Approved:       February 12, 2007      

Date

MINUTES OF THE HOUSE GOVERNMENT EFFICIENCY AND TECHNOLOGY COMMITTEE

The meeting was called to order by Chairman Jim Morrison at 3:45 P.M. on February 7, 2007, in Room 526-S of the Capitol.

All members were present except Representatives Wilk, Frownfelter, Ruiz, Siegfreid, Holland, and Tafanelli, all of whom were excused.

Committee staff present:

Mary Galligan, Kansas Legislative Research

Tatiana Lin, Kansas Legislative Research

Renae Jefferies, Office of Revisor of Statutes

Gary Deeter, Committee Assistant

Conferees appearing before the committee:

Karl Peterjohn, Kansas Taxpayers Network

Joan Wagnon, Secretary, Kansas Department of Revenue

Alan Cobb, State Director, Americans for Prosperity

Others attending:

See attached list.

The Chair announced the appointment of a sub-committee to examine reports from the Kansas Board of Regents in relation to the sharing of Information Technology (IT) resources: Representative McLeland as Chair and Representatives King, Swenson, Loganbill, and McLachlan as members.

The minutes for February 5 and February 6 were approved. (Motion, Representative McLachlan; second, Representative Sloan)

The Chair opened the hearing on HB 2207 -creating the taxpayer transparency act.

Karl Peterjohn, representing the Kansas Taxpayers Network, discussed the bill in positive terms, saying it would provide clarity and accountability to state government and would enhance the open meetings/open records act to make information more readily accessible to every Kansas citizen (Attachment 1).

Joan Wagnon, Secretary, Kansas Department of Revenue (KDOR), expressed support for the bill’s intent, saying that the department makes available all information that is not statutorily protected (Attachment 2). She noted her concern with the bill: that details associated with income tax returns (refunds, rebates, credits) and excise taxes are confidential and cannot be disclosed, although aggregate information is available on the agency’s website. She stated that the only detailed tax information publicly available occurs when a company approaches the legislature asking for special tax consideration, thereby opening its books to public scrutiny. She recommended deleting the amendatory language in section 3 and its reference to section 2 (a) (2) (D).

A member commented that disclosing personal or business information could dissuade businesses from coming to the state. Ms. Wagnon suggested that the Information Network of Kansas (Kansas.gov) could serve as a central point of entry for what the bill intends to create. Responding to a question, Ms. Wagnon said state employee salaries, reimbursements, even phone records are currently public information. She replied that the department’s information presently available is voluminous.

Mr. Peterjohn commented that a website like Google can sort through huge amounts of data to respond to an individual’s queries.

A member, citing the Appropriations Committee’s need to know remodeling costs, said detailed information needs to be more readily accessible. The Chair suggested the need for a Google model for state government.

Alan Cobb, representing Americans for Prosperity, offered support for the bill while noting that the section on confidentiality should be deleted (Attachment 3). Observing that the bill gives taxpayers a tool to understand where and how their money is being spent, he stated that often data are available but not easy to find, citing the costs of construction for the Curtis State Office Building and renovations for the Eisenhower State Office Building, information shown in SGF (State General Fund) expenditures, but not always under All Funds. He commented that the bill is modeled after a federal proposal, which sought to correct earmarking abuses in the appropriations process.

The Chair stated that, when all committees become electronic, the need for tracking information will be paramount. Mr. Cobb cited block grant information as available, but with fragmented accessibility; he said a simple database could link the information. A member expressed a desire to sort information so that a person is not overwhelmed by data. Another member noted the importance of having data readily available for those who want it and accessible on a flexible, comprehensive, text-searchable website.

Referencing Ms. Wagnon’s suggestion to delete section 3, Mr. Cobb suggested deleting (D) and (E) on page one as well. Ms. Wagnon commented that most state government information is available and that a comprehensive search engine and thorough indexing would address the intent of the bill.

The hearing was closed on HB 2207.

The meeting was adjourned at 4:45 p.m. The next meeting is scheduled for Thursday, February 8, 2007.