Tyler County Clerk: Military Discharges Filed Free and Kept Confidential

The office. Janet Brown, County Clerk, 116 South Charlton Street, Woodville, TX 75979; phone (409) 283-2281, fax (409) 283-8049; [email protected]; Monday to Friday 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. The discharge page. "The military services encourage military personnel to file their discharge papers (DD 214) with the County Clerk in the county of residence." It adds that "Texas Local Government Code, Section 192.002 authorizes the County Clerk to file the military discharge at no charge," that the original is returned after recording, and that "Military Discharge records are considered confidential." Government Code 603.003 makes a certified copy free too (see the Texas entry). The copy form. The Clerk's "Application for Request of DD214 Military Discharge" (revised 2015, still under the former Clerk's name) asks the applicant's relationship to the veteran and the purpose, requires a photocopy of valid identification, and quotes the Department of Defense, Freedom of Information Act and Privacy Act rules for the federal personnel file, including the next-of-kin list for a deceased veteran. For the Clerk's own recorded copy the governing rule is Government Code 552.140, which releases it to the veteran and the relatives, representatives and agencies it lists (see the Texas entry); a spouse or relative turned away under the federal wording should cite it.