Kansas House Clears More Than 45 Bills in Marathon Session

The Kansas House plowed through a massive workload on Wednesday, passing more than 45 bills on final action and advancing dozens more through the Committee of the Whole in both afternoon and evening sessions. The marathon day of legislating came as lawmakers faced a Thursday adjournment for a brief recess, with the Senate adopting SCR 1622 scheduling a break from Feb. 19 through Feb. 24.

Among the measures passing with unanimous or near-unanimous support were HB 2700, the Kansas Digital Right-to-Repair Act, which cleared the chamber 122-2, and HB 2489, requiring fentanyl abuse education and naloxone supplies in schools, which passed 123-1. Other consensus measures included HB 2537, increasing penalties for sexual extortion and creating aggravated offenses, and HB 2412, enhancing penalties for endangering a child under six — both passing 124-0.

The day's action revealed a clear partisan divide on a slate of more contentious bills, many of which passed on near-identical 87-37 margins that mirrored the veto override vote. Those included three abortion-related measures, election bills tightening voter registration timelines, and legislation requiring quarterly reports on noncitizens receiving public benefits. The uniform vote margins suggest a disciplined Republican caucus pushing through priority legislation while Democrats remained largely united in opposition.