Texas Veterans Benefits

The Hazlewood Act is a State of Texas benefit that provides qualified Veterans, spouses, and dependent children with an education benefit of up to 150 hours of tuition exemption, including most fee charges, at public institutions of higher education in Texas. This does NOT include living expenses, books, or supply fees.

Veteran Qualifications

A Veteran must:

At the time of entry into active duty the U.S. Armed Forces, designated Texas as Home of Record; or entered the service in Texas; or was a Texas resident;
Have received an honorable discharge or separation or a general discharge under honorable conditions as indicated on the Veteran's Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty (DD Form 214);
Served at least 181 days of active duty service (excluding training);
Have no federal Veteran’s education benefits, or have no federal Veterans education benefits dedicated to the payment of tuition and fees only (such as Chapter 33 or 31; for term or semester enrolled that do not exceed the value of Hazlewood benefits;
Not be in default on a student loan made or guaranteed by the State of Texas;
Enroll in classes for which the college receives tax support (i.e., a course that does not depend solely on student tuition and fees to cover its cost), unless the college’s governing board has ruled to let Veterans receive the benefit while taking non-funded courses; and
Meet the GPA requirement of the institution's satisfactory academic progress policy in a degree or certificate program as determined by the institution's financial aid policy and, as an undergraduate student, not be considered to have attempted an excessive amount of credit hours.

Veterans who are granted their first Hazlewood Act exemption after Fall 2011 must reside in Texas during the semester or term for which the exemption is claimed. This requirement does not apply to the Veterans who either received the exemption prior to the 2011-2012 academic year, have reenlisted into active duty, or reside with a spouse who is on active duty.

Hazlewood Act application process

A Veteran must:

Apply and be accepted to a Texas public college or university of his/her choice. Go to www.applytexas.org to apply or use your institution's application for admission;
Provide proof (DD214) from the Department of Defense regarding military service and the nature of discharge;
Provide proof of eligibility or ineligibility for GI Bill® benefits (Chapter 31, 33/Post-9/11) by requesting a certificate of eligibility for federal education benefits from eBenefits (if Veteran has active duty service ended after 9/11/2001). You will need to create a username and password to request your certificate of eligibility;
Fill out the Hazlewood Exemption application; and
Turn in the Hazlewood Exemption application form, a copy of your letter of eligibility/ineligibility, and a copy of your DD214 into the Veteran Services Office.

Applications and all supporting documentation must be received by the institution no later than the last day of class in order to be evaluated for the semester or term.

Determine institution eligibility for the Hazlewood Act

Eligible Institutions:
The Hazlewood Act is available only for use at a Texas public college or university. To access listings of Texas public colleges and universities, follow this link: Texas Institutions of Higher Education and select any of the schools listed under the Texas Public Institutions. The schools listed under Independent (Private) Institutions do NOT qualify for this exemption.

Legacy Act (Children using transferred hours)

Eligible Veterans may assign unused hours of exemption eligibility to a child under certain conditions.

Qualifications

A child (legacy recipient) must:

Be classified by the institution as a Texas resident;
Be the biological child, stepchild, adopted child, or claimed as a dependent in the current or previous tax year;
Be 25 years old or younger on the first day of the semester or term for which the exemption is claimed (unless granted an extension due to a qualifying illness or debilitating condition); and
Meet the GPA requirement of the institution's satisfactory academic progress policy in a degree or certificate program as determined by the institution's financial aid policy and, as an undergraduate student, not be considered to have attempted an excessive amount of credit hours.

Legacy recipients will receive an exemption for the number of degree certified hours reported by the institution for that term or semester. Maximum degree certified hours awarded to the Legacy recipient will be dependent upon the degree or certificate program in which the student is enrolled for that term or semester and shall be consistent with the program length as defined within the school catalog as approved by the regional accreditation commission. *If a child to whom hours have been delegated fails to use all of the assigned hours, a Veteran may re-assign the unused hours that are available to another child. Only one child will use Hazlewood Legacy benefits at a time.

