republic-os/legislation/us/states/ky/2026rs/hb-4.md

---
type: "Bill"
title: "AN ACT relating to grooming a minor."
description: "­Create a new section of KRS Chapter 510 to establish the offense of grooming a minor; amend KRS 510.010 to define \"course of conduct,\" \"grooming behavior,\" and \"sexual conduct\"; amend various sections to conform; make technical corrections."
jurisdiction: "us/states/ky"
legislature: "Kentucky General Assembly"
session: "2026RS"
identifier: "HB 4"
citation: "Kentucky HB 4 (2026RS)"
classification: ["bill"]
subjects: ["Children And Minors", "Corrections Impact", "Crimes And Punishments", "Criminal Procedure", "Local Mandate"]
status: "enacted"
primary_sponsors: ["B. Chester-Burton", "B. Wesley", "C. Fugate", "C. Lewis", "C. Massaroni", "D. Elliott", "D. Gordon", "D. Grossberg", "D. Hale", "D. Osborne", "DJ Johnson", "F. Rabourn", "G. Brown Jr.", "J. Calloway", "J. Decker", "J. Gooch Jr.", "J. Hodgson", "J. Nemes", "J. Tipton", "K. Banta", "K. Holloway", "K. Moser", "M. Hart", "M. Imes", "M. Lockett", "M. Proctor", "N. Tate", "P. Flannery", "P. Griffee", "R. Bivens", "R. Dotson", "R. White", "S. Baker", "S. Bratcher", "S. Doan", "S. Maddox", "S. Sharp", "T. Hampton", "T. Huff", "T. Roberts", "V. Grossl", "W. Thomas"]
version_count: 3
action_count: 27
vote_count: 3
first_action: "2026-01-13T05:00:00+00:00"
last_action: "2026-04-10T04:00:00+00:00"
source: "openstates"
source_identifier: "ocd-bill/a7351f9f-a322-45f6-99fe-d7407a80a193"
source_url: "https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/record/26RS/hb4.html"
source_hash: "a787624a5a2f5768eea7210b452c34a12182ee1d0121a096541283fa497ec373"
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 4 (2026RS) — AN ACT relating to grooming a minor.

­Create a new section of KRS Chapter 510 to establish the offense of grooming a minor; amend KRS 510.010 to define "course of conduct," "grooming behavior," and "sexual conduct"; amend various sections to conform; make technical corrections.

## 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/hb4/orig_bill.pdf)
2. **Acts Chapter 65** (committee substitute) — [source](https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/law/acts/26RS/documents/0065.pdf)
3. **Current/Final** (committee substitute) — [source](https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/recorddocuments/bill/26RS/hb4/bill.pdf)

## Votes

- Pass — **98–0** (pass) · lower
- Final Passage — **92–0** (pass) · lower
- PASS HB 4 w/ SCS 1 — **38–0** (pass) · lower

## Sponsors

- B. Chester-Burton — primary (person)
- B. Wesley — primary (person)
- C. Fugate — primary (person)
- C. Lewis — primary (person)
- C. Massaroni — primary (person)
- D. Elliott — primary (person)
- D. Gordon — primary (person)
- D. Grossberg — primary (person)
- D. Hale — primary (person)
- D. Osborne — primary (person)
- DJ Johnson — primary (person)
- F. Rabourn — primary (person)
- G. Brown Jr. — primary (person)
- J. Calloway — primary (person)
- J. Decker — primary (person)
- J. Gooch Jr. — primary (person)
- J. Hodgson — primary (person)
- J. Nemes — primary (person)
- J. Tipton — primary (person)
- K. Banta — primary (person)
- K. Holloway — primary (person)
- K. Moser — primary (person)
- M. Hart — primary (person)
- M. Imes — primary (person)
- M. Lockett — primary (person)
- M. Proctor — primary (person)
- N. Tate — primary (person)
- P. Flannery — primary (person)
- P. Griffee — primary (person)
- R. Bivens — primary (person)
- R. Dotson — primary (person)
- R. White — primary (person)
- S. Baker — primary (person)
- S. Bratcher — primary (person)
- S. Doan — primary (person)
- S. Maddox — primary (person)
- S. Sharp — primary (person)
- T. Hampton — primary (person)
- T. Huff — primary (person)
- T. Roberts — primary (person)
- V. Grossl — primary (person)
- W. Thomas — primary (person)

## Timeline

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

- **2026-01-13T05:00:00+00:00** introduced in House `introduction`
- **2026-01-13T05:00:00+00:00** to Committee on Committees (H) `referral-committee`
- **2026-01-21T05:00:00+00:00** to Judiciary (H) `referral-committee`
- **2026-01-28T05:00:00+00:00** reported favorably, 1st reading, to Calendar `committee-passage`
- **2026-01-29T05:00:00+00:00** 2nd reading, to Rules `reading-2`
- **2026-02-02T05:00:00+00:00** floor amendment (1) filed `amendment-introduction`
- **2026-02-03T05:00:00+00:00** floor amendment (2) and (3) filed `amendment-introduction`
- **2026-02-03T05:00:00+00:00** posted for passage in the Regular Orders of the Day for Wednesday, February 04 2026
- **2026-02-04T05:00:00+00:00** 3rd reading, passed 98-0 with Floor Amendment (2) `passage, reading-3`
- **2026-02-05T05:00:00+00:00** received in Senate
- **2026-02-05T05:00:00+00:00** to Committee on Committees (S) `referral-committee`
- **2026-03-16T04:00:00+00:00** to Judiciary (S) `referral-committee`
- **2026-03-19T04:00:00+00:00** reported favorably, 1st reading, to Calendar with Committee Substitute (1) `committee-passage`
- **2026-03-20T04:00:00+00:00** 2nd reading, to Rules `reading-2`
- **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** passed over and retained in the Orders of the Day `passage`
- **2026-03-26T04:00:00+00:00** 3rd reading, passed 38-0 with Committee Substitute (1) `passage, reading-3`
- **2026-03-27T04:00:00+00:00** received in House
- **2026-03-27T04:00:00+00:00** to Rules (H) `referral-committee`
- **2026-03-31T04:00:00+00:00** posted for passage for concurrence in Senate
- **2026-03-31T04:00:00+00:00** House concurred in Committee Substitute (1)
- **2026-03-31T04:00:00+00:00** passed 92-0 `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. 65) `executive-signature`

## Source

OpenStates / OpenCivicData bulk snapshot [2026-07-01](https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump); origin `ocd-bill/a7351f9f-a322-45f6-99fe-d7407a80a193`. Confidence: reported (aggregated from official Kentucky legislature records).