Vet. survivor tuition waiver

AN ACT Relating to veteran survivor tuition waiver eligibility; 1
and amending RCW 28B.15.621. 2
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:3
Sec. 1. RCW 28B.15.621 and 2024 c 146 s 12 are each amended to 4
read as follows: 5
(1) The legislature finds that active military and naval 6
veterans, reserve military and naval veterans, and national guard 7
members called to active duty have served their country and have 8
risked their lives to defend the lives of all Americans and the 9
freedoms that define and distinguish our nation. The legislature 10
intends to honor active military and naval veterans, reserve military 11
and naval veterans, and national guard members who have served on 12
active military or naval duty for the public service they have 13
provided to this country. 14
(2) Subject to the limitations in RCW 28B.15.910, the governing 15
boards of the state universities, the regional universities, The 16
Evergreen State College, and the community and technical colleges, 17
may waive all or a portion of tuition and fees for an eligible 18
veteran or national guard member. 19
(3) The governing boards of the state universities, the regional 20
universities, The Evergreen State College, and the community and 21
S-3659.1
SENATE BILL 5954
State of Washington 69th Legislature 2026 Regular Session
By Senators Wagoner, Holy, and Nobles
Prefiled 12/29/25. Read first time 01/12/26. Referred to Committee
on Higher Education & Workforce Development.
p. 1 SB 5954
technical colleges, may waive all or a portion of tuition and fees 1
for a military or naval veteran who is a Washington domiciliary, but 2
who did not serve on foreign soil or in international waters or in 3
another location in support of those serving on foreign soil or in 4
international waters and who does not qualify as an eligible veteran 5
or national guard member under subsection (8) of this section. 6
However, there shall be no state general fund support for waivers 7
granted under this subsection. 8
(4) Subject to the conditions in subsection (5) of this section 9
and the limitations in RCW 28B.15.910, the governing boards of the 10
state universities, the regional universities, The Evergreen State 11
College, and the community and technical colleges, shall waive all 12
tuition and fees for the following persons: 13
(a) A child and the spouse or the domestic partner or surviving 14
spouse or surviving domestic partner of an eligible veteran or 15
national guard member who became totally disabled as a result of 16
serving in active federal military or naval service, or who is 17
determined by the federal government to be a prisoner of war or 18
missing in action; and 19
(b) A child and the surviving spouse or surviving domestic 20
partner of an eligible veteran or national guard member who lost his 21
or her life as a result of serving in active federal military or 22
naval service. 23
(5) The conditions in this subsection (5) apply to waivers under 24
subsection (4) of this section. 25
(a)(i) A child must be a Washington domiciliary and:26
(A) Be between the age of ((seventeen)) 17 and ((twenty-six)) 26 27
to be eligible for the tuition waiver; or28
(B) Meet one of the eligibility periods provided in 38 U.S.C. 29
Sec. 3512, as it exists on the effective date of this section.30
(ii) A child's marital status does not affect eligibility.31
(b)(i) A surviving spouse or surviving domestic partner must be a 32
Washington domiciliary. 33
(ii)(A) ((A)) Unless the surviving spouse or surviving domestic 34
partner meets one of the eligibility periods provided in 38 U.S.C. 35
Sec. 3512, as it exists on the effective date of this section, a 36
surviving spouse or surviving domestic partner of the eligible 37
veteran or national guard member has ((ten)) 10 years to receive 38
benefits under the waiver from whichever date occurs last:39
(I) The date of the death; 40
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(II) The date of total disability; 1
(III) Federal determination of service-connected death or total 2
disability; or 3
(IV) Federal determination of prisoner of war or missing in 4
action status. 5
(B) Upon remarriage or registration in a subsequent domestic 6
partnership, the surviving spouse or surviving domestic partner is 7
ineligible for the waiver of all tuition and fees. 8
(c) Each recipient's continued participation is subject to the 9
school's satisfactory progress policy. 10
(d) Tuition waivers for graduate students are not required for 11
those who qualify under subsection (4) of this section but are 12
encouraged. 13
(e) Recipients who receive a waiver under subsection (4) of this 14
section may attend full-time or part-time. Total credits earned using 15
the waiver may not exceed ((two hundred fifty )) 250 quarter credits, 16
or the equivalent of semester credits. 17
(f) Subject to amounts appropriated, recipients who receive a 18
waiver under subsection (4) of this section shall also receive a 19
stipend for textbooks and course materials in the amount of ((five 20
hundred dollars)) $500 per academic year, to be divided equally among 21
academic terms and prorated for part-time enrollment.22
(6) Required waivers of all tuition and fees under subsection (4) 23
of this section shall not affect permissive waivers of tuition and 24
fees under subsection (3) of this section. 25
(7) Private vocational schools and private higher education 26
institutions are encouraged to provide waivers consistent with the 27
terms in subsections (2) through (5) of this section.28
(8) The definitions in this subsection apply throughout this 29
section. 30
(a) "Child" means a biological child, adopted child, or 31
stepchild. 32
(b) "Eligible veteran or national guard member" means a 33
Washington domiciliary who was an active or reserve member of the 34
United States military or naval forces, or a national guard member 35
called to active duty, who served in active federal service, under 36
either Title 10 or Title 32 of the United States Code, in a war or 37
conflict fought on foreign soil or in international waters or in 38
support of those serving on foreign soil or in international waters, 39
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and if discharged from service, has a qualifying discharge as defined 1
in RCW 73.04.005. 2
(c) "Totally disabled" means a person who has been determined to 3
be ((one hundred)) 100 percent disabled by the federal department of 4
veterans affairs. 5
(d) "Washington domiciliary" means a person whose true, fixed, 6
and permanent house and place of habitation is the state of 7
Washington. "Washington domiciliary" includes a person who is 8
residing in rental housing or residing in base housing. In 9
ascertaining whether a child or surviving spouse or surviving 10
domestic partner is domiciled in the state of Washington, public 11
institutions of higher education shall, to the fullest extent 12
possible, rely upon the standards provided in RCW 28B.15.013.13
(9) As used in subsection (4) of this section, "fees" includes 14
all assessments for costs incurred as a condition to a student's full 15
participation in coursework and related activities at an institution 16
of higher education. 17
(10) The governing boards of the state universities, the regional 18
universities, The Evergreen State College, and the community and 19
technical colleges shall report to the higher education committees of 20
the legislature by November 15, 2010, and every two years thereafter, 21
regarding the status of implementation of the waivers under 22
subsection (4) of this section. The reports shall include the 23
following data and information: 24
(a) Total number of waivers; 25
(b) Total amount of tuition waived; 26
(c) Total amount of fees waived; 27
(d) Average amount of tuition and fees waived per recipient;28
(e) Recipient demographic data that is disaggregated by distinct 29
ethnic categories within racial subgroups; and 30
(f) Recipient income level, to the extent possible.31
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