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Read. Follow. Verify.Missouri Expands Public Safety Tuition Program to Include Clerical Fire Staff and Removes Volunteer Exclusion
Last action · May 7, 2026: Second Read and Referred S Transportation, Infrastructure and Public Safety CommitteeSponsor: Rick Brattin
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What This Bill Would Do
Missouri SB 1768 broadens the definition of firefighter under the Public Safety Recruitment and Retention Act to include clerical and other non-fighting personnel within fire departments while removing the explicit exclusion of volunteer firefighters, making them potentially eligible for state college tuition awards subject to .
Expands higher education tuition assistance eligibility to thousands of additional fire service workers and administrative staff across Missouri, establishing priority distribution rules based on local crime rates and years of service when state funds are limited.
Who It Would Affect
Groups the bill's text would affect if enacted, as described in the record. Being affected is not a position for or against it.
Fire department clerical and administrative personnel
Administrative and clerical staff within fire departments become newly eligible for state college tuition awards under the modified firefighter definition.
Volunteer firefighters
Public safety personnel legal dependents
Dependents of qualifying public safety personnel with ten or more years of service may receive tuition awards for associate or baccalaureate degree programs.
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
Who is newly included as a firefighter under this bill?
What are the service requirements to qualify for a tuition award?
How are tuition awards prioritized if state funds are insufficient?
What else do you want to know?
News Coverage
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Votes, people, money & the original sourceWhere This Stands
Currently in committee. The next step in the legislative lifecycle is Floor Vote.
Procedural history
2 actions- May 7, 2026SenateFloorSecond Read and Referred S Transportation, Infrastructure and Public Safety Committee
- Feb 26, 2026SenateIntroducedS First Read
Version history
Only one version on file - nothing to compare yet. The text on record is the 7453S.01I - Introduced version. 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.
Sponsors
Discoveries
Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.
Inclusion of Support Staff in Public Safety Benefits
The bill shifts state policy from restricting tuition benefits strictly to active fire suppression personnel to including administrative, clerical, and volunteer personnel.
Connected Entities
Sources
www.senate.mo.gov
Analysis Score
0–100- Significance60How much this matters to a regular citizen
- Controversy15Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
- Entertainment5Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
- Buzz25Current news / social attention level
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