The Texas Veterans Land Board (VLB) marked its 80th anniversary Oct. 27 with a board resolution, Land Commissioner and VLB Chairwoman Dawn Buckingham announced, according to a news release from the Texas General Land Office (GLO).
Buckingham was joined at the board meeting by VLB members Judson Scott and James Rothfelder, along with former land commissioners, VLB chairs, board members and executive secretaries, the release said.
“When the GLO was established in 1836, we honored Veterans of the Texas Revolution with land grants, allowing our war heroes to settle the lands for which they fought. This accord was made official with the establishment of the Veterans Land Board (VLB) in 1946, and 80 years later, we continue supporting our Veterans with the best package of benefits in the country,” Buckingham said in the release.
The agency said the Texas Legislature passed the Veterans Land Act in 1946, establishing the board. According to the GLO, more than 21,500 veterans and spouses have received long-term skilled nursing care in a Texas State Veterans Home, and the board opened the Tuskegee Airmen State Veterans Home in Fort Worth last year as its 10th and newest. The release said more than 36,790 veterans and spouses have been interred at a Texas State Veterans Cemetery, and the West Texas State Veterans Cemetery, the fifth and most recent, opened in June 2026.
On lending, the GLO said the land loan program, created in 1949, has facilitated 137,691 loans totaling more than $3.0 billion, and the Veterans Housing Assistance Program, created in 1983, has facilitated 106,108 home loans totaling more than $14.4 billion through the end of September 2026. The agency said the board increased home and land loan amounts at the start of the year, with the home loan limit rising from $806,500 to $832,750.
The release also pointed to other developments over the past year, including the Voices of Veterans Oral History Program recording its 600th story in June and the board’s first appearances at the Houston Rodeo in March and at Texas’s first Fleet Week in April. Residents of the 10 state veterans homes received more than 17,000 Valentine’s Day cards through the “Valentines for Vets” program, according to the agency.
“As VLB Chairwoman, it is an honor to recognize the dedication of every VLB staff member as we mark this incredible milestone,” Buckingham said.