Kansas 2025-2026 Regular Session

Kansas House Bill HB2465

Introduced
1/15/26  
Refer
1/15/26  

Caption

Enacting the professionals' freedom of expression act to provide protection for professionals and businesses against adverse action as a result of an expression of beliefs of such professional or business that is unrelated to such profession or business.

Impact

The implementation of HB 2465 would result in significant changes to existing laws surrounding professional licensing, notably within the realm of real estate. By amending the real estate brokers' and salespersons' license act, the law emphasizes that professionals should not face repercussions in their work environment for expressing personal beliefs. This amendment is designed to bolster the rights of real estate professionals, aiming to create a more inclusive and tolerant working environment where individuals can express their viewpoints without fear of losing their professional credentials.

Summary

House Bill 2465, titled the Professionals' Freedom of Expression Act, aims to protect professionals and businesses from adverse actions based on their expressions of beliefs that are unrelated to their professional duties. This legislation specifically states that no governmental entity or private licensing organization can deny, revoke, or suspend a professional's license based solely on their beliefs or expressions made outside of their professional context. The intent is to provide a safeguard for individuals against potential discrimination within their professions, particularly in sensitive areas such as family and religious beliefs.

Contention

However, the bill has sparked debate regarding its implications for discrimination and the nature of 'beliefs' as outlined. Critics argue that the broad protection of personal beliefs could lead to conflicts with anti-discrimination laws, allowing licensees to justify discriminatory practices under the guise of personal convictions. Concerns have been raised that the bill might inadvertently allow professionals to discriminate against clients or colleagues who do not share the same beliefs, posing a challenge to established norms of equality in the workplace.

Companion Bills

No companion bills found.

Previously Filed As

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 HB2002

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

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 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 SB6

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

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 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 SCR1601

Informing the Governor that the two houses of the Legislature are organized and ready to receive communications.

KS SB8

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

KS SR1701

Providing for the organization of the Senate for the 2024 special session of the Legislature.

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