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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.
The Institution of Higher Education (IHE) is the final decision-making authority on student eligibility.
How to Apply
- 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 by requesting a certificate of eligibility for federal education benefits from VA.gov (if veteran has active duty service after 9/11/2001).
- Fill out the Hazlewood Exemption application form.
- Turn in the Hazlewood Exemption application form, a copy of your letter of eligibility / ineligibility, and a copy of your DD214 to the financial aid office of the institution you will be attending.
*Check with your school on application deadline policies. If you qualify for state education benefits earned through military service and your verification paperwork to the school is delayed, you may apply for up to a 60-day deferment of tuition and fees to avoid late charges and/or being dropped from classes by submitting a Deferment Request Form.
Hazlewood Links & Resources
Hazlewood Student Hours Database
Downloadable Forms
- Hazlewood Application
- Revocation of Previously Assigned Hours
- Application For Continued Enrollment
- Deferment Request Form
- Sample Documentation Checklist
External Links
Statutes
Veteran Eligibility
A Veteran must meet all the eligibility requirements as drawn from the Hazlewood Act Statute and 40 Texas Administrative Code §461:
A Veteran must:
- At the time of entry into active duty of the U.S. Armed Forces, (DD Form 214 required) & (40 TAC §461.40)
- 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,
- Served at least 181 days of active duty service (excluding training);
- Currently reside in Texas; (40 TAC §461.40) & (40 TAC §461.70)
- 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.
Child (Legacy) Eligibility
Eligible Veterans may assign or transfer unused hours of exemption eligibility to a child under certain conditions as drawn from the Hazlewood Act Statute and 40 Texas Administrative Code §461
A Child (Legacy Act) must:
- Be classified by the institution as a Texas resident; (40 TAC §461.70)
- 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
- 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; (40 TAC §461.70) & (40 TAC §461.90)
- 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.
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. (40 TAC §461.30)
*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.
Spouse / Dependent Eligibility
A Spouse / Dependent must:
Be the spouse/dependent of an eligible veteran who is determined by the VA to be 100%, total and permanent, service-connected veteran or one who became totally disabled for purposes of employability as a result of a service-related injury or illness. The spouse/dependent(s) of an eligible veteran who meets the requirements below are entitled to receive a 150 credit hours exemption, each, under certain conditions as drawn from the Hazlewood Act Statute and Texas Administrative Code §461:
- Be a spouse / child of a Veteran who, at the time of entry into the U.S. Armed Forces, (DD Form 214 required) , (40 TAC §461.50) & (40 TAC §461.60)
- designated Texas as Home of Record,
- or entered the service in Texas;
- or was a Texas resident;
- Be a spouse / child of a Veteran of the U.S. Armed Forces or the Texas National Guard who
- died as a result of service-related injuries or;
- became totally and permanently disabled or meets the eligibility requirements for individual unemployability according to the disability ratings of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) as a result of a service-related injury, or
- Missing in action (MIA), or
- Killed in action (KIA).
- 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;
- 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. This requirement does not apply to the spouse / child of a MIA, KIA, or service-connected deceased Veteran. (40 TAC §461.50) & (40 TAC §461.60)
Institutions of Higher Education
The Hazlewood Act is available only for use at a Texas public college or university. To access listings of Texas public colleges and universities, go to the Texas Institutions of Higher Education page 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.
Hazlewood Act Benefit Student Usage Reports and DD-214 Reporting Reminders:
Submission Dates
Fall Semester – January 31st
Spring Semester – June 30th
Summer Semesters – September 30th
Background of the DD214 Report portion of Hazlewood Act reporting: Beginning October 2018, public institutions of higher education were notified of the requirement to submit additional demographic data as it relates to the veteran’s DD214 and the use of the Hazlewood Act by Texas veterans and their families. This additional information may be provided through a standalone DD214 Report submission, or integrated via the .csv file report which combines both the DD214 Report and the Student Usage Report into a single completed file. We appreciate your continued support providing the additional information with your submitted files.
Hazlewood Database for Institutions
Documents
- Hazlewood Procedure Manual
- Hazlewood Database Manual
- Hazlewood PowerPoint Presentation
- CSV Format Record Template
Statutes
- Texas Education Code §54.341, Hazlewood Act
- Texas Education Code §54.2001, GPA and Excessive Hours
- 40 TAC §461, Hazlewood Act Administrative Rules
We welcome all Hazlewood Act certifying officials who have questions or concerns, please contact us at Veterans Education Services via e-mail at or phone at 512-463-3168.
Thank you for your continued support of veterans and their families as they pursue their educational goals!