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Read. Follow. Verify.Kansas Legislature Establishes Utility Railroad Crossing Act Governing Facility Placement and Dispute Resolution
Last action · April 10, 2026: Died in House Committee
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What This Bill Proposed
Senate Bill 439 establishes a standardized process for utilities to construct, maintain, and operate facilities that cross or run parallel to railroad rights-of-way in Kansas. The measure sets standard application fees, insurance requirements, and notice periods while empowering the state corporation commission to resolve disputes.
Utility providers and railroad companies must follow new uniform timelines, fees, and safety notification rules when placing infrastructure like power lines or pipelines across or alongside rail corridors, with disputed matters going to state regulators.
- Railroad rights-of-way often intersect with critical infrastructure such as water, gas, electric, and communication lines, leading to historical negotiations and disputes over access terms and fees. context
Who It Would Have Affected
Groups the bill's text would have affected, as described in the record. Being affected is not a position for or against it.
Utilities
Utilities must provide advance notices, pay standard fees, meet insurance minimums, and follow structured dispute processes when crossing or running parallel to railroad rights-of-way.
Railroads
Railroads must review utility applications within specific timeframes, participate in dispute resolution procedures, and adhere to set fees and reimbursement rules.
Key Facts
You don't have to trust us. Each fact below is taken straight from the official document - click any one to see the exact passage, highlighted in the original.
Frequently Asked Questions
What fees do utilities have to pay railroads for crossings outside public rights-of-way?
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News Coverage
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Votes, people, money & the original sourceWhere This Stands
This bill did not become law - Died in committee.
Procedural history
18 actions- Apr 10, 2026HouseDied in House Committee
- Mar 17, 2026HouseHearing: Tuesday, March 17, 2026, 1:30 PM — Room 582-N
- Mar 10, 2026HouseIntroducedReceived and Introduced
- Mar 10, 2026HouseCommitteeReferred separately to
- Mar 5, 2026SenateFloorFinal Action - Passed as amended
- Mar 4, 2026SenateCommittee of the Whole - Now working on
Show 12 earlier actions
- Mar 4, 2026SenateFloorCommittee of the Whole - Committee Report be adopted
- Mar 4, 2026SenateCommittee of the Whole - Motion to Amend - Offered by
- Mar 4, 2026SenateFloorCommittee of the Whole - Amendment by was adopted
- Mar 4, 2026SenateCommittee of the Whole - Motion to Amend - Offered by
- Mar 4, 2026SenateFloorCommittee of the Whole - Amendment by was adopted
- Mar 4, 2026SenateFloorCommittee of the Whole - Be passed as further amended
- Mar 2, 2026SenateFloorCommittee Report recommending bill be passed as amended by
- Feb 25, 2026SenateWithdrawn from Senate Committee on Utilities; Rereferred to Senate Committee on Utilities
- Feb 13, 2026SenateWithdrawn from Senate Committee on Ways and Means; Referred to Senate Committee on Ways and Means
- Feb 10, 2026SenateHearing: Tuesday, February 10, 2026, 1:30 PM — Room 548-S
- Feb 3, 2026SenateCommitteeReferred to Senate Committee on Utilities
- Feb 2, 2026SenateIntroducedIntroduced
Version history
Only one version on file - nothing to compare yet. As later stages (committee substitute, engrossed, enrolled) are captured, the redline appears here.
View official text →Lobbying Activity
No state lobbying filings in our records match this bill. Federal lobbying reports (LDA) cover Congress, so they are not listed on state bills.
Full breakdown
Who this bill affects and the strongest case for and against it, written only from the bill’s own text.
Discoveries
Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.
Standardized Crossing Framework
The act replaces individualized negotiations with a uniform state-regulated process, standard fee schedule, and defined timelines for utility installations near railroads.
Connected Entities
Sources
www.kslegislature.gov
Analysis Score
0–100- Significance20Lowered because this bill did not pass (its text scored 65)
- Controversy50Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
- Entertainment5Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
- Buzz30Current news / social attention level
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