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Volume 45 - Issue 16- April 16, 2026

State of Kansas

Secretary of State

Certification of New State Laws

I, Scott Schwab, Secretary of State of the State of Kansas, do hereby certify that the following bill is a correct copy of the original enrolled bill now on file in my office.

Scott Schwab
Secretary of State



(Published in the Kansas Register April 16, 2026.)

House Bill No. 2739

An Act concerning housing; relating to housing code requirements; modifying the applicability of design and construction standards and doorway and other interior accessibility requirements; providing certain such state specifications not applicable to moderate income housing program and Kansas investor tax credit housing act projects; relating to fire safety and prevention rules and regulations; removing the definition of apartment houses from chapter 31 of the Kansas Statutes Annotated; providing requirements for adoption of the international fire code, 2024 edition; amending K.S.A. 31-133, 31-134 and 58-1401 and repealing the existing sections; also repealing K.S.A. 31-132a.

Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Kansas:

Section 1. K.S.A. 31-133 is hereby amended to read as follows: 31-133. (a) The state fire marshal shall adopt reasonable rules and regulations, consistent with the provisions of this act, for the safeguarding of life and property from fire, explosion and hazardous materials. Such rules and regulations shall include, but not be limited to, the following:

(1) The keeping, storage, use, sale, handling, transportation or other disposition of highly flammable materials, including crude petroleum or any of its products, natural gas for use in motor vehicles, and of explosives, including gunpowder, dynamite, fireworks and firecrackers. Any such rules and regulations may prescribe the materials and construction of receptacles and buildings to be used for any of such purposes;

(2) the transportation of liquid fuel over public highways in order to provide for the public safety in connection therewith;

(3) the construction, maintenance and regulation of exits and fire escapes from buildings and all other places in which people work, live or congregate from time to time for any purpose, including apartment houses, as defined by K.S.A. 31-132a, and amendments thereto. Such rules and regulations shall not apply to buildings used wholly as dwelling houses containing no more than two families;

(4) the installation and maintenance of equipment intended for fire control, detection and extinguishment in all buildings and other places in which persons work, live or congregate from time to time for any purpose, including apartment houses as defined by K.S.A. 31-132a, and amendments thereto. Such rules and regulations shall not apply to buildings used wholly as dwelling houses containing no more than two families;

(5) requiring administrators of public and private schools and educational institutions, except community colleges, colleges and universities, to conduct at least four fire drills each school year at some time during school hours, aside from the regular dismissal at the close of the day’s session, and prescribing the manner in which such fire drills are to be conducted;

(6) procedures for the reporting of fires and explosions occurring within the state and for the investigation thereof;

(7) procedures for reporting by healthcare providers of treatment of second and third degree burn wounds involving 20% or more of the victim’s body and requiring hospitalization of the victim, which reporting is hereby authorized notwithstanding any provision of K.S.A. 60-427, and amendments thereto, to the contrary;

(8) requiring administrators of public and private schools and educational institutions, except community colleges, colleges and universities, to establish tornado procedures. Such procedures shall:

(A) Provide for at least two tornado drills to be conducted each school year, of which one shall be conducted in September and one shall be conducted in March, at some time during school hours, aside from the regular dismissal at the close of the day’s session;

(B) describe the manner in which such tornado drills are to be conducted; and

(C) shall be subject to approval by the state fire marshal;

(9) requiring administrators of community colleges, colleges and universities to establish tornado procedures, which procedures shall be subject to approval by the director of the disaster agency of the county;

(10) the development and implementation of a statewide system of hazardous materials assessment and response;

(11) the use of pyrotechnics, pyrotechnic devices and pyrotechnic materials;

(12) requiring administrators of public and private schools and educational institutions, except community colleges, colleges and universities, to conduct at least three crisis drills each school year at some time during school hours, aside from the regular dismissal at the close of the day’s session. The manner in which such crisis drills are conducted may be subject to approval by the safe and secure schools unit of the Kansas department of education; and

(13) other safeguards, protective measures or means adapted to render inherently safe from the hazards of fire or the loss of life by fire any building or other place in which people work, live or congregate from time to time for any purpose, except buildings used wholly as dwelling houses containing no more than two families.

(b) Any rules and regulations of the state fire marshal adopted pursuant to this section may incorporate by reference specific editions, or portions thereof, of nationally recognized fire prevention codes.

(c) The rules and regulations adopted pursuant to this section shall allow facilities in service prior to the effective date of such rules and regulations, and not in strict conformity therewith, to continue in service, so long as such facilities are not determined by the state fire marshal to constitute a distinct hazard to life or property. Any such determination shall be subject to the appeal provisions contained in K.S.A. 31-140, and amendments thereto.

