# Kentucky SB 50: AN ACT relating to the disposition of property. Kentucky SB 50, AN ACT relating to the disposition of property., is a 2026 Regular Session Senate bill sponsored by Brandon J. Storm (Republican); status signed, last action 2026-04-13 (signed by Governor (Acts Ch. 134)); PRIA reads it as touching household money (as of 2026-11-01). - Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/KY-SB50-2026RS - As of: 2026-11-01 - Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts. ## Facts - Bill: Kentucky SB 50 - State: Kentucky - Session: 2026 Regular Session - Title: AN ACT relating to the disposition of property. - Status: signed - Chamber: Senate - Introduced: 2026-02-17 - Last action: 2026-04-13, signed by Governor (Acts Ch. 134) - Sponsor: Brandon J. Storm (Republican) - Cosponsors: 1 - Subjects: Local Mandate, Banks And Financial Institutions, Bonds Of Surety, Children And Minors, Circuit Clerks, County Clerks, Courts, District, Fiduciaries, Motor Vehicles, Real Estate, Sheriffs, Short Titles And Popular Names, Taxation, Inheritance And Estate, Uniform Laws, Wills, Trusts, And Estates - Touches household money: yes - Roll calls: 3 (150 yes, 12 no in all) - Economic provisions PRIA read: 43 ## Summary No summary available. ## Bill overview: provisions PRIA read - Transfer a car on death, no tax: benefit, high. Beginning January 1, 2028, you can name a beneficiary on your vehicle title. After you die, the beneficiary gets a new title by showing a death certificate, handling current ad valorem taxes, and paying the title transfer fee. The transfer skips probate. These transfer-on-death vehicle transfers ar… - Trust decanting protects taxes and benefits: benefit, high. When moving assets to a new trust, the law protects key tax results. It bars changes that would lose charitable or marital deductions, the gift-tax exclusion, a zero GST inclusion ratio, or grantor-trust status. It also bars changes that force larger required minimum distributions from retirement a… - More flexible trusts and special-needs planning: benefit, medium. Trusts can name a director with a power of direction, and joint directors act by majority unless the trust says otherwise. Trustees can decant a trust into a new trust even if no distribution was due, and the law cures illegal or missing clauses in the new trust. The new trust may last longer or sh… - Short deadlines and fewer creditor remedies: benefit, medium. Creditors generally cannot reach property in a qualified trust unless they sue under the voidable‑transactions law and prove actual intent to defraud that creditor. Existing creditors must sue by the later of two years after the transfer or six months after discovery; later creditors have two years… - Skip probate when exemptions or debts paid: benefit, medium. The court can skip full administration and transfer assets to the spouse or, if none, the children or a designee when the spouse/children’s exemption plus preferred claims paid are at least the distributable assets. The court may order no letters if nothing will pass through a personal representati… - Stronger creditor shields for trusts: benefit, medium. Creditor attacks on a qualified transfer are limited to what is needed to pay that specific debt and court‑approved costs. A trustee who acted in good faith gets a first lien on the property for proper defense costs. A valid spendthrift clause counts in bankruptcy, limiting a debtor’s creditors fro… - Stronger rules when trustees decant trusts: benefit, medium. The law sets guardrails when a trustee moves assets to a new trust (decanting). A new trust cannot add new current beneficiaries or cut vested shares, and it must keep any charitable gift and purpose. A trustee must follow any written ban or limit in the original trust, and cannot raise pay, cut li… - More tax options when decanting trusts: benefit, medium. When a trustee moves assets to a new trust (decanting), the new trust can be set as a grantor or a nongrantor trust, even if the old trust was the opposite. This gives more ways to plan income-tax results. Limits still apply for S‑corporation stock and when settlor‑objection rules apply. - Easier local buying and energy savings: benefit, medium. Local governments can join state price contracts with approval, while following bidding laws if needed. The Cabinet must alert the Department for Local Government and set rules so added costs are covered. The energy‑efficiency program requires engineering reviews, caps monitoring at 5%, and lets ag… - Clearer rules for how trusts run: benefit, low. The law clarifies what counts as a trust’s terms, including clear settlor intent, some trustee or court changes, and certain settlement agreements. A chosen main place of administration is valid when the trustee or trust director is based there, or administration happens there. For revocable trusts… - Court care for minors without guardians: benefit, low. When a minor has no named guardian and no one will serve, the court gives care of the child and the child’s estate to the public administrator. The public administrator must be sworn and post a bond with good surety, which then covers every estate they handle. A public administrator has the same po… - Easier informal and proposed