Free College Tuition: Texas To Debate On Veteran's Children Education Program

To cut down on the escalating cost of a veteran tuition program known as Hazlewood, in Texas, the state lawmakers are gearing up for another debate to reduce the number of students who qualify for it. The move comes two years after failed efforts in the state legislature when lawmakers debated about down scaling the program, the Texas Tribune reported Thursday.

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J.M. Lozano, the new House Higher Education Committee chairman, had filed a bill (House Bill 3766) Thursday, which aims to limit the number of students who qualify for the Hazlewood program. The program is a State of Texas benefit, which has its roots in a 1923 bill. It provides qualified veterans, spouses, and dependent children with an education benefit of up to 150 hours of tuition exemption at public institutions of higher education in Texas.

After a 2009 amendment to the bill that included children of veterans as well, the universities have been facing funding issues.

​The number of Hazlewood students had jumped from 9,882 in 2009-2010 to 22,583 in 2010-2011, according to the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board, Houston Chronicle had reported in March 2012. The cost to colleges and universities increased from $24.7 million to $69.3 million.

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Lozano introduced the bill to address the universities' concerns. To qualify for the Hazlewood program, earlier it would require a veteran to have served four years in the military in contrast to present where a military member only needs to serve 180 days. Second, the program would also expire 15 years after the veteran was honorably discharged, which disqualifies the child born after the veteran left military, according to the Texas Tribune.

Meanwhile, the veteran groups have started expressing their concerns as they say the Hazlewood program is the least the state can do to acknowledge the work done by its military.

Democrats will fight the bill. César J. Blanco, who represents District 76 in the Texas House of Representatives, said in a statement that he was disappointed in Lozano, who has thousands of veterans in his district, the Texas Tribune reported.