Read the full stored bill text
Session of 2025
HOUSE BILL No. 2203
By Committee on K-12 Education Budget
Requested by Representative McDonald on behalf of Kathryn Meinhardt of Dream
Acres FASD Community and Kansas FASD Support Network
2-3
AN ACT concerning education; relating to special education; defining the
term other health impairment; including children with a fetal alcohol
syndrome disorder under such definition; amending K.S.A. 2024 Supp.
72-3404 and repealing the existing section.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Kansas:
Section 1. K.S.A. 2024 Supp. 72-3404 is hereby amended to read as
follows: 72-3404. As used in this act:
(a) "School district" means any public school district.
(b) "Board" means the board of education of any school district.
(c) "State board" means the state board of education.
(d) "Department" means the state department of education.
(e) "State institution" means any institution under the jurisdiction of a
state agency.
(f) "State agency" means the Kansas department for children and
families, the Kansas department for aging and disability services, the
department of corrections and the juvenile justice authority.
(g) "Exceptional children" means persons who are children with
disabilities or gifted children and are school age, to be determined in
accordance with rules and regulations adopted by the state board, whose
age may differ from the ages of children required to attend school under
the provisions of K.S.A. 72-3120, and amendments thereto.
(h) "Gifted children" means exceptional children who are determined
to be within the gifted category of exceptionality as such category is
defined by the state board.
(i) "Special education" means specially designed instruction provided
at no cost to parents to meet the unique needs of an exceptional child,
including:
(1) Instruction conducted in the classroom, in the home, in hospitals
and institutions, and in other settings; and
(2) instruction in physical education.
(j) "Special teacher" means a person, employed by or under contract
with a school district or a state institution to provide special education or
related services, who is qualified to:
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
HB 2203 2
(1) Provide special education or related services to exceptional
children as determined pursuant to standards established by the state
board; or
(2) assist in the provision of special education or related services to
exceptional children as determined pursuant to standards established by
the state board.
(k) "State plan" means the state plan for special education and related
services authorized by this act.
(l) "Agency" means boards and the state agencies.
(m) "Parent" means:
(1) A natural parent;
(2) an adoptive parent;
(3) a person acting as parent;
(4) a legal guardian;
(5) an education advocate; or
(6) a foster parent, if the foster parent has been appointed the
education advocate of an exceptional child.
(n) "Person acting as parent" means a person such as a grandparent,
stepparent or other relative with whom a child lives or a person other than
a parent who is legally responsible for the welfare of a child.
(o) "Education advocate" means a person appointed by the state board
in accordance with the provisions of K.S.A. 38-2218, and amendments
thereto. A person appointed as an education advocate for a child shall not
be:
(1) An employee of the agency who is required by law to provide
special education or related services for the child;
(2) an employee of the state board, the department, or any agency that
is directly involved in providing educational services for the child; or
(3) any person having a professional or personal interest that would
conflict with the interests of the child.
(p) "Free appropriate public education" means special education and
related services that:
(1) Are provided at public expense, under public supervision and
direction, and without charge;
(2) meet the standards of the state board;
(3) include an appropriate preschool, elementary or secondary school
education; and
(4) are provided in conformity with an individualized education
program.
(q) "Federal law" means the individuals with disabilities education
act, as amended.
(r) "Individualized education program" or "IEP" means a written
statement for each exceptional child that is developed, reviewed, and
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
HB 2203 3
revised in accordance with the provisions of K.S.A. 72-3429, and
amendments thereto.
(s) (1) "Related services" means transportation, and such
developmental, corrective, and other supportive services, including
speech-language pathology and audiology services, interpreting services,
psychological services, physical and occupational therapy, recreation,
including therapeutic recreation, social work services, school nurse
services designed to enable a child with a disability to receive a free
appropriate public education as described in the child's IEP, counseling
services, including rehabilitation counseling, orientation and mobility
services, and medical services, except that such medical services shall be
for diagnostic and evaluation purposes only, as may be required to assist
an exceptional child to benefit from special education, and includes the
early identification and assessment of disabling conditions in children.
