The Attorney General of Texas 

December 31, 1982 

MARK WHITE 

Attorney General 

Supreme Court Building 

P. 0. em 12548 

Austin, TX. 78711. 2548 

5121475-2501 

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An Equal Opportunity/ 

Affirmative Action Employer 

Honorable Ray Farabee, Chairman 

State Affairs Committee 

Texas State Senate 

Room 411, State Archives Building 

Austin, Texas 78711 

opinion No. MW-567 

Re: Construction of article 

III, section 49-b of the Texas 

Constitution 

Dear Senator Farabee: 

Article III, section 49-b of the Texas Constitution establishes 

the Veterans Land Fund. See also Nat. Res. Code S5161.171, et seq. 

This fund, which is administered by the Veterans Land Board, is used 

to purchase tracts of land which are then sold to veterans who meet 

certain prescribed criteria. 

In 1977, Texas voters approved various amendments to article III, 

section 49-b, including the following: 

The unmarried surviving spouses of veterans who 

died in the line of duty may also apply= 

purchase a tract through the Board provided the 

deceased veterans meet the requirements set out in 

this Article.... (Emphasis added). 

Your inquiry concerns this provision. Specifically, you ask whether 

the unmarried surviving spouse of a veteran who received an honorable 

discharge from the Marine Corps in 1960 and died of a 

service-connected disability in 1973 is eligible to apply to purchase 

a tract of land. We understand that the Veterans Administration has 

in fact determined that the injury which led to this particular 

veteran's death was service-connected. We further understand that at 

the time of his death, this veteran was eligible to participate in the 

Veterans Land Program but had never chosen to do so. 

The answer to your question necessarily turns on the meaning of 

the phrase "died in the line of duty." The surviving spouse about 

whom you are concerned is eligible to apply to purchase the 

aforementioned land only if the scope of this phrase is broad enough 

to include a veteran whose death resulted from a service-connected 

injury but occurred thirteen years after he was discharged from the 

service. See Tex. Const. art. III, §49-b (definition of "veteran"). 

p. 2088 
Honorable Ray Farabee - Page 2 (Mw-567) 

This phrase is not defined in article III, section 49-b or in the 

statutes governing the Veterans Land Board. See Nat. Res. Code 

§§161.001, et seq. Similarly, neither the bill analysis of S.J.R. No. 

13, which proposed the 1977 amendments to article III, section 49-b. 

nor the federal statutes governing the Veterans Administration, see 38 

U.S.C. sections 101, et seq., shed any light on its meaning. Compare 

38 U.S.C. 5105 (standards for determining whether injury or disease is 

incurred "in the line of duty"). Thus, the question must be: what 

was the intent of the legislature in proposing this amendment and of 

the voters in approving it? 

At first glance, the phrase "died in the line of duty" would 

appear to embrace only those veterans who actually died while in 

active service. We cannot, however, imagine any reason why those who 

proposed and approved this amendment would have wanted it to be 

construed so rigidly. Nor can we conceive of any sound policy 

arguments in favor of such a construction. On the contrary, we 

believe that it is far more likely that those who sponsored and 

ratified the amendment intended the opposite construction. If an 

otherwise eligible veteran sustained an injury while in the line of 

duty and died soon thereafter, while still in active service, his 

spouse would be eligible to apply to purchase a tract of land. We see 

no reason why she should be disqualified simply because her spouse had 

the misfortune not to die until later, after being discharged from the 

service. The fact that her spouse's death occurred after a lengthy 

period of time should not, in our opinion, be dispositive of her 

eligibility under this provision. 

We therefore conclude that the spouse about whom you inquired is 

not automatically disqualified from applying for a tract of land under 

article III, section 49-b. Whether she is in fact eligible to 

purchase the land under all other applicable criteria is, of course. 

beyond the scope of this opinion. 

SUMMARY 

The phrase "veterans who died in the line of 

duty" in article III, section 49-b of the Texas 

Constitution may embrace an individual whose death 

resulted from a service-connected injury but did 

not actually occur prior to discharge from active 

service. 

MARK WHITE 

Attorney General of Texas 

p. 2089 
Honorable Ray Farabee - Page 3 

JOHN W. FAINTER, JR. 

First Assistant Attorney General 

RICBARD E. GRAY III 

Executive Assistant Attorney General 

Prepared by Jon Bible 

Assistant Attorney General 

APPROVED: 

OPINION COMMITTEE 

Susan L. Garrison, Chairman 

Jon Bible 

p. 2090