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Read. Follow. Verify.Kentucky Bill 497 Standardizes Postsecondary Tuition Waivers for Veterans, First Responders, and Foster Youth
Last action · February 26, 2026: received in Senate to Committee on Committees (S)Sponsors: James Tipton and 1 other
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What This Bill Proposed
Kentucky HB 497 standardizes postsecondary tuition waiver rules across multiple categories of eligible students, including military veterans, disabled first responders, and foster or adopted youth. The measure sets a uniform undergraduate credit hour cap, requires students to complete the , and allows age limit extensions for military or national service.
Changes how financial need is calculated for tuition-exempt college students by requiring federal financial aid forms to be filed first, ensuring waivers cover tuition and mandatory fees minus any federal or state grants received.
- Kentucky law provides postsecondary tuition and fee waivers for specific groups including veterans, disabled public safety officers, and foster youth. context
- The Kentucky General Assembly regularly considers legislative measures to update and standardize higher education financial benefits and administrative requirements. 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.
Military veterans and dependents
Veterans' spouses and children are subject to standardized credit hour caps and mandatory FAFSA filing requirements when receiving tuition waivers.
First responders and public safety personnel
Surviving or disabled law enforcement officers, firefighters, and emergency medical services personnel and their families have updated eligibility criteria and documentation requirements for tuition waivers.
Foster and adopted youth
Foster and adopted students are subject to revised credit hour limits, FAFSA filing rules, and cost-of-attendance adjustments for undergraduate and graduate tuition waivers.
State-supported postsecondary institutions
Colleges, universities, and vocational schools must administer standardized tuition waiver calculations, verify eligibility documentation, and adjust waiver amounts based on federal and state grants.
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 eligible to receive the undergraduate tuition waiver under the updated veteran provisions?
What financial aid form must students complete to qualify for the tuition waiver?
Are senior citizens still eligible for free tuition under this bill?
How are age limits handled if an eligible student serves in the military or AmeriCorps?
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 · passed the House · in the Senate.
Procedural history
8 actions- Feb 26, 2026SenateIntroducedreceived in Senate to Committee on Committees (S)
- Feb 25, 2026HouseFloor3rd reading, passed 56-36 with Committee Substitute (1) and Floor Amendment (3)
- Feb 19, 2026Housefloor amendment (3) filed to Committee Substitute
- Feb 18, 2026Houseposted for passage in the Regular Orders of the Day for Thursday, February 19 2026
- Feb 11, 2026HouseFloor2nd reading, to Rules floor amendment (2) filed to Committee Substitute
- Feb 10, 2026Housereported favorably, 1st reading, to Calendar with Committee Substitute (1) floor amendment (1) filed to Committee Substitute
Show 2 earlier actions
- Feb 4, 2026HouseCommitteeto Postsecondary Education (H)
- Jan 28, 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.
Uniformity Across Benefit Statutes
HB 497 consolidates disparate eligibility rules, credit hour caps, and financial aid requirements across multiple Kentucky revised statutes affecting veterans, public safety officers, and foster youth.
Connected Entities
Sources
apps.legislature.ky.gov
Analysis Score
0–100- Significance20Lowered because this bill did not pass (its text scored 75)
- Controversy15Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
- Entertainment5Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
- Buzz30Current news / social attention level
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