Kansas Statutes 25-4169a. Use of public funds, vehicles, machinery, equipment and supplies and time of certain officers and employees to influence nomination or election of candidate prohibited; exceptions; distribution of political material in publi…
Attorney's Note
Under the Kansas Statutes, punishments for crimes depend on the classification. In the case of this section:| Class | Prison | Fine |
|---|---|---|
| class C misdemeanor | up to 1 month | up to $500 |
Terms Used In Kansas Statutes 25-4169a
- Candidate: means an individual who:
(1) Appoints a treasurer or a candidate committee;
(2) makes a public announcement of intention to seek nomination or election to state or local office;
(3) makes any expenditure or accepts any contribution for such person's nomination or election to any state or local office; or
(4) files a declaration or petition to become a candidate for state or local office. See Kansas Statutes 25-4143
- Clearly identified candidate: means a candidate who has been identified by the:
(1) Use of the name of the candidate;
(2) use of a photograph or drawing of the candidate; or
(3) unambiguous reference to the candidate whether or not the name, photograph or drawing of such candidate is used. See Kansas Statutes 25-4143
- Commission: means the governmental ethics commission. See Kansas Statutes 25-4143
- Election: means :
(1) A primary or general election for state or local office; and
(2) a convention or caucus of a political party held to nominate a candidate for state or local office. See Kansas Statutes 25-4143
- Local office: means a member of the governing body of a city of the first class, any elected office of a unified school district having 35,000 or more pupils regularly enrolled in the preceding school year, a county or of the board of public utilities. See Kansas Statutes 25-4143
- Person: means any individual, committee, corporation, partnership, trust, organization or association. See Kansas Statutes 25-4143
- State: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes the District of Columbia and the territories. See Kansas Statutes 77-201
- State office: means any state office as defined in Kan. See Kansas Statutes 25-4143
(a) (1) No officer or employee of the state of Kansas, or any municipality, shall use or authorize the use of public funds or public vehicles, machinery, equipment or supplies of any such governmental agency or the time of any officer or employee of any such governmental agency, for which the officer or employee is compensated by such governmental agency, to expressly advocate the nomination, election or defeat of a clearly identified candidate to state office or local office. The provisions of this section prohibiting the use of time of any officer or employee for such purposes shall not apply to an incumbent officer campaigning for nomination or reelection to a succeeding term to such office or to members of the personal staff of any elected officer. The provisions of this section shall not apply to the statutory duties of the commission on judicial performance pursuant to article 32 of chapter 20 of the Kansas Statutes Annotated, and amendments thereto.
(2) The provisions of this subsection shall not apply to the use of internet connectivity provided by the state of Kansas or any municipality to any candidate or elected official.
(3) Except as otherwise provided in this section, no municipality shall permit or allow any person to distribute, or cause to be distributed, within any building or other structure owned, leased or rented by such municipality any brochure, flier, political fact sheet or other document which expressly advocates the nomination, election or defeat of a clearly identified candidate for state or local office unless each candidate for such state or local office is permitted or allowed to do so in the same manner.
(4) For the purposes of this subsection, the term municipality shall have the meaning ascribed to it in Kan. Stat. Ann. § 12-105a, and amendments thereto.
(b) Any person violating the provisions of this section shall be guilty of a class C misdemeanor.