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Military Matters: Help for Hazlewood
March 6 VAMI Hearing on Veteran Benefits



We Texans are a pretty patriotic bunch. We salute the flag, we cherish our freedom, and over the decades, we have sent many of our sons and daughters into battle to protect our nation. And when those warriors return, Texas takes care of them.



One of the best ways we've done that, since shortly after the First World War, is the Hazlewood Act. This is a Texas law that provides veterans seeking a college education with 150 credit hours of tuition and fee exemptions. And in 2009, a bill I authored made this good law even better - the Hazlewood Legacy Act allowed veterans to pass on any unused Hazlewood benefits to their spouse or children.



I did this, and my colleagues at the Capitol supported me, for a simple reason: When a service member goes off to war, the family also sacrifices. There's no point in letting that benefit go unused - the veteran (and family) earned it.



Lately, however, there have been some disturbing rumblings around the Capitol and the state's institutions of higher education. Some university administrators have complained that Hazlewood, especially since the passage of Legacy, is putting a financial burden on their schools.



This kind of talk infuriates me. After service members put their lives on the line to defend our Constitution, after their family suffers sleepless nights worrying about their safety, and after their children endure months-long stretches without the presence of a parent (sometimes both parents), I don't want to hear about how they are a "burden" on the rest of us.



I take a different view - I don't believe the burden comes from Hazlewood or our veterans, it comes from a state Legislature that fails to properly fund higher education. It comes from cuts - made over my objections in the 2011 legislative session - to the money made available to our schools.



On Wednesday, the Senate Veteran Affairs and Military Installations Committee, which I chair, will hold a hearing on Hazlewood. We expect to hear from university chancellors - who, I want to make it clear, support our veterans and want to find a way to continue helping them. And we will hear from students who have received an education thanks to Hazlewood, letting them reach for their dreams and provide for their families.



I know the money to continue Hazlewood exists - the only real question is whether my fellow legislators will step up and deliver it.



I am happy to entertain a discussion of how we can send more money to our universities. I am not willing to discuss in any way diminishing benefits that our brave warriors and their families have earned.



The hearing will be held on the Senate floor at 1:30 p.m. (or upon adjournment of the Senate) on Wednesday, March 6. If you cannot make it to Austin, you can monitor the hearing online by watching streaming video at http://www.senate.state.tx.us/bin/live.php or by reading the testimony at http://www.capitol.state.tx.us/Committees/MeetingsByCmte.aspx?Leg=83&Chamber=S&CmteCode=C650


leticia.vandeputte@senate.state.tx.us

As is the case with every session, I have introduced several bills in the 83rd Legislature to benefit active military and veteran families. Updates on where these bills are currently at in the process:



Senate Bill 10 is the Veterans' Employment and Business Opportunity Act, and tackles veteran unemployment on three fronts: It allows direct hiring of veterans by state agencies through the Texas Workforce Commission's automated system, and requires at least 25% of the interview pool to be veterans; increases the ability of disabled veteran-owned business to compete for state contracts by making them eligible for contracting with the Texas Council on Purchasing From People With Disabilities; and makes the College Credit for Heroes program permanent, letting certain military training translate into college credits. It has made its way from the Senate to the House, through the House committee process, and last week was sent to the House Calendars Committee, which decides if and when it will be sent to the House floor.



SB 162 will also help the veteran unemployment problem by requiring state agencies that issue occupational licenses to provide an expedited licensure for service members, their spouses, and veterans within one year of separation from the military, if the license they obtained in the military or another jurisdiction is substantially similar to what Texas requires. (A year after the expedite license is issued, individuals would be expected to fully meet Texas requirements for that license.) It is currently on the House Local & Consent Calendar, which is where bills considered noncontroversial are sent for consideration by the House.



SBs 846 and 898 address veterans' mental health concerns. SB 846 requires the Texas Veterans Commission to coordinate with the Department of State Health Services to incorporate a suicide prevention component into its training of veteran county service officers. SB 898 enables a greater number of veterans and family members to be eligible for Peer-to-Peer services under the Mental Health Program for Veterans. SB 846 has passed the House; SB 898 has made its way out of the House Defense & Veterans' Affairs Committee.



SB 981 will allow electric utilities in Texas to adopt a discount program similar to the one we now have in San Antonio for burned veterans who must keep their houses cooler than normal. It has been sent to the House Calendars Committee.



I also invite you to visit http://www.legis.state.tx.us/ for information on our last called session and any prior sessions.

leticia.vandeputte@senate.state.tx.us

I'm retired DV at 50% and have found nothing in Texas that I am eligible for. No DV plates, no discount on hunting license...I can get 10% off at Lowes.