settlements: benefit, low. If the fiduciary is the sole beneficiary, the court can accept an informal final settlement when the estate is solvent, all debts and taxes are paid or provided for, court costs are paid, attorney info is listed, and the share is received. An informal final settlement may be filed after 6 months if… - Electronic wills allowed with clear steps: benefit, low. The law recognizes electronic wills. An electronic image of a handwritten signature counts, and courts may use outside proof to show a record was meant as a will. A later will can revoke an earlier one, and a physical act to revoke needs clear and convincing proof of intent. You can make an electro… - Faster court sign off on estate accounts: benefit, low. After the court approves a proposed settlement, the fiduciary must pay out as ordered and file proof. If the filed account matches the order, the judge confirms it without another hearing and, if final, discharges the fiduciary. New evidence at the hearing is recorded; a confirmed settlement in the… - Pet trusts: clearer change rules: benefit, low. A protector can consent to change (decant) a pet trust. Each animal is treated like an individual for the test. The protector has rights like a qualified beneficiary, and the new trust must use funds only for the animals’ intended care during the covered period. - Public administrators and curators safeguard estates: benefit, low. Each county court appoints a public administrator to handle estates with no representative and to act as guardian for orphans with no guardian. After 60 days, if no one suitable is available, the court must order the public administrator to serve. If there is no public administrator, the court appo… - Quicker probate with clear notice: benefit, low. After the will and papers are filed, the judge decides if a hearing is needed. If the spouse and all known heirs sign a waiver, no hearing is required. When a hearing is set, written notice must be mailed at least 5 days before, with proof filed at the hearing. Parties can waive notice in writing,… - Who can direct a trust: benefit, low. The law defines a “power of direction” held by someone who is not serving as trustee. A person with that power is a “trust director,” even if the document uses another label. Courts also use common‑law and equity rules alongside these statutes unless another law changes them. - Electronic estate records now count: benefit, low. Electronic estate-planning records (not wills) are valid to keep, send, copy, and file if they show the final info and stay accessible. A proper electronic record can satisfy a rule to keep an “original.” You can use a service to store it and do not need to keep data used only to send it. You may m… - Annual report on state energy savings: benefit, low. Each year by October 15, the Finance and Administration Cabinet reports on energy‑saving steps in state buildings. The report lists projects, installed measures, energy use and spending, expected first‑year savings from ENERGY STAR products, and funding needs. - Better court records and library support: benefit, low. Court clerks must tell the Cabinet when adoptions are granted, changed, denied, or dismissed. The state law librarian can share or dispose of materials, help county law libraries, and buy for them using those libraries’ funds. The law also updates a definitions cross‑reference to make court and leg… - Electronic wills and estate documents allowed: benefit, low. An electronic will counts the same as a paper will in Kentucky. Kentucky also recognizes some out‑of‑state electronic wills if they met that place’s law. These rules apply to estates when a person dies on or after the law’s effective date. The law also defines and accepts many electronic estate doc… - State Law Library can sell books: benefit, low. The State Law Library may sell surplus books with approval and keep the money in a nonlapsing fund. The librarian can use the funds to buy new books and materials. - Clerk fee splits and $10 records fund: benefit, low. For $33 recordings, $27 stays with the county clerk and $6 goes to the Affordable Housing Trust Fund. For $63 mortgages (up to 30 pages), $57 stays with the clerk and $6 goes to the Trust Fund. Clerks get $10 per qualifying permanent-storage service. In listed local governments, the $10 is held in… - Recording-tax dollars fund local records: benefit, low. Beginning January 1, 2028, one dollar from each covered recording tax goes into a fund at the Department for Libraries and Archives. The Department sets aside 90% for yearly grants to county clerks. If clerks do not apply for enough, the Department can grant the rest to other agencies. This provide… - Daily fines for late estate filings: cost, high. If a fiduciary fails to file a required inventory or account after notice and without good cause, the court fines $100 per day. The fine keeps adding each day until the filing is made. - New $4 fee to record wills: cost, low. Beginning January 1, 2028, recording a will costs $4, collected by the county clerk when you file. The clerk sends the money to the Kentucky Department of Revenue within 10 days after each month ends. This charge applies to each will that is recorded. - New qualified trust rules and