Sec. 696.003.  AUTHORIZATION TO RELEASE INFORMATION.  A person who possesses unclaimed cremated remains may release to the United States Department of Veterans Affairs or a veterans' service organization verification information associated with the remains to verify whether the remains are the remains of a person who was a veteran or a veteran's dependent eligible to be interred in a veterans cemetery if:
(1)  the person has possessed the cremated remains for at least five years;
(2)  the person authorized to dispose of the decedent's remains under Section 711.002 has not claimed the cremated remains; and
(3)  the person made a reasonable effort to locate a relative of the decedent to claim the remains, including publishing notice in a newspaper of general circulation in the county in which the person is located, and more than 30 days have passed since the person first made an effort to locate a relative of the decedent.
Added by Acts 2013, 83rd Leg., R.S., Ch. 373 (H.B. 3064), Sec. 1, eff. September 1, 2013.