Substitute Bill No. 5417 proposes significant amendments to the tuition waiver provisions for veterans and their dependents at Connecticut's higher education institutions, particularly the Connecticut State Community College and The University of Connecticut. The bill allows children of veterans to utilize their parent's unused tuition waivers and mandates that the Board of Regents for Higher Education waive tuition for veterans who served in wartime, as well as for specific groups such as dependents of missing or imprisoned service members. Key insertions include the establishment of a fund to manage these waivers and the requirement for state funding to support them. The bill also introduces a definition for "veteran tuition benefit" and allows for waivers for one child of a veteran under certain conditions, including domicile status.

In addition to these provisions, the bill makes several deletions from current law, such as removing outdated definitions related to veterans and clarifying the term "service in time of war" to exclude time spent at military service academies. It also expands eligibility for tuition waivers to include residents aged 62 and older and students attending the Connecticut Police Academy. The legislation aims to enhance educational access for veterans' families while ensuring that the necessary funding and administrative structures are in place to support these initiatives, with all changes set to take effect on July 1, 2026.