(a) In a county with a population of 200,000 or more, the commissioners court shall maintain a veterans county service office. The office must:
(1) be separate and distinct from other county offices;
(2) be staffed by at least one full-time employee; and
(3) report directly to the commissioners court or a designated county executive official.
(b) In a county with a population of less than 200,000, the commissioners court, by a majority vote of its full membership, may maintain and operate a veterans county service office if the commissioners court determines that the office is a public necessity to enable county residents who are veterans to promptly, properly, and rightfully obtain benefits to which they are entitled.
(c) The commissioners court of a county that maintains an office:
(1) may not consider donations made to the office under Article 42A.304(f), Code of Criminal Procedure, or Section 61.003 for purposes of determining the county's budget for the office; and
(2) may use donations described by Subdivision (1) only to supplement, rather than supplant, amounts budgeted by the county for the office.