75-4364. Educational benefits for spouses and dependents of deceased public safety officers and certain deceased military personnel and prisoners of war; enrollment at Kansas educational institutions without charge of tuition or fees.
(a) As used in this section:
(1) "Dependent" means: (A) A birth child, adopted child or stepchild; or (B) any child other than the foregoing who is actually dependent in whole or in part on the individual and who is related to such individual by marriage or consanguinity.
(2) "Emergency medical service provider" means the same as defined in K.S.A. 65-6112, and amendments thereto.
(3) "Firefighter" means a person who is: (A) Employed by any city, county, township or other political subdivision of the state and who is assigned to the fire department thereof and engaged in the fighting and extinguishment of fires and the protection of life and property therefrom; or (B) a volunteer member of a fire district, fire department or fire company.
(4) "Kansas educational institution" means and includes community colleges, the municipal university, state educational institutions, the institute of technology at Washburn university and technical colleges.
(5) "Law enforcement officer" means a person who by virtue of office or public employment is vested by law with a duty to maintain public order or to make arrests for violation of the laws of the state of Kansas or ordinances of any municipality thereof or with a duty to maintain or assert custody or supervision over persons accused or convicted of crime, and includes wardens, superintendents, directors, security personnel, officers and employees of adult and juvenile correctional institutions, jails or other institutions or facilities for the detention of persons accused or convicted of crime, while acting within the scope of their authority.
(6) "Military service" means any active service in any armed service of the United States and any active state or federal service in the Kansas army or air national guard.
(7) "Prisoner of war" means any person who was a resident of Kansas at the time the person entered service of the United States armed forces and who, while serving in the United States armed forces, has been declared to be a prisoner of war, as established by the United States secretary of defense, after January 1, 1960.
(8) "Public safety officer" means a law enforcement officer or a firefighter or an emergency medical service provider.
(9) "Resident of Kansas" means a person who is a domiciliary resident as defined by K.S.A. 76-729, and amendments thereto.
(10) "Spouse" means the spouse of a deceased public safety officer or deceased member of the military service who has not remarried.
(11) "State board" means the state board of regents.
(b) Every Kansas educational institution shall provide for enrollment without charge of tuition or fees for: (1) Any dependent or spouse of a public safety officer who died as the result of injury sustained while performing duties as a public safety officer so long as such dependent or spouse is eligible; (2) any dependent or spouse of any resident of Kansas who died on or after September 11, 2001, while, and as a result of, serving in military service; and (3) any prisoner of war. Any such dependent or spouse and any prisoner of war shall be eligible for enrollment at a Kansas educational institution without charge of tuition or fees for not to exceed 10 semesters of undergraduate instruction, or the equivalent thereof, at all such institutions.
(c) Subject to appropriations therefor, any Kansas educational institution, at which enrollment, without charge of tuition or fees, of a prisoner of war or a dependent or spouse is provided for under subsection (b), may file a claim with the state board for reimbursement of the amount of such tuition and fees. The state board shall include in its budget estimates pursuant to K.S.A. 75-3717, and amendments thereto, a request for appropriations to cover tuition and fee claims pursuant to this section. The state board shall be responsible for payment of reimbursements to Kansas educational institutions upon certification by each such institution of the amount of reimbursement to which entitled. Payments to Kansas educational institutions shall be made upon vouchers approved by the state board and upon warrants of the director of accounts and reports. Payments may be made by issuance of a single warrant to each Kansas educational institution at which one or more eligible dependents or spouses or prisoners of war are enrolled for the total amount of tuition and fees not charged for enrollment at that institution. The director of accounts and reports shall cause such warrant to be delivered to the Kansas educational institution at which any such eligible dependents or spouses or prisoners of war are enrolled. If an eligible dependent or spouse or prisoner of war discontinues attendance before the end of any semester, after the Kansas educational institution has received payment under this subsection, the institution shall pay to the state the entire amount that such eligible dependent or spouse or prisoner of war would otherwise qualify to have refunded, not to exceed the amount of the payment made by the state in behalf of such dependent or spouse or prisoner of war for the semester. All amounts paid to the state by Kansas educational institutions under this subsection shall be deposited in the state treasury and credited to the state general fund.
(d) The state board shall adopt rules and regulations for administration of the provisions of this section and shall determine the qualification of persons as dependents and spouses of public safety officers or United States military personnel and the eligibility of such persons for the benefits provided for under this section.
History: L. 1996, ch. 165, § 1; L. 2001, ch. 210, § 1; L. 2003, ch. 134, § 4; L. 2005, ch. 120, § 1; L. 2010, ch. 119, § 19; L. 2011, ch. 97, § 43; L. 2019, ch. 64, § 36; June 6.