A bill prefiled for the Kentucky General Assembly’s 2020 session would allow the children of military members to receive Kentucky Educational Excellence Scholarships even if they move due to a parent’s military transfer.
Sixth District State Representative Chris Freeland of Benton sponsored the bill after being approached by a military child who would benefit from the proposed legislation. He said the bill allows students to receive scholarship funding that he said is rightfully theirs.
“All it’s doing is allowing them to retain and use the KEES money that they have earned while they were here in Kentucky,” Freeland said.
Freeland said he hopes the bill will inspire children of military families to return to the commonwealth.
“These are kids you want to have in our state,” Freeland said. “We’re trying to get more people to move to Kentucky and this is a way to do that.”
Freeland said he doesn’t have data on how many students could be impacted by the bill, but he said the number will fluctuate from year to year. The 2020 legislative session begins on January 7.
