Kansas 2025-2026 Regular Session

Kansas House Bill HB2411

Introduced
1/12/26  

Caption

Reducing the required waiting period for employment of KPERS retirants hired by a school district for a covered position that requires a teaching license or certificate.

Summary

HB 2411 amends the Kansas Public Employees Retirement System (KPERS) statutes governing when retired members may return to work for a participating employer without triggering retirement benefit restrictions. The bill creates the “Kansas teacher shortage relief act” and specifically shortens the waiting period for a KPERS retirant to be rehired by a school district into a covered position that requires a teaching license or certificate from 60 days to 45 days, so long as there is no prearranged agreement for reemployment. It also preserves the existing framework for retirees returning to work in covered and non-covered positions, including reporting requirements, contribution rules, and limits on earnings in certain circumstances. The bill also makes conforming changes to the school-employment retirement provisions in K.S.A. 74-4937 so that school district retirees are subject to the same 45-day rehire rule for teaching-licensed or certified positions. It retains the general anti-abuse rules that suspend benefits if a prearranged employment agreement existed before retirement, while continuing to allow certain exceptions already in law for substitute teachers, elected officials, nurses, law enforcement training center employees, and other specified categories. The bill repeals the existing versions of the amended statutes and takes effect upon publication in the Kansas Register.

Impact

HB 2411 would directly amend KPERS retirement-return-to-work rules in K.S.A. 74-4914 and 74-4937, narrowing the waiting period for school district retirees hired into teaching-licensed or teaching-certificate positions from 60 days to 45 days. In practical terms, this would make it easier for school districts to bring back recent retirees to fill teaching vacancies without causing the retiree to lose benefits, provided there was no prearranged agreement and the other statutory conditions are met. The bill would also continue to require employer reporting and preserve contribution obligations and benefit-suspension penalties in cases of improper prearranged reemployment.

Sentiment

The bill appears generally supportive and problem-solving in tone, aimed at addressing Kansas teacher shortages by making it easier for school districts to rehire retired educators. The bill’s title and prefatory language frame it as relief legislation, and the context identifies it as a teacher-shortage measure. No committee transcript or vote data is provided, so there is no recorded opposition or amendment debate in the supplied materials.

Contention

The main policy issue is the balance between staffing flexibility for school districts and safeguards against retirement system abuse. Supporters are likely to favor the shorter 45-day waiting period as a practical tool to recruit experienced retired teachers quickly. Potential concerns would come from those worried that reducing the waiting period could encourage early retirement-and-rehire arrangements or weaken the separation between retirement and reemployment, although the bill keeps the no-prearranged-agreement rule and existing benefit-suspension penalties in place. Because no committee discussion or votes are included, specific opponents or proponents are not identified in the record provided.

Companion Bills

No companion bills found.

Previously Filed As

KS SB2

Eliminating the income limit to qualify for the subtraction modification exempting social security benefits, increasing the income tax credit amount for household and dependent care expenses, establishing the veterans' valor property tax relief act providing for an income tax credit or refund for eligible individuals, citing the increased property tax homestead refund claim section as the homeowners' property tax freeze program, decreasing the normal privilege tax rate, increasing the extent of property tax exemption for residential property from the statewide school levy, decreasing the rate of ad valorem tax imposed by a school district; providing for certain transfers to the state school district finance fund, reducing the state rate of tax on sales of food and food ingredients and modifying the percent credited to the state highway fund from revenue collected.

KS SB1

Modifying income tax rates for individuals, exempting all social security benefits from Kansas income tax, increasing the Kansas standard deduction and the Kansas personal exemption, increasing the income tax credit amount for household and dependent care expenses, decreasing the privilege tax normal tax, excluding internal revenue code section 1031 exchange transactions as indicators of fair market value for property tax valuation purposes, increasing the extent of property tax exemption for residential property from the statewide school levy, providing for certain transfers to the state school district finance fund and abolishing the local ad valorem tax reduction fund and the county and city revenue sharing fund.

KS SB7

Authorizing federally licensed firearm dealers, in addition to county sheriffs, to receive applications for concealed carry licenses and forward such applications to the attorney general, prohibiting sheriffs from assessing any fee related to application services and allowing dealers to assess a fee related to application services not to exceed $20.

KS HB2003

Establishing the veterans' valor property tax relief act providing for an income tax credit or refund for eligible individuals, modifying the definition of household income and increasing the appraised value threshold for eligibility of seniors and disabled veterans related to increased property tax claims and citing the section as the homeowners' property tax freeze program, providing property tax exemptions for certain personal property including watercraft, marine equipment, off-road vehicles, motorized bicycles and certain trailers, excluding internal revenue code section 1031 exchange transactions as indicators of fair market value, providing for certain exclusions from the prohibition of paying taxes under protest after a valuation notice appeal and providing four prior years' values on the annual valuation notice.

KS SB6

Providing a sales tax exemption for sales of electricity to residential premises by municipally owned or operated utilities.

KS SB8

Exempting the sale of firearms, firearms accessories, ammunition, firearm safes and firearm safety devices from the retatilers' sales tax.

KS HB2001

Authorizing the secretary of commerce to enter into agreements with major professional sports franchises to establish STAR bond projects for a major professional sports complex, providing for additional revenue sources, expanding the powers and discretion of the secretary and making other changes to the STAR bonds financing act to facilitate such projects, limiting the secretary’s authority to approve such projects to one year unless extended by the legislative coordinating council, authorizing the Kansas development finance authority to issue STAR bonds for such projects, transferring funds under certain circumstances from the state gaming revenues fund to the attracting professional sports to Kansas fund for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2025, and, if approved by the legislative coordinating council, for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2026.

KS SB4

Requiring all advance voting ballots be returned by 7:00 p.m. on election day.

KS HB2002

Expanding medical assistance eligibility and enacting the cutting healthcare costs for all Kansans act.

KS SB3

Clarifying the procedures and restrictions on accepting a nomination for an elected office.

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