Legacy Act Application Process

Qualifications

A child (legacy recipient) of a Veteran must:

Apply and be accepted to a Texas public college or university. Go to www.applytexas.org to apply or use your institution's application for admission;
Fill out the Hazlewood Exemption application;
Provide proof of eligibility or ineligibility for GI Bill® benefits (Chapter 31, 33/Post-9/11) by requesting a certificate of eligibility for federal education benefits from eBenefits. You will need to create a username and password to request your certificate of eligibility;
Take both applications, letter of eligibility/ineligibility (if needed), proof of relationship, along with a copy of the Veteran’s DD214, to the Veteran Services Office.

Applications and all supporting documentation must be received by the institution no later than the last day of class of a term in order to be evaluated for that semester or term.

Hazlewood Act for Spouse/Child

Spouses and dependent children of eligible Active Duty, Reserve, and Texas National Guard who died in the line of duty or as a result of injury or illness directly related to military service, are missing in action, or who became totally disabled for purposes of employability as a result of a service-related injury or illness are entitled to each receive a 150 credit hours exemption.

Qualifications

A spouse must:

Be a spouse of a Veteran who, at the time of entry into the U.S. Armed Forces, be classified by the institution as a Texas resident, designated Texas as Home of Record, or entered the service in Texas;
Be a spouse of a Veteran of the U.S. Armed Forces or the Texas National Guard who died as a result of service-related injuries or illness, is missing in action, or became totally disabled (100%) as a result of service-related injury or illness or is entitled to receive compensation at the 100% rate due to individual employability (IU) due to a service connected injury or illness;
Have no federal Veterans education benefits, or have no federal Veterans education benefits dedicated to the payment of tuition and fees only (such as Chapter 33 or 31) for term or semester enrolled that do not exceed the value of Hazlewood benefits;
Be classified by the institution as a Texas resident; and
Meet the GPA requirement of the institution's satisfactory academic progress policy in a degree or certificate program as determined by the institution's financial aid policy and, as an undergraduate student, not be considered to have attempted an excessive amount of credit hours. This requirement does not apply to the spouse of a MIA, KIA, or service connected deceased Veteran.

A child must:

Be a child of a Veteran who, at the time of entry into the U.S. Armed Forces, be classified by the institution as a Texas resident, designated Texas as Home of Record, or entered the service in Texas;
Be a child of a Veteran of the U.S. Armed Forces, Texas National Guard, or Texas Air National Guard who died as a result of service-related injuries or illness, is missing in action, or became totally disabled (100%) as a result of a service-related injury or illness or is entitled to receive compensation at the 100% rate due to individual employability (IU) due to a service connected injury or illness;
Have no federal Veterans education benefits, or have no federal Veterans education benefits dedicated to the payment of tuition and fees only (such as Chapter 33 or 31; for term or semester enrolled that do not exceed the value of Hazlewood benefits;
Be classified by the institution as a Texas resident; and
Meet the GPA requirement of the institution's satisfactory academic progress policy in a degree or certificate program as determined by the institution's financial aid policy and, as an undergraduate student, not be considered to have attempted an excessive amount of credit hours. This requirement does not apply to the child of a MIA, KIA, or service connected deceased Veteran.

Application process for Spouse/Child

A spouse or child of a Veteran whose death was service connected, is MIA, or is/was 100% permanently disabled must:

Apply and be accepted to a Texas public college or university. Go to www.applytexas.org or use your institution's application for admission;
Provide a DD214 and a disability rating letter or a DD1300 Report of Casualty regarding the Veteran's death;
Provide proof of eligibility or ineligibility for GI Bill® benefits (Chapter 31, 33/Post/9-11) by requesting an education benefits letter from the VA at eBenefits. You will need to create a username and password to request your certificate of eligibility;
Fill out the Hazlewood Exemption application.
Take both applications, letter of eligibility/ineligibility (if needed), proof of relationship, along with a copy of the Veteran’s DD214, to the Veteran Services Office.

Applications and all supporting documentation must be received by the institution no later than the last day of class of a term in order to be evaluated for that semester or term.