TITLE 40. SOCIAL SERVICES AND ASSISTANCE
PART 5. TEXAS VETERANS LAND BOARD
CHAPTER 175. GENERAL RULES OF THE VETERANS LAND BOARD
SUBCHAPTER
A.
The Texas Veterans Land Board (Board) proposes amendments to Texas Administrative Code, Title 40, Part 5, Chapter 175, Subchapter A, §175.3, concerning Land Selection, and §175.4, concerning Land Description.
The proposed amendments update the rules' provisions and facilitate transactions under the Board's Veterans Land Program (Program).
At its special called meeting on February 3, 2026, the Board unanimously approved a recommendation from its staff to incorporate the proposed amendments with the aim of enhancing the effectiveness of the Program.
FISCAL IMPACT ON STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT: Pursuant to Texas Government Code, §2001.024(a)(4), Mr. Raul Gonzales, Director of the Board's Land and Housing Division, has determined that for the first five-year period the proposed amendments are in effect, there may be minimal fiscal implications for state, but not local, government as a result of the proposed amendments. Specifically, the proposed amendments removing the requirement that surveys of properties under the Program include a license from the surveyor may lead to the Board having to perform updated surveys for any properties on which it forecloses and sells. However, this event occurs for approximately one percent of Program properties. Furthermore, the costs of performing such surveys on staff resources would be minimal.
PUBLIC BENEFITS AND PROBABLE ECONOMIC COSTS: Pursuant to Texas Government Code, §2001.024(a)(5), Mr. Gonzales has determined that for each year of the first five years the proposed amendments are in effect, there will be no economic effects on businesses or individuals. The public benefit will be increased access in the benefit the Program offers to the state's veterans.
TAKINGS IMPACT ASSESSMENT: The amended section does not contemplate or authorize a taking by the Board; therefore, no Takings Impact Assessment is required under Texas Government Code, §2007.043.
LOCAL EMPLOYMENT IMPACT STATEMENT: Mr. Gonzales has determined that the proposed amendments will not affect a local economy, so the Board is not required to prepare a local employment impact statement under Texas Government Code, §2001.022.
FISCAL IMPACT ON SMALL BUSINESSES, MICRO-BUSINESSES, AND RURAL COMMUNITIES: The Board has determined there will be no adverse economic effect on small businesses, micro-businesses, or rural communities due to the proposed amendments, therefore preparation of an economic impact statement and a regulatory flexibility analysis under Texas Government Code, §2006.002, is not required.
GOVERNMENT GROWTH IMPACT STATEMENT: Pursuant to Texas Government Code, §2001.0221, Mr. Gonzales provides the following Government Growth Impact Statement for the proposed amendments. For each of the first five years the proposed amendments will be in effect:
the proposed amendments will not create or eliminate a government program;
implementation of the proposed amendments will not require the creation or elimination of existing employee positions;
implementation of the proposed amendments will not require an increase or decrease in future legislative appropriations to the Board;
the proposed amendments will not require an increase or decrease in fees paid to the Board;
the proposed amendments do not create a new regulation;
the proposed amendments will not expand, limit, or repeal an existing regulation;
the proposed amendments will not increase or decrease the number of individuals subject to the rules; and
the proposed amendments will not affect the state's economy.
PUBLIC COMMENT REQUEST: Written comment on the proposed amendments may be submitted by mail to Mr. Walter Talley, Texas Register Liaison, Texas General Land Office, P.O. Box 12873, Austin, Texas 78711, facsimile number (512) 463-6311 or email to walter.talley@glotexxas.gov. Written comments must be received no later than thirty (30) days from the date of publication of the proposed amendments in the Texas Register.
The amendments are proposed under Section 161.063 of the Texas Natural Resources Code, which allows the Board to adopt rules it considers necessary to ensure the integrity of the Program. The Code affected by this proposal is Chapter 161 of the Texas Natural Resources Code.
§175.3.
(a) Land selected by a veteran for purchase or financing through the program must:
(1) (No change.)
(2)
contain at least one (1) net acre (excluding, as determined [defined] by the board, inundated or submerged land, or otherwise unusable land);
(3) (No change.)
