Hon. C. H. Cavnees Opinion No. S-6.7 

State Auditor 

State Capitol Re: The legality of counting, 

Austin, Texas for public j,unlor college 

apportionment purposes, 

semester hours, taken by 

non-resident military personnel enrolled In the colleges at resident tuition 

rate, part of 

being paid by 

Dear Sir: ment. 

Yo’u have asked for the opinion 

concerning the lega.lity of co’untlng, for 

college apportionment purposes, semester 

non-resldent,~milltary peraonnel enrolled 

at resident ,tuitlon rates,~ part of their 

paid by the U. S. Uovernment. 

their tuition 

t,he U.S. governof this office 

pbllc jun.lor 

hours taken by 

in the colleges 

t’ultlon being 

Yo’u atate In your’ letter that certain of the 

Public Junior Colleges have in effect contractti with the 

United States Armed Forces whereby a portion of the tuition required is paid by the military undergraduate 

student and the pemalnder la paid by the Government. 

Article IV, Chapter 81, Acte of ,the 53rd Legislature, 1953 (commonly called the, '1953 Apporpriatlon 

Act) reads in part, at page,306 et eeq.: 

“Sec. 3. It la further provided, that to 

be eligible for and to receive a proportionate 

share of this appropriation, a Publlc~ Junior 

College shall: 

“(a) Prior to November lrrt of each year, 

collect In full a8 tuition from each enro,lled 

student. . . the amount.8 Ret a8 such by the 

respective governing boards. . . provided 
Hon. C. H. Cavness, page 2 (S-67) 

further that valid contracts with the United 

States Government for instruction of undergraduate military personnel may be consldered as collections subject to adjustment 

after final payments thereof. 

"Sec. 4. (b) :. -2, Semester hours to be 

counted for each Public Junior College shall 

not Include.. s a tho.se hours being carried 

by any student receiving the benefits of 

U. S. Public Laws Nos. 346 or 16, 78th Congress. . .'I 

It Is evident that students,in the military 

service may have their ho'urs count,ed in determining the 

amount of aid the public junior college Is to receive 

from, the State. Section 3 (a), supra, express,ly Includes 

government military contracts and the students covered 

thereby. The 1951 Appropriation Act (Chagter 499, Act,s 

of the 52nd Legislature, ;951, page 1228) excluded frqm 

the .semester hours count any'student, whose tui,tlon and 

,fee expenses are paid by the United States Government." 

Att'y Gen. Op. S-17 (1953). The '1953 Appropriatl~on Act 

Is worded differently, excluding only'the semester hours 

'c,arried by any student receiving the benefit o,f U. S.. 

Public Laws Nos. 346 or 16, 78th Congress." 

House Bill No. 437, Acts-of the &rd Legislature, 

1953, amends Subsection 6 of Section 1 of Article 2654c, 

Vernon's ,Clvll Statutes, so as to permit all members, qf 

the Arme:d Forces stationed in Texas to attend stat,e institutions of higher learning by paying r,egular resident 

tuition ,charges. Section 3 of House Bill 437 read,s: , 

"Provided that the terms of! this Act. 

shall not be ap,pllcable, to students, their 

husbands or wives as the case may be, a 

are in attendance at ,lnstitutions of ,higher 

learning under contractual arrangements 

between said inqtltutlon,s and the, Armed 

Forces of the United States, as described 

in Section 6 hereof, whereby the student% 

tuition Is paid by the said Armed Forces." 

(Emphasis added) 

f 
Hon. co H. Cavness, page 3 (s-67) 

Consequently, a non-resident military ,student 

whose tuition la paid In part under contract between the 

United States Armed Force6 and a public junior college 

is obligated to pay the non-resident tuition charge8 

specified In Subsection 2 of Section 1 of Article 2654c, 

Vernon’s Civil Statutes. 

. 

.: 

,~ 

In determining the, apportionment to 

which It Is entitled a public junior college may count the semester hours carried 

by a military undergraduate, except those 

receiving benefits *under U. Si Public, Laws 

Nos. 346 or 16, 78th Congres,s. 

A military undergraduate who Is a 

non-resident of the State of Texas must 

pay non-resident tuition If his tuition 

la paid In part by the United States Armed 

Forces pursuant 

lnst1tutlon. 

tb a contract with the 

APPROVED: 

,J. C. Davis, Jr. 

County Afialrs Division 

Willie E. Greeham 

Reviewer 

Burnell Waldrep 

Executive Assistant 

John Ben Shepperd 

Attorney Oencral 

BEL: am 

‘, 

Yom-a, viry truly, 

JOHN BEN SIIEPPEZRD 

Attorn,ey General, 

BY