Texas Administrative Code › Title 40 - SOCIAL SERVICES AND ASSISTANCE › Part 15 - TEXAS VETERANS COMMISSION › Chapter 461 - VETERANS EDUCATION › Subchapter A - EXEMPTION PROGRAM FOR VETERANS AND THEIR DEPENDENTS (THE HAZLEWOOD ACT) › Section 461.30 - Hazlewood Act Exemption

Current through Reg. 49, No. 28; July 12, 2024
(a) Subject to
				  the following provisions, an institution shall exempt an eligible person from
				  the payment of tuition, mandatory fees, dues, and other required charges,
				  including fees for correspondence courses and distance education courses, but
				  excluding general deposit and student services fees and any fees or charges for
				  lodging, board, or clothing.
(b) An
				  institution is not required to provide the Hazlewood Act Exemption for tuition
				  and fees related to courses for which the institution does not receive state
				  formula funding, unless the governing board of the institution specifically
				  chooses to provide the exemption for such courses.
(c) Generally, the Hazlewood Act Exemption
				  provides for both resident or nonresident tuition and fees for those who meet
				  all requirements to receive the benefit.
(d) A person's eligibility for the Hazlewood
				  Act Exemption is not impacted by federal veterans' education programs that
				  provide for benefits not specifically designated for the payment of tuition and
				  fees.
(e) The Legacy recipient 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 (Texas Government Code §
				  434.0079(c)(1)).
(f) Stacking state
				  and federal veterans education benefits is permitted. Persons eligible for more
				  than one federal veterans education benefit must select which federal program
				  to stack with the Hazlewood Act Exemption. Persons eligible for federal
				  veterans benefits not specifically designated for the payment of tuition and
				  fees, or eligible for federal veterans education benefits at less than the 100%
				  entitlement level, may stack those benefits with the Hazlewood Act Exemption.
				  If the person elects to apply federal benefits that provide for payment of
				  tuition and fees, this federal benefit will be applied prior to the application
				  of Hazlewood. At no time will the total of federal and state benefits exceed
				  100% of the tuition and fees for the term.
(g) An eligible person is not entitled to
				  receive the Hazlewood Act Exemption for more than 150 attempted semester credit
				  hours, except that it may be less as described in subsection (e) of this
				  section.
(h) If the Hazlewood Act
				  Exemption is used to pay for only a portion of the hours taken during a given
				  term or semester, an institution shall deduct only the proportion used from the
				  150 hours of eligibility. When reporting the proportional hours to the
				  Commission, institutions shall round any fraction of an hour up to the nearest
				  whole number.
(i) The governing
				  board of a public junior college, public technical institute, or public state
				  college, as those terms are defined by Texas Education Code § 61.003, may
				  establish a fee for extraordinary costs associated with a specific course or
				  program and may determine that the exemption does not apply to this
				  fee.
(j) In determining whether to
				  admit a person to any certificate program or to any baccalaureate, graduate,
				  postgraduate, or professional degree program, an institution may not consider
				  the fact that the person is eligible for an exemption through this
				  subchapter.
(k) An application for
				  the Hazlewood Act Exemption shall be denied if it is determined that the
				  applicant is in default on an educational loan made or guaranteed by the State
				  of Texas.
(l) If the institution is
				  unable to determine eligibility of an applicant in accordance with this
				  subchapter, the institution shall consult with the Commission to resolve the
				  matter.