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Read. Follow. Verify.Kentucky House Bill 489 creates a $4,000 nonrefundable child tax credit for families with children attending non-public schools
Last action · February 3, 2026: to Appropriations & Revenue (H)Sponsors: Steven Doan and 2 others
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What This Bill Proposed
Kentucky House Bill 489 establishes a nonrefundable $4,000 tax credit per eligible child—capped at $8,000 per return—for taxable years 2027 through 2030. The credit applies to children between six and eighteen years old who comply with compulsory school attendance laws but do not attend a public school. The legislation also mandates annual reporting of credit statistics to the Legislative Research Commission and updates state tax credit priority ordering and tax information disclosure exceptions.
Qualifying families may reduce their state income tax liability by up to $8,000 annually if they educate school-aged children outside the public school system, altering state revenue allocations and tax credit disbursement priorities.
- The Kentucky General Assembly enacts state tax and appropriations legislation through bills considered across regular and special legislative sessions. context
- KRS Chapter 141 governs Kentucky individual and corporate income taxation, including provisions for various nonrefundable and refundable tax credits. 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.
Taxpayers with children not attending public school
Taxpayers with eligible children between ages six and eighteen not attending public school may claim a nonrefundable tax credit of up to $4,000 per child.
Department of Revenue
The department must work with educational agencies to determine credit eligibility and submit an annual report to the Legislative Research Commission.
Kentucky Department of Education
The department is required to assist the Department of Revenue in determining applicable public school attendance requirements and credit eligibility.
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 qualifies as an eligible child for the tax credit?
What is the maximum amount of the tax credit a taxpayer can claim per return?
What else do you want to know?
News Coverage
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Votes, people, money & the original sourceWhere This Stands
This bill did not become law - Died at adjournment · in House committee.
Procedural history
2 actions- Feb 3, 2026HouseCommitteeto Appropriations & Revenue (H)
- Jan 27, 2026HouseIntroducedintroduced in House to Committee on Committees (H)
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.
Sponsors
Discoveries
Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.
Introduction of Non-Public School Tax Credit
The bill creates a targeted tax credit structure specifically for school-aged children who do not attend public schools, accompanied by mandatory annual reporting to legislative committees.
Connected Entities
Sources
apps.legislature.ky.gov
Analysis Score
0–100- Significance20Lowered because this bill did not pass (its text scored 75)
- Controversy65Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
- Entertainment5Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
- Buzz40Current news / social attention level
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