Topeka Capital-Journal
A bill requiring disclosure of expunged criminal records by applicants for insurance agent licenses Monday was modified by a House committee into a vehicle for identifying illegal immigrants.
Rep. Anthony Brown, R-Eudora, convinced a majority on the House Insurance Committee to weave a controversial policy of mandating people provide proof of U.S. citizenship into the seemingly benign bill sought by the Kansas Department of Insurance.
The citizenship mandate would apply to 96,000 Kansas residents who obtain state licenses from the insurance department. Resident agents in the state are currently required to undergo a background check through the Kansas Bureau of Investigation.
"In order to apply, you show proof," Brown said. "I don't think it's too much to ask."
House Minority Leader Paul Davis, a Lawrence Democrat, said he objected to the Brown amendment because the citizenship requirement would create a burden on state regulators and license applicants.
"No proven justification," Davis said. "We seem to be adding a layer of government regulation."
Under existing state law, potential employees in certain occupations can be required to disclose previous arrests, convictions or diversions expunged by a court.
The original thrust of House Bill 2519 was to add to that list all applicants for Kansas licenses necessary to engage in insurance business. The bill must still survive full House and Senate review before reaching the governor's desk.
Timing of the committee's action followed a statement by House Speaker Mike O'Neal, R-Hutchinson, on Friday making clear his opposition to debating substantive immigration legislation on the House floor during the 2012 session.
Rep. Clark Shultz, a Lindsborg Republican and chairman of the insurance panel, said he wasn't certain the amendment advanced by Brown would damage the underlying bill.
On the contrary, he said, it might generate interest among some legislators in the GOP-led House.
No testimony was provided to the committee indicating undocumented immigrants were concealing their identity while working in the state's insurance industry, Shultz said.
Brown also raised questions about whether the insurance department was able of cross-referencing information held by the Kansas Department of Social and Rehabilitation Services about overdue child-support payments owed by anyone applying for an insurance license.
Discussion of drawing SRS in licensing procedures prompted remarks by Rep. Steven Johnson, an Assaria Republican who works in the financial services industry.
He said the goal of policymakers should be to streamline government oversight rather than intensify entanglements by the state bureaucracy in private business.
"I'd just be hesitant to add an unnecessary process," Johnson said.
Tim Carpenter can be reached at (785) 296-3005 or timothy.carpenter@cjonline.com. Read his blog at cjonline.com/blog/ political-runoff.
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