(2) "Related services" does not mean any medical device that is
surgically implanted or the replacement of any such device.
(t) "Supplementary aids and services" means aids, services, and other
supports that are provided in regular education classes or other education-
related settings to enable children with disabilities to be educated with
nondisabled children to the maximum extent appropriate.
(u) "Individualized education program team" or "IEP team" means a
group of individuals composed of:
(1) The parents of a child;
(2) at least one regular education teacher of the child if the child is, or
may be, participating in the regular education environment;
(3) at least one special education teacher or, where appropriate, at
least one special education provider of the child;
(4) a representative of the agency directly involved in providing
educational services for the child who is:
(A) Qualified to provide or supervise the provision of specially
designed instruction to meet the unique needs of exceptional children;
(B) knowledgeable about the general curriculum; and
(C) knowledgeable about the availability of resources of the agency;
(5) an individual who can interpret the instructional implications of
evaluation results;
(6) at the discretion of the parent or the agency, other individuals who
have knowledge or special expertise regarding the child, including related
services personnel as appropriate; and
(7) whenever appropriate, the child.
(v) "Evaluation" means a multisourced and multidisciplinary
examination, conducted in accordance with the provisions of K.S.A. 72-
3428, and amendments thereto, to determine whether a child is an
exceptional child.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
HB 2203 4
(w) "Independent educational evaluation" means an examination that
is obtained by the parent of an exceptional child and performed by an
individual or group of individuals who meet state and local standards to
conduct such an examination.
(x) "Elementary school" means any nonprofit institutional day or
residential school that offers instruction in any or all of the grades
kindergarten through nine.
(y) "Secondary school" means any nonprofit institutional day or
residential school that offers instruction in any or all of the grades nine
through 12.
(z) "Children with disabilities" means children who:
(1) Have an intellectual disability, hearing loss including deafness,
speech or language disorders, visual impairments including blindness,
emotional disability, orthopedic impairments, autism, dyslexia, traumatic
brain injury, other health impairments , or specific learning disabilities and
who, by reason thereof, need special education and related services; and
(2) are experiencing one or more developmental delays and, by
reason thereof, need special education and related services if such children
are ages three through nine.
(aa) "Substantial change in placement" means the movement of an
exceptional child, for more than 25% of the child's school day, from a less
restrictive environment to a more restrictive environment or from a more
restrictive environment to a less restrictive environment.
(bb) "Material change in services" means an increase or decrease of
25% or more of the duration or frequency of a special education service, a
related service or a supplementary aid or a service specified on the IEP of
an exceptional child.
(cc) "Developmental delay" means such a deviation from average
development in one or more of the following developmental areas, as
determined by appropriate diagnostic instruments and procedures, as
indicates that special education and related services are required:
(1) Physical;
(2) cognitive;
(3) adaptive behavior;
(4) communication; or
(5) social or emotional development.
(dd) "Homeless children" means "homeless children and youths" as
defined in the federal McKinney-Vento homeless assistance act, 42 U.S.C.
§ 11434a.
(ee) "Limited English proficient" means an individual who meets the
qualifications specified in section 9101 of the federal elementary and
secondary education act of 1965, as amended.
(ff) "Emotional disability" means the same as the term "emotional
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
HB 2203 5
disturbance" is used in public law 101-476, the individuals with
disabilities education act.
(gg) "Other health impairment" means having limited strength,
vitality or alertness, including a heightened alertness to environmental
stimuli, that results in limited alertness with respect to the educational
environment and that meets the following criteria:
(1) Is due to chronic or acute health problems, including fetal alcohol
syndrome disorder, asthma, attention deficit disorder or attention deficit
hyperactivity disorder, diabetes, epilepsy, a heart condition, hemophilia,
lead poisoning, leukemia, nephritis, rheumatic fever, sickle cell anemia
and Tourette syndrome; and
(2) adversely affects a child's educational performance.
Sec. 2. K.S.A. 2024 Supp. 72-3404 is hereby repealed.
Sec. 3. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after its
publication in the statute book.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15