Hazlewood Act

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.

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

WHO IS ELIGIBLE?

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.

HOW TO APPLY

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 online here (if Veteran has active duty service after 9/11/2001);

• Take both applications, letter of eligibility/ineligibility (if needed), along with a copy of the Veteran’s DD214, to the financial aid office of the institution you will be attending.

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.