Session of 2000
HOUSE BILL No. 2766
By Committee on Business, Commerce and Labor
1-31
10 AN ACT
concerning the office of administrative hearings; transferring
11 administration of the
office from the department of administration to
12 the department of
human resources; amending K.S.A. 75-37,121, 75-
13 37,122 and 77-551 and
repealing the existing sections.
14
15 Be it enacted by the Legislature of the
State of Kansas:
16 Section
1. K.S.A. 75-37,121 is hereby amended to read as follows:
17 75-37,121. On and after July 1,
1998: (a) There is created The office
of
18 administrative hearings within the
department of administration, to be
19 headed by a director appointed by
the secretary of administration is
20 hereby transferred out of the department
of administration and estab-
21 lished as a component of the department
of human resources. The office
22 of administrative hearings shall be
headed by a director appointed by the
23 secretary of human resources. The
director shall be in the classified service
24 under the Kansas civil service
act.
25 (b) The office
shall may employ administrative law
judges presiding
26 officers, court reporters and other
support personnel as necessary to con-
27 duct proceedings required by the Kansas
administrative procedure act for
28 adjudicative proceedings of the department
of social and rehabilitation
29 services. The office shall conduct
adjudicative proceedings of the de-
30 partment of social and rehabilitation
services which are not under the
31 Kansas administrative procedure act when
requested by such agency.
32 Only a person admitted to practice law in
this state or a person directly
33 supervised by a person admitted to
practice law in this state may be
34 employed as an administrative law
judge a presiding officer. The office
35 may employ regular part-time personnel.
Persons employed by the office
36 shall be under the classified civil
service.
37 (c) If the office
cannot furnish one of its administrative law
judges
38 presiding officers in response to
the department of social and rehabilita-
39 tion services request, the director shall
designate in writing a full-time
40 employee of an agency other than the
department of social and rehabil-
41 itation services to serve as
administrative law judge presiding officer
for
42 the proceeding, but only with the consent
of the employing agency. The
43 designee must possess the same
qualifications required of administrative
2
1 law judges
presiding officers employed by the office.
2 (d) The
director may furnish administrative law judges
presiding of-
3 ficers on a contract basis to
any governmental entity to conduct any pro-
4 ceeding not subject to the Kansas
administrative procedure act or not
5 listed in K.S.A. 77-551 and
amendments thereto.
6
(e) On or before January 1, 1999, the department of
administration
7 shall adopt rules and
regulations The director may adopt rules and
8 regulations:
9
(1) To establish further qualifications for
administrative law judges,
10 procedures by which candidates will
be considered for employment, and
11 the manner in which public notice
of vacancies in the staff of the office
12 will be given;
13 (2)
(1) To establish procedures for agencies to request and
for the
14 director to assign administrative
law judges presiding officers. The de-
15 partment of social and rehabilitation
services may neither select nor reject
16 any individual administrative law
judge presiding officer for any proceed-
17 ing except in accordance with the Kansas
administrative procedure act;
18 (3)
(2) to establish procedures and adopt forms, consistent
with the
19 Kansas administrative procedure act, the
model rules of procedure, and
20 other provisions of law, to govern
administrative law judges presiding
21 officers; and
22 (4) to
establish standards and procedures for the evaluation,
training,
23 promotion and discipline of
administrative law judges; and
24 (5)
(3) to facilitate the performance of the
responsibilities conferred
25 upon the office by the Kansas
administrative procedure act.
26 (f) The director
may:
27 (1) Maintain a
staff of reporters and other personnel; and
28 (2) implement the
provisions of this section and rules and regulations
29 adopted under its authority.
30 (g) The
department of administration director may
adopt rules and
31 regulations to establish fees to charge a
state agency for the cost of using
32 an administrative law
judge a presiding officer.
33 (h) Effective
July 1, 1998 July 1, 2000, personnel in
the administrative
34 hearings section of the department
of social and rehabilitation services
35 and support personnel for such
administrative law judges, shall be trans-
36 ferred to the office of
administrative hearings shall be transferred to the
37 department of human resources. Such
personnel shall retain all rights
38 under the state personnel system and
retirement benefits under the laws
39 of this state, and such person's services
shall be deemed to have been
40 continuous. This act shall not affect any
matter pending before an ad-
41 ministrative hearing officer at the time of
the effective date of the transfer,
42 and such matter shall proceed as though no
transfer of employment had
43 occurred.
3
1 Sec.
2. K.S.A. 75-37,122 is hereby amended to read as follows:
75-
2 37,122. On and after July 1,
1998: (a) There is hereby created a state
3 advisory council for administrative
hearings. The advisory council shall
4 consist of seven members appointed by
the governor. All members of the
5 council shall serve at the pleasure
of the governor. Members of the coun-
6 cil shall not receive compensation or
expense allowances for serving on
7 the council.
8 (b) The
council shall meet on call of the secretary of administration.
9 On and after January 1, 2001, the
council shall meet on call of the sec-
10 retary of human resources.
11 (c) The advisory
council shall advise the secretary of administration
12 and the director of the office of
administrative hearings on policy matters
13 affecting the office of administrative
hearings and on rules and regulations
14 adopted by the director. On and after
January 1, 2001, the council shall
15 so advise the secretary of human
resources in lieu of the secretary of
16 administration.
17 Sec.
3. K.S.A. 77-551 is hereby amended to read as follows:
77-551.
18 On and after July 1, 1998:
(a) In hearings of the department of social and
19 rehabilitation services under K.S.A.
39-1807, 65-4015, 65-4606, 65-4927,
20 75-3306 and 75-3340, and amendments
thereto, the presiding officer shall
21 be the agency head, one or more members of
the agency head or an
22 administrative law judge
a presiding officer assigned by the office of ad-
23 ministrative hearings.
24 (b) This section
shall be part of and supplemental to the Kansas ad-
25 ministrative procedure act.
26 Sec. 4. K.S.A. 75-37,121,
75-37,122 and 77-551 are hereby repealed.
27 Sec. 5. This act shall
take effect and be in force from and after its
28 publication in the statute book.