safeguards: mixed, high. The law creates qualified trusts and qualified dispositions that must use Kentucky law, be irrevocable, and block transfers of a beneficiary’s interest before payment. Only qualified trustees may serve; a transferor and nonresident individuals cannot be qualified trustees. Before funding a qualifie… - Trusts still must pay support and prior debts: mixed, high. Qualified trusts and transfers are not shielded from certain debts. Past‑due child support, past‑due spousal maintenance, marital‑property division debts, and valid notes, mortgages, or security interests that existed before the transfer can be enforced. A trustee faces these claims only after a fi… - New inheritance and spouse share rules: mixed, high. If someone dies without a will, the spouse gets 100% of the probate estate when there are no descendants or all are also the spouse’s. The spouse gets 50% if the decedent has descendants who are not also the spouse’s. The spouse also has a life estate in one-third of certain real estate and an outr… - Adoption privacy, health info, and inheritance: mixed, medium. Adoption judgments in the public record show only the adoptive parents’ names and the child’s new name. By finalization, the agency must give adoptive parents and the court a written nonidentifying health and background history, including known HIV and hepatitis test results. As an adult, an adopte… - New probate bond rules and simpler filings: mixed, medium. If beneficiaries ask to skip full administration, the court can require a surety bond equal to the personal estate to protect creditors for six months. Fiduciaries who must post a bond must file a notarized bond with the county clerk. A named executor can leave heirs’ names off the appointment fili… - New rules for changing trusts: mixed, medium. The law lets trustees move assets from one trust to a new trust (called decanting). It explains when this is allowed with broad or limited discretion, and it can cover only part of the principal. A new trust can use another state’s law, change certain powers of appointment, and split trustee duties… - Electronic wills and estate papers allowed: mixed, medium. Electronic estate-planning documents and signatures now have legal effect. You may use electronic notarization, oaths, and remote witnessing for nontestamentary documents. For an electronic will, the testator signs and two witnesses must be Kentucky residents who are physically in Kentucky at signi… - Probate filings and will handling changes: mixed, medium. Applicants for personal representative must file a sworn application listing the spouse and known heirs, addresses, and other details, plus a separate confidential asset disclosure. Nonresident applicants must name a local agent for service. The clerk sends the application and disclosure to the sta… - Rules for trusts with S-corp stock: mixed, medium. If a trust owns S-corporation stock, a trustee may move that stock only to a new trust that is an allowed S‑corp shareholder. If the first trust was a qualified Subchapter S trust, the new trust must keep that status. These limits protect pass‑through tax treatment but reduce decanting choices. - Clear notice rules for estate hearings: mixed, low. The clerk must publish notice at least 10 days before a settlement hearing. The notice must list the fiduciary, trust name, account type, and hearing date, and say exceptions are due before the hearing. With court approval, the fiduciary may mail written notice to all unpaid creditors and distribut… - New rules to qualify executors: mixed, low. A named executor cannot act until the will is admitted, any required bond is posted, and the oath or declaration is filed. The oath/declaration lists duties like keeping funds in Kentucky accounts, separating estate money, filing taxes, carrying insurance, and obeying court orders. The court can re… - Notice and court rules for trust changes: mixed, low. Before a trustee decants, the trustee must give written notice at least 60 days ahead, unless everyone entitled to notice signs a waiver. Representatives can receive notice and bind others, and the Attorney General protects charitable interests. The trustee must make the change in a signed record a… - Regular estate accountings and final reports: mixed, low. Most fiduciaries must file an accounting two years after appointment and every year after, until all assets are distributed and all debts, fees, and taxes are handled. Each filing must list assets and values, and document all receipts and payments. The court or an interested person can require a fi… - Tighter estate reporting and recovery: mixed, low. A personal representative must file an inventory within 90 days; it is sealed, and a copy goes to the state tax department. They must amend it when new assets are found. The court can order people to disclose and turn over estate property; the representative must report recovered property within 20… - New lease terms for Capitol Annex: mixed, low. The Finance and Administration Cabinet and the Legislative Research Commission must set building terms by a written agreement. It covers rent, utilities, maintenance, security, and janitorial work. The Commission can stop cabinet janitorial services with 60 days’ notice