(4)
if more than one tract of land is selected the tracts must be contiguous [as defined by the board]; or, if not contiguous, then one tract must meet the minimum acreage requirement, and the use, location, and value of the tracts would permit the board, in its sole discretion, to consider the combination of the tracts as one tract; [and]
(5)
have direct access to a publicly maintained [public] road. If the tract does not directly abut a publicly maintained [public] road:[, a perpetual access easement appurtenant must be conveyed to the board, or other board approved access must be provided. This easement must meet the county width requirement for publicly maintained roads and, in any event, must be at least 60 feet wide. The easement must be conveyed to the board by general warranty deed or dedicated to the public or subdivision owners. If the easement is conveyed to the board by deed, it must be described by metes and bounds. This description must contain specific tie calls to both the tract and a public road. If the easement is dedicated, the deed to the board must refer to the recording information of the subdivision plat or other dedication instrument. If the board finances the transaction the tract must have similar easement rights. Easements and roads must be usable by standard automobiles during inclement weather.]
(A) access may be provided by way of a public or private perpetual access and easement either conveyed to the borrower or board or dedicated to the public or subdivision owners;
(B) all roadway easements must be at least sixty (60) feet wide or meet the county's minimum width requirement for a publicly maintained road, whichever is greater. The width requirement may be waived by the chairman, but in no event can an easement be less than thirty (30) feet in width;
(C) easements being conveyed to the borrower or board must be described by metes and bounds. The description must contain specific tie calls to both the tract and publicly maintained road;
(D) if the easement is dedicated to the public or subdivision owners, it must refer to the recording information of the subdivision plat or other dedication instrument and a copy of the instrument must be provided to the board; and
(E) easement and roads must be usable by two (2)-wheel drive automobiles during inclement weather, including snow, rain, and freezing temperatures.
(6) in the case of flagpole tracts, or tracts with a similar configuration, where the pole portion of the tract provides access to the main body (flag portion) of the tract, the pole portion of the tract must meet the width and drivability requirements for an access easement, and the main body of the tract must meet the requirement of one (1) net acre, as determined by the board.
(b)
The board will not purchase or finance a tract of land that was wholly owned by the veteran or his spouse, separately or jointly, within three (3) [3] years of the date of application.
(c) - (g) (No change.)
§175.4.
(a) Land selected to be purchased by the board must be described by a legally sufficient metes and bounds description. The property description must:
(1)
contain a general description of the land, specifying the acreage contained, the original survey(s) or grant(s) with abstract number(s), survey number(s) and block designation, if applicable, and the county in which the tract is located. If the tract is divided by a county line, the appropriate abstract numbers and acreage on each side of the county line will be shown. The general description shall also contain the deed reference to the parent tract including grantor, grantee, date of instrument, and [volume and page of] recording information. Additional references to other instruments in the chain of title may be referred to if appropriate;
(2) - (4) (No change.)
(b) (No change.)
[(c) All metes and bounds descriptions and survey plats shall bear the seal and signature of the surveyor preparing the same. Any field notes or survey plat prepared for and used in any board transaction includes a license from the surveyor to the board and the veteran purchaser to copy and use the field notes in that transaction and in any future transactions involving the surveyed property.]
(c) [(d)] Metes and bounds descriptions must be prepared from a survey of the property made on the ground. The survey should be made in such manner to be generally acceptable to title companies in the State of Texas for the purpose of deleting the survey exception clause.
[(e) Each corner of the tract of land shall be marked by concrete or metal monuments or other durable monuments generally used in the area. A description of each monument set or found and its location, with witnesses as available, shall be incorporated into the metes and bounds description of the property.]
[(f) When a roadway or easement crosses a tract, it shall be described sufficiently to enable its location throughout the tract and its area to be determined.]
(d) [(g)] Property descriptions and subdivision plats will be examined by the board for access and acreage, and may be examined by the board for closure and sufficiency [acreage, closure, and sufficiency]. The board's determination of these items will control.
(e) [(h)] The surveyor should be instructed to do a proper boundary survey of the land to be conveyed according to the record boundaries of the tracts involved. Any encroachments by existing perimeter fences into the subject tract or into adjacent tracts should be shown together with the area of any lands lying between the record boundaries and the existing occupation. Any occupation on the ground not conforming to the record boundaries should be shown on a plat of survey and fully explained in an accompanying surveyor's report.
(f) [(i)] The chairman may waive any of the foregoing requirements and accept a survey deemed sufficient by the title company to permit deletion of the survey exception clause.
The agency certifies that legal counsel has reviewed the proposal and found it to be within the state agency's legal authority to adopt.
Filed with the Office of the Secretary of State on February 20, 2026.
TRD-202600818
Jennifer Jones
Chief Clerk and Deputy Land Commissioner
Texas Veterans Land Board
Earliest possible date of adoption: April 5, 2026
For further information, please call: (512) 475-1859