What makes a Kansan draftable for military service?

KANSAS (KSNT) - Do you have a Kansas driver's license? If so, you might be eligible to be drafted if the president or Congress enacts a draft.

Last month, the U.S. House of Representatives Friday passed a measure within the National Defense Authorization Act that would automatically enroll men 18-26 for the draft. A draft hasn’t been instituted in the country since 1973.

In Kansas, anyone who applies for a driver's license and is at least 16-years-old but less than 26-years-old authorizes the Division of Vehicles to forward the information necessary to register for the draft to the Selective Service System (SSS), also known as the draft.

"The division of vehicles shall notify the applicant that the applicant's submission of the application will serve as the applicant's consent to registration with the selective service system, if such registration is required by federal law," Kansas statute 8-235e states.

There is no opt-out option for the draft when registering for your driver's license in Kansas. The draft, requires with few exceptions, all men ages 18-25 to register. Some exceptions include:

• Individuals born female who've changed their gender to male.
• Those confined to a location such as a hospital.
• Those incarcerated or institutionalized.
• Seasonal H-2A Visa workers.
• Certain members of Service Academies or the Coast Guard Academy.
• Students in officer procurement programs at the Citadel, University of North Georgia, Norwich University, Virginia Military Institute, Texas A&M University, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University.
• Members of the Armed Forces on active duty.

Anyone who is required to register and fails to do so can be charged with a felony punishable by as many as five years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000, according to the agency’s website.

A USA Today report published April 2, 2019 found only 20 men had been criminally charged with refusing to register for the draft since it was reinstated in 1980. Of those 20 men charged, 14 were convicted.

If an individual fails to register for the draft a bevy of other benefits could be impacted. If an individual fails to register they could be denied state-funded student financial aid, federal employment, some state employment, security clearance for contract jobs and U.S. citizenship for immigrant men, according to the SSS.

"Maintaining a high compliance rate is of great importance because it means that any future draft instituted by Congress and the President in a national emergency would be fair and equitable," the SSS wrote on its website.

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