miles per hour over the posted speed limit under the crime of reckless driving.
Minutes Content for Wed, Feb 5, 2025
Chairperson Petersen called the meeting to order at 8:33 a.m. and opened the hearing on SB113.
Assistant Revisor Adam Siebers briefed the Committee on the bill (Attachment 1). He explained that the bill expands the current definition of reckless driving and provides that anyone driving over 100 miles per hour (mph) or 35 mph over the posted speed limit qualifies for the crime of reckless driving. Responding to a question, he relied that current law does not make exceptions for an emergency.
Captain Travis Phillips, Kansas Highway Patrol, testified as a proponent for the bill (Attachment 2). He said the bill clarifies and strengthens the reckless driving statute but exempts an individual from revocation of a driver's license. Captain Phillips cited data to show the frequency of drivers exceeding 100 mph (2631 citations in 2024, seventy percent (70%) of which were out of state drivers), a graph illustrating the increase in such speeds, and an appendix detailing the penalties for such speeds. Additional graphs and data further illustrated the importance of the bill. Responding to a question, Captain Phillips replied that the bill would make driving over 100 mph qualify for two violations--speeding and reckless driving.
Catherine Magana, Legislative Liaison, Kansas Department of Transportation, spoke in support of the bill (Attachment 3). She said the bill would create another tool to help curb dangerous behavior by holding drivers accountable for excessive speeding. She noted that excessive speed not only endangers the driver and passengers, but other drivers as well, including officers pursuing the speeding vehicle. She cited crash data to show that from 2019-2023 there were 689 people who were killed and nearly 2500 people were seriously injured as a result of speeding.
Ed Klumpp, Legislative Liaison, Kansas Association of Chiefs of Police, Kansas Sheriffs Association, and Kansas Peace Officers Association, testified as a proponent (Attachment 4). He focused on the over-35 mph section of the bill and related his experience as a law enforcement officer remembering how dangerous excessive speed can be when it occurs within the city limits.
The Chair referenced two written-only proponent testimonies:
- Phyllis Larimore, Legislative Liaison, Safe Kids Kansas (Attachment 5), and
- Shawn Steward, Manager, Public and Government Affairs, AAA Kansas (Attachment 6).
The chair closed the hearing on SB113.
The meeting was adjourned at 9:04 a.m. The next meeting is scheduled for Thursday, February 6, 2025.
