Senator Eliot Shapleigh - El Paso, Texas

AUSTIN -- Legal immigrants who served in the U.S. military would be exempted from paying tuition and fees at public universities under a bill the Texas House tentatively approved Monday.

"We do place a value on the service of individuals," said state Rep. Joaquin Castro, D-San Antonio, a sponsor of the measure, which passed on a vote of 81-50.

All five House lawmakers from El Paso voted for the bill.

The measure, by Castro and state Sen. Leticia Van de Putte, D-San Antonio, would clarify a state law called the Hazlewood Act that allows Texas veterans exemptions from tuition and fees. The bill comes after two attorney general opinions and a lawsuit over whether legal permanent residents who joined the military in Texas were eligible for the benefit.

Under state law, veterans who were Texas citizens when they enlisted are eligible to be exempted from tuition and fees for up to 150 college credit hours.

In 2005 and 2006, Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott issued opinions that said a veteran must have been a U.S. citizen at the time he or she registered to be eligible for the exemption.

The Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund, along with the American GI Forum and the League of United Latin American Citizens, sued the state in 2007 over that interpretation, arguing that it was unconstitutional and discriminatory.

Their lawsuit was filed on behalf of six Gulf War veterans who entered the military as legal permanent residents but were denied college
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benefits. All six eventually became U.S. citizens.

"They are treated equally on the battlefield. We want them treated equally when they get home," said Paul Herrera, Texas state commander for the American GI Forum.

Abbott withdrew his opinions last year. He said he decided that denying legal residents the exemption on tuition and fees was unconstitutional.

After Abbott withdrew his opinions, Herrera said the six veterans who sued were reimbursed for their education costs.

Van de Putte's bill would clarify the law by removing requirements that a veteran must have lived in Texas one year before enlisting and must be a Texas citizen at the time of enlistment.

"It gives all veterans the same equal opportunities for education in the state," Herrera said.

Changes added to the bill Monday would also extend the exemptions to members of the Texas State Guard, to spouses of military veterans and would allow soldiers to pass unused benefits on to a child.

Opponents of the measure said it would put too much of a burden on Texas public universities, which would not be reimbursed for the lost tuition and fees from military students.

"We're all for our veterans," said state Rep. David Swinford, R-Dumas. "We want to take care of them, but the state should be helping on this. It shouldn't be on the backs of our institutions."

The bill originally was estimated to cost Texas public schools up to $390,000, but that cost would increase with the changes added Monday, Castro said.

In 2007, about 9,100 Texas college students and their family members used the Hazlewood benefits. They were exempted from about $19.6 million in tuition and fees, according to a House Research Organization analysis.

Changes to the bill must be approved in the Senate before the measure is sent to Gov. Rick Perry. If the bill becomes law, it would take effect this fall.