Jefferson County Clerk: Recording of Military Discharges

The Jefferson County Clerk, Roxanne Acosta-Hellberg, records and preserves the county's DD-214s. Her office's site lives with the Elections Department at jeffcotxvotes.gov (the county's older co.jefferson.tx.us clerk pages redirect there), under the Vital Statistics Division's "DD 214 Military Discharge" page, titled "Honoring and Preserving Veteran Records". Filing. A DD-214 filing is "not required but highly encouraged": a veteran who files "creates a permanent record for future proof of service for veterans' benefits and for safekeeping", and the office can then "provide a certified copy of a DD-214 should a qualified applicant need a replacement copy in the future". "An original, complete DD-214 is required in order to be filed with the County Clerk and it will be returned once the filing is completed"; if the veteran has no original, a certified copy from the Military can be submitted. "There is no fee to file a DD-214 with the County Clerk. Texas Local Gov't Code § 192.002." The Clerk's Recording Division likewise lists "Military Discharge" among the instruments it records. Copies. A discharge first recorded on or after September 1, 2003 is confidential for 75 years under Government Code 552.140, and the Clerk's page restates the qualified applicants: the veteran, the spouse, a child or parent, the nearest living relative if there is no living spouse, child or parent, a legal guardian, a person named by the veteran or by a guardian, spouse, child, nearest relative or personal representative in a power of attorney under Estates Code chapter 572, the estate's personal representative, another governmental body, and an authorized representative of a funeral home assisting in the burial; see the Texas entry. "There is no fee for certified or non-certified copies." To request a copy, complete the Clerk's Request For Copy of Military Discharge form; mailed and emailed requests must also include the form's Notarized Proof of Identification page and a valid government-issued or state-issued photo ID. The minimum information is the veteran's full name; the discharge year and branch help but are not required. Mail the form to Jefferson County Clerk, Attn: Vital Statistics, P.O. Box 1151, Beaumont, Texas 77704, or email [email protected]. A veteran whose original is gone can order a certified copy from the National Personnel Records Center at archives.gov/veterans/military-service-records, by mail or fax on the SF-180, or ask the center at 314-801-0800. The fee sheet. The Clerk's official-public-records fee sheet, effective January 1, 2026, prints "MILITARY DISCHARGE RECORDS: DD214 copy or certified copy of the discharge record upon the presentation of proper identification - No Fee - GC Sec. 552.140", so the free copies are on the published schedule, not just the DD-214 page. The same sheet carries a "Military Veteran Waiver (All Fees)" line - Occupations Code 55.001 and Business & Commerce Code 71.155(a-1), the military-veteran assumed-name waiver the Texas entry explains - next to the assumed-name fees, so a veteran filing an assumed name certificate asks for it there.