TOPEKA – Governor Laura Kelly today signed Senate Bill 3, a bipartisan bill that designates the Silvisaurus Condrayi as the official state land fossil. The Silvisaurus is the only known dinosaur from the Dakota Formation in Kansas. It was a medium-sized, four-legged, armored plant-eater, and its remains were discovered by a rancher in Ottawa County in 1955.
“Designating this state fossil helps educators further demonstrate Kansas’ relevance to eras long before the founding of the United States,” Governor Laura Kelly said.
The fossils of this dinosaur can be viewed at the University of Kansas Biodiversity Institute and Natural History Museum.
Governor Kelly also signed five other bipartisan bills that make technical updates to existing statutes, create new funds for local governments, and address new technologies that will positively impact Kansas businesses.
SB 114 – Defines “advanced recycling” as a manufacturing process, separating it from the current solid waste management system.
HB 2080 – Authorizes students enrolled in a virtual school to take virtual state assessments.
HB 2082 – Authorizes counties to establish a code inspection and enforcement fund and a municipalities fight addiction fund. The bill also expands the scope of each county’s equipment reserve fund to allow the fund to be used for technology expenses.
HB 2226 – Extends the time for notice of excavation and permits the use of technology to mark excavation work sites, commonly known as virtual whitelining.
HB 2332 – Updates references and corresponding changes in statute related to 2021 Executive Reorganization Order Number 48 and the transfer of the Division of Tourism from the Department of Wildlife and Parks to the Department of Commerce.
