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Minutes for SB284 - Committee on Education
Short Title
Providing motor vehicle disability placards for school districts and interlocal cooperatives.
Minutes Content for Mon, Feb 3, 2020
Chairperson Baumgardner opened the hearing on SB284.
Staff provided an overview of the bill.
Senator Bruce Givens stood in support of this bill. It is a simple way for school districts and interlocals to use their school vehicles to transport students with disabilities during the day to a job sight, to work related centers, even to the grocery stores to have a real life experience in what is being taught in the classroom. It may be a student who is deaf, blind or a child with autism and to be able to use a placard so that they could have parking for safety of the child and often the para and/or paras who are escorting the student, it only makes sense to be able to use a placard. Senator Givens explained why a decal or license is not usable as it is not interchangeable between vehicles whereas a placard is. (Attachment 1)
Heather Morgan, Executive Director, Kansas Association of Community College Trustees, a proponent of the bill, stated that community colleges would like to request inclusion in this bill as Senator Givens outlined. Often community college staff may be driving a student and must park in a less than ideal non-handicap space to unload the student and then go park and come back to meet the student. There are many situations where better access for both students and staff would be helpful. (Attachment 2)
Matt Lindsey, President, Kansas Independent College Association (KICA), submitted neutral written only testimony regarding this bill. KICA agrees with the intent of SB284 but request the bill be amended to include language allowing institutions of higher education, including non-profit institutions for the same purpose of transporting students who qualify for a disability placard. Approximately 480 (3.4%) of their main campus students identify as having some form of physical disability or impairment. (Attachment 3)
Chairperson Baumgardner closed the hearing on SB284.
