---
type: "Bill"
title: "AN ACT relating to education and declaring an emergency."
description: "Create a new section of KRS Chapter 158 to define terms; require the Kentucky Department of Education to establish an approved list of reading curriculum and interventions that do not use a three-cueing system; prohibit school districts from using any curriculum or program that employs a three-cueing system; prohibit the use of a three-cueing system in teacher professional development; require the Educational Professional Standards Board to promulgate administrative regulations establishing curriculum for each approved educator preparation program; amend KRS 158.307 to require rather than allow local boards of education to develop a policy on dyslexia; require rather than allow the policy to include listed items; amend KRS 164.304 to require postsecondary institutions offering teacher preparation programs to include instruction on dyslexia by the 2027-2028 school year, rather than the instruction being contingent on funding availability; amend KRS 164.306 to specify that educator preparation programs shall use evidence-based reading instruction and intervention programs and shall not provide instruction on a three-cueing system; amend KRS 161.028 to require the board to include in the standards set for teacher preparation programs that the programs shall use evidence-based reading instruction and intervention programs and shall not provide instruction on a three-cueing system."
jurisdiction: "us/states/ky"
legislature: "Kentucky General Assembly"
session: "2026RS"
identifier: "HB 253"
citation: "Kentucky HB 253 (2026RS)"
classification: ["bill"]
subjects: ["Administrative Regulations And Proceedings", "Boards And Commissions", "Education", "Elementary And Secondary", "Education", "Higher", "State Agencies", "Teachers", "Universities And Colleges"]
status: "enacted"
primary_sponsors: ["B. Chester-Burton", "D. Grossberg", "J. Tipton", "K. Jackson", "P. Stevenson", "T. Bojanowski"]
version_count: 3
action_count: 27
vote_count: 3
first_action: "2026-01-08T05:00:00+00:00"
last_action: "2026-04-10T04:00:00+00:00"
source: "openstates"
source_identifier: "ocd-bill/6ecfbd23-3d15-465a-8638-2e1f4890e61b"
source_url: "https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/record/26RS/hb253.html"
source_hash: "dba39616ac07310603f6ff9666d1e58613f81909f3fa58c435609d22cfc07fc9"
vintage: "2026-07-01"
source_snapshot: "https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump"
retrieved_at: "2026-07-06"
confidence: "reported"
tags: ["legislation", "bill", "us-ky"]
---

# Kentucky HB 253 (2026RS) — AN ACT relating to education and declaring an emergency.

Create a new section of KRS Chapter 158 to define terms; require the Kentucky Department of Education to establish an approved list of reading curriculum and interventions that do not use a three-cueing system; prohibit school districts from using any curriculum or program that employs a three-cueing system; prohibit the use of a three-cueing system in teacher professional development; require the Educational Professional Standards Board to promulgate administrative regulations establishing curriculum for each approved educator preparation program; amend KRS 158.307 to require rather than allow local boards of education to develop a policy on dyslexia; require rather than allow the policy to include listed items; amend KRS 164.304 to require postsecondary institutions offering teacher preparation programs to include instruction on dyslexia by the 2027-2028 school year, rather than the instruction being contingent on funding availability; amend KRS 164.306 to specify that educator preparation programs shall use evidence-based reading instruction and intervention programs and shall not provide instruction on a three-cueing system; amend KRS 161.028 to require the board to include in the standards set for teacher preparation programs that the programs shall use evidence-based reading instruction and intervention programs and shall not provide instruction on a three-cueing system.

## Version chain

The bill's text revisions, in order — the diff chain from filing to enrollment.

1. **Introduced** (filed) — [source](https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/recorddocuments/bill/26RS/hb253/orig_bill.pdf)
2. **Acts Chapter 74** (committee substitute) — [source](https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/law/acts/26RS/documents/0074.pdf)
3. **Current/Final** (committee substitute) — [source](https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/recorddocuments/bill/26RS/hb253/bill.pdf)

## Votes

- PASS HB 253 w/ SCS 1, SFA 2, SFA 3 (T) — **38–0** (pass) · lower
- Pass — **94–1** (pass) · lower
- Final Passage — **93–1** (pass) · lower

## Sponsors

- B. Chester-Burton — primary (person)
- D. Grossberg — primary (person)
- J. Tipton — primary (person)
- K. Jackson — primary (person)
- P. Stevenson — primary (person)
- T. Bojanowski — primary (person)

## Timeline

The legislative action history — every referral, reading, and vote.

- **2026-01-08T05:00:00+00:00** introduced in House `introduction`
- **2026-01-08T05:00:00+00:00** to Committee on Committees (H) `referral-committee`
- **2026-01-15T05:00:00+00:00** to Primary and Secondary Education (H) `referral-committee`
- **2026-02-04T05:00:00+00:00** reported favorably, 1st reading, to Calendar with Committee Substitute (1) `committee-passage`
- **2026-02-05T05:00:00+00:00** 2nd reading, to Rules `reading-2`
- **2026-02-10T05:00:00+00:00** posted for passage in the Regular Orders of the Day for Wednesday, February 11 2026
- **2026-02-12T05:00:00+00:00** 3rd reading, passed 94-1 with Committee Substitute (1) `passage, reading-3`
- **2026-02-13T05:00:00+00:00** received in Senate
- **2026-02-13T05:00:00+00:00** to Committee on Committees (S) `referral-committee`
- **2026-03-11T04:00:00+00:00** to Education (S) `referral-committee`
- **2026-03-19T04:00:00+00:00** reported favorably, 1st reading, to Calendar with Committee Substitute (1) and Committee Amendment (1-title) `committee-passage`
- **2026-03-20T04:00:00+00:00** 2nd reading, to Rules `reading-2`
- **2026-03-20T04:00:00+00:00** floor amendments (1) and (2) filed to Committee Substitute , floor amendment (3-title) filed to bill `amendment-introduction`
- **2026-03-20T04:00:00+00:00** posted for passage in the Regular Orders of the Day for Tuesday, March 24 2026
- **2026-03-24T04:00:00+00:00** passed over and retained in the Orders of the Day `passage`
- **2026-03-25T04:00:00+00:00** 3rd reading `reading-3`
- **2026-03-25T04:00:00+00:00** floor amendment (1) withdrawn
- **2026-03-25T04:00:00+00:00** passed 38-0 with Committee Substitute (1), Floor Amendment (2) and Floor Amendment (3-title) `passage`
- **2026-03-26T04:00:00+00:00** received in House
- **2026-03-26T04:00:00+00:00** to Rules (H) `referral-committee`
- **2026-03-27T04:00:00+00:00** posted for passage for concurrence in Senate Floor Amendments (2) and (3-title) and Committee Substitute (1)
- **2026-03-31T04:00:00+00:00** House concurred in Committee Substitute (1), Floor Amendment (2) and Floor Amendment (3-title)
- **2026-03-31T04:00:00+00:00** passed 93-1 `passage`
- **2026-03-31T04:00:00+00:00** enrolled, signed by Speaker of the House `passage`
- **2026-03-31T04:00:00+00:00** enrolled, signed by President of the Senate `passage`
- **2026-03-31T04:00:00+00:00** delivered to Governor
- **2026-04-10T04:00:00+00:00** signed by Governor (Acts Ch. 74) `executive-signature`

## Source

OpenStates / OpenCivicData bulk snapshot [2026-07-01](https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump); origin `ocd-bill/6ecfbd23-3d15-465a-8638-2e1f4890e61b`. Confidence: reported (aggregated from official Kentucky legislature records).