(d) The state fire marshal may grant an exemption pursuant to K.S.A. 31-136, and amendments thereto, that authorizes a variance for the number or manner of drills conducted pursuant to subsection (a)(5), (8) or (12) for students receiving special education or related services.

Sec. 2. K.S.A. 31-134 is hereby amended to read as follows: 31-134. (a) Any rules and regulations adopted by the state fire marshal under this act shall comply with the provisions of K.S.A. 77-415 et seq., and amendments thereto, except that:

(1) In addition to the method of providing notice of the public hearing prescribed by K.S.A. 77-421, and amendments thereto, such notice shall be published three times in at least two newspapers of general circulation, with the last published notice to appear not less than 15 days prior to the public hearing.

(2) The state fire marshal shall make available for general distribution upon request copies of any nationally recognized code adopted by reference, marked so as to indicate the provisions thereof which have been so adopted. The state fire marshal may charge a fee for the copies in an amount equal to the cost of the copies and their distribution. Upon collection of any such fees, the state fire marshal shall remit to the state treasurer such fees in accordance with the provisions of K.S.A. 75-4215, and amendments thereto. The state treasurer shall deposit the entire amount in the state treasury. The state treasurer shall credit 10% of each such deposit to the state general fund and shall credit the remainder of each such deposit to the fire marshal fee fund.

(3) In addition to the filing requirements of K.S.A. 77-416, and amendments thereto, the state fire marshal shall publish all such rules and regulations and make the same available for distribution to the general public upon request, but the fire marshal shall not be required to republish the provisions of any nationally recognized code adopted by reference if such provisions are made available for general distribution upon request to the fire marshal’s office.

(4) Any rules and regulations adopted by the state fire marshal pursuant to K.S.A. 77-416, and amendments thereto, to update the Kansas fire prevention code with the provisions of the international fire code, 2024 edition, with appropriate amendments, shall not be subject to the requirements for submission and review of an economic impact statement under K.S.A. 77-416 or 77-420, and amendments thereto. Any proposed rules and regulations submitted to the attorney general pursuant to this paragraph and in accordance with K.S.A. 77-420, and amendments thereto, shall be reviewed by the attorney general within 120 days after submission of such proposed rules and regulations by the state fire marshal. Such rules and regulations shall still be subject to ratification by the legislature pursuant to K.S.A. 2025 Supp. 77-441, and amendments thereto.

(b) The rules and regulations adopted by the state fire marshal under authority of this act shall be known and may be cited as the Kansas fire prevention code. Such rules and regulations shall have uniform force and effect throughout the state. No municipality shall enact or enforce any ordinance, resolution or rule or regulation inconsistent therewith, except that nothing in this act shall be construed to impair the power of any municipality to regulate the use of land by zoning or fire district regulations or to prohibit or regulate the sale, handling, use or storage of fireworks within its boundaries. Whenever a question shall arise as to whether another state statute or an enactment of a municipality is inconsistent with the provisions of the fire prevention code, it shall be the duty of the state fire marshal to make such determination after a hearing thereon with all interested parties conducted in accordance with the provisions of the Kansas administrative procedure act. Any action of the state fire marshal pursuant to this section is subject to review in accordance with the Kansas judicial review act.

Sec. 3. K.S.A. 58-1401 is hereby amended to read as follows: 58-1401. As used in this act:

(a) “Dwelling” means any single family residence and each individual living unit in a duplex or triplex residential building which is constructed with public financial assistance.

(b) “Public financial assistance” means:

(1) A building contract or similar contractual agreement with any state agency;

(2) any real estate received by the owner through a donation by the state;

(3) state tax credits, except for tax credits pursuant to the Kansas housing investor tax credit act, K.S.A. 79-32,310 et seq., and amendments thereto;

(4) grant assistance from state funds, except for grant assistance from the Kansas moderate income housing program, administered by the Kansas housing resources corporation with funding from the state housing trust fund pursuant to K.S.A. 12-5256, and amendments thereto, and appropriations acts;

(5) state loan guarantees; or

(6) federal funds administered by the state or a state agency.

(c) “Director” means the director of the division of housing in the Kansas development finance authority.

Sec. 4. K.S.A. 31-132a, 31-133, 31-134 and 58-1401 are hereby repealed.

Sec. 5. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after its publication in the Kansas register.

Doc. No. 054070

Secretary of State Seal