and hire its own, which lowe… - New terms for state selection committees: mixed, low. Pool appointees to selection committees serve an initial one-year term, may be reappointed, and serve until successors qualify. Vacancies are filled the same way as the original appointment; the Auditor’s appointees follow the same rule. User agency appointees serve only for the project they were c… ## Sponsors and cosponsors - Sponsor: Brandon J. Storm (Republican), Senate - Cosponsor: Robert Stivers (Republican), Senate ## Roll call votes | Date | Chamber | Motion | Result | Yes | No | Other | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 2026-04-01 | House | 3rd reading, passed | pass | 78 | 12 | | | 2026-04-01 | Senate | passed | pass | 36 | 0 | | | 2026-03-04 | Senate | passed | pass | 36 | 0 | | ## Actions (37) - 2026-04-13: signed by Governor (Acts Ch. 134) - 2026-04-01: delivered to Governor - 2026-04-01: enrolled, signed by Speaker of the House (Senate) - 2026-04-01: enrolled, signed by President of the Senate (Senate) - 2026-04-01: passed 36-0 (Senate) - 2026-04-01: Senate concurred in Committee Substitute (1) and Floor Amendments (4) and (3) (Senate) - 2026-04-01: posted for passage for concurrence in House Committee Substitute (1) and Floor Amendments (3) and (4) (House) - 2026-04-01: taken from Rules (Senate) - 2026-04-01: to Rules (S) (Senate) - 2026-04-01: received in Senate (Senate) - 2026-04-01: 3rd reading, passed 78-12 with Committee Substitute (1) and Floor Amendments (4) and (3) (House) - 2026-04-01: floor amendment (2) defeated (House) - 2026-04-01: Committee Substitute (1) adopted (House) - 2026-03-31: posted for passage in the Regular Orders of the Day for Wednesday, April 01 2026 (House) - 2026-03-31: floor amendment (4) filed to Committee Substitute (House) - 2026-03-27: floor amendment (3) filed to Committee Substitute (House) - 2026-03-26: floor amendment (2) filed to Committee Substitute (House) - 2026-03-26: 2nd reading, to Rules (House) - 2026-03-25: floor amendment (1) filed to Committee Substitute (House) - 2026-03-25: reported favorably, 1st reading, to Calendar with Committee Substitute (1) (House) - 2026-03-24: to Judiciary (H) (House) - 2026-03-05: to Committee on Committees (H) (House) - 2026-03-05: received in House (House) - 2026-03-04: passed 36-0 with Floor Amendment (2) (Senate) - 2026-03-04: floor amendment (1) withdrawn (Senate) - 2026-03-04: 3rd reading (Senate) - 2026-03-03: posted for passage in the Regular Orders of the Day for Wednesday, March 04 2026 (Senate) - 2026-03-03: floor amendment (2) filed (Senate) - 2026-03-02: floor amendment (1) filed (Senate) - 2026-02-23: returned to Rules (Senate) - 2026-02-23: taken from Appropriations & Revenue (S) (Senate) - 2026-02-20: recommitted to Appropriations & Revenue (S) (Senate) - 2026-02-20: 2nd reading, to Rules (Senate) - 2026-02-19: reported favorably, 1st reading, to Calendar (Senate) - 2026-02-17: to Judiciary (S) (Senate) - 2026-02-17: to Committee on Committees (S) (Senate) - 2026-02-17: introduced in Senate (Senate) ## Bill text - Current, 2026-04-01: [PDF](https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/recorddocuments/bill/26RS/sb50/bill.pdf) - Introduced, 2026-03-04: [PDF](https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/recorddocuments/bill/26RS/sb50/orig_bill.pdf) ## Related bills - SB 197: AN ACT providing funding and establishing conditions for state government agencies and institutions, making an appropriation therefor, and declaring an emergen… (became law) - SB 133: AN ACT relating to the fiscal reporting of local entities. (signed) - HB 869: AN ACT relating to fiscal matters and declaring an emergency. (signed) - SB 66: AN ACT relating to the operation of a motor vehicle. (signed) - HB 826: AN ACT relating to education. (signed) - HB 727: AN ACT relating to education and declaring an emergency. (signed) ## Sources - [Current (PDF)](https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/recorddocuments/bill/26RS/sb50/bill.pdf) - [Introduced (PDF)](https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/recorddocuments/bill/26RS/sb50/orig_bill.pdf) ## Related - [SB 197: AN ACT providing funding and establishing conditions for state government agenc…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/KY-SB197-2026RS) - [SB 133: AN ACT relating to the fiscal reporting of local entities.](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/KY-SB133-2026RS) - [HB 869: AN ACT relating to fiscal matters and declaring an emergency.](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/KY-HB869-2026RS) - [SB 66: AN ACT relating to the operation of a motor vehicle.](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/KY-SB66-2026RS) - [HB 826: AN ACT relating to education.](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/KY-HB826-2026RS) - [HB 727: AN ACT relating to education and declaring an emergency.](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/KY-HB727-2026RS) - [Kentucky bills](https://policyrisk.com/states/kentucky/bills) - [Kentucky state hub](https://policyrisk.com/states/kentucky) - [All state legislation](https://policyrisk.com/state-bills) Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/KY-SB50-2026RS (as of 2026-11-01).