About $1 million of that went to Texas State University, which educated more Hazlewood recipients than any other state public university last fiscal year. Located in San Marcos near three military bases that comprise Joint Base San Antonio, the university prides itself on being veteran-friendly.
    Marcy Garcia, 58, discovered she was eligible for her husband's benefit in 2012, two years after she enrolled in classes at Texas State University. It freed her "from worrying about where my tuition was going to come from," and allowed her to focus on education, said Garcia, whose husband is a disabled Vietnam veteran. She expects to graduate in May.
    Rufus Coburn, executive director of the Texas Veterans Commission, said participation is relatively low in part because federal benefits must be maxed out first. But many fear that a successful challenge to the program's "fixed-point residency clause" may cause costs to spiral. The clause requires that beneficiaries be legal Texas residents when they enlist.
    A military veteran from Georgia who was living in Houston challenged that requirement in a 2014 lawsuit. A federal judge ruled the requirement unconstitutional in January and the student was entitled to the benefit. Texas has appealed the ruling, which some worry may prompt other veterans to relocate to Texas to take advantage of a free education.
    Coburn says that concern is premature. "I don't think the sky is falling," he said. "States aren't going to recommend that their veterans go somewhere else."
    Juan Ramirez said most veterans he knows want to relocate near family and aren't benefit-shopping.
    After being discharged from the U.S. Air Force, the 30-year-old Ramirez moved to San Antonio to reunite with relatives. He is using his Hazlewood benefit to study criminal justice and expects to earn an associate's degree this summer.
    "The State of Texas is very generous, and it's a godsend, really," he said.
    The Hazlewood fund had a balance of $260 million at the end of August, according to the Legislative Budget Board, which recommended dispersing $23.5 million in the 2016-2017 biennium.
    Gov. Greg Abbott last month proposed allocating $532 million for Hazlewood benefits in his state budget, but that allotment has so far remained in the background during budget discussions.
    A half-dozen bills in the Texas Legislature propose amending the statute, particularly to remove the residency clause. Several would require beneficiaries to be Texas residents for eight years before registering for school.
    Republican Rep. Rick Miller, a 30-year Navy veteran, recently told the House Appropriations Committee that lawmakers needed to "deal with this ever-increasing financial cost to the state and the institutions."
    He said House members were evaluating how to do that and still "honor our commitment to our Texas veterans."