Latest news with #inStateTuition
Wall Street Journal
a day ago
- Politics
- Wall Street Journal
Trump's DOJ Goes ‘Judge Shopping' in Texas
Your otherwise fine editorial 'A Legal Ambush Against Dreamers' (June 17) neglects to mention a key feature of the lawsuit the Justice Department filed against Texas to obtain a settlement invalidating the in-state tuition benefit for undocumented immigrants: where the suit was filed. Even though the Texas government, as well as its flagship public university, is headquartered in Austin, the U.S. brought suit in Wichita Falls, the 43rd-largest city in Texas and home to only one of the state's 234 institutions of higher education. To my mind, the only plausible explanation for filing there is that cases in the Wichita Falls Division of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas have a 100% chance of being assigned to Judge Reed O'Connor—who reportedly signed off on the parties' 'settlement' within six hours of the suit being filed.
Washington Post
2 days ago
- Politics
- Washington Post
These are not the immigrants to target
More than 20 years ago, Texas became the first state to offer in-state tuition to students regardless of their immigration status. The purpose of the law — championed by Gov. Rick Perry and supported by all but a few state legislators — was to draw high-achieving undocumented immigrants from the shadows and direct them toward legal status.
Washington Post
2 days ago
- Politics
- Washington Post
Justice Department challenges Kentucky reg allowing in-state tuition for undocumented students
FRANKFORT, Ky. — President Donald Trump's administration has asked a federal judge to strike down a Kentucky regulation that it says unlawfully gives undocumented immigrants access to in-state college tuition. The U.S. Justice Department's lawsuit says the regulation violates federal immigration law by enabling undocumented students to qualify for the lower tuition rate at Kentucky's public colleges and universities, while American citizens from other states pay higher tuition to attend the same schools.
Al Arabiya
2 days ago
- Politics
- Al Arabiya
Justice Department Challenges Kentucky Regulation Allowing In-State Tuition for Undocumented Students
President Donald Trump's administration has asked a federal judge to strike down a Kentucky regulation that it says unlawfully gives undocumented immigrants access to in-state college tuition. The US Justice Department's lawsuit says the regulation violates federal immigration law by enabling undocumented students to qualify for the lower tuition rate at Kentucky's public colleges and universities while American citizens from other states pay higher tuition to attend the same schools. 'Federal law prohibits aliens not lawfully present in the United States from getting in-state tuition benefits that are denied to out-of-state US citizens. There are no exceptions,' the suit said. The lawsuit, filed Tuesday in a federal court in Kentucky, follows a similar action by Trump's administration in another red state as part of its efforts to crack down on immigration. A federal judge blocked a Texas law that had given college students without legal residency access to reduced in-state tuition. That order only applied to Texas but was seen as an opening for conservatives to challenge similar laws in two dozen states. Such laws were intended to help 'Dreamers,' or young adults without legal status, to be eligible for in-state tuition if they meet certain residency criteria. 'The Department of Justice just won on this exact issue in Texas, and we look forward to fighting in Kentucky to protect the rights of American citizens,' Attorney General Pam Bondi said in a statement. The lawsuits in both states follow recent executive orders signed by Trump designed to stop any state or local laws or regulations the administration feels discriminate against legal residents. The Texas suit listed the State of Texas as the defendant but did not name the state's Republican governor as a defendant. The suit in Kentucky names Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear as one of the defendants. The Kentucky regulation in question appears to have been issued by the state's Council on Postsecondary Education before 2010, Beshear's office said Wednesday in a statement that attempted to separate the governor from the legal fight. Beshear–who was first elected governor in 2019 and is now in his second and last term due to term limits–is widely seen as a potential presidential candidate in 2028. Beshear spokeswoman Crystal Staley said the governor has no authority to alter the regulations of the education council, or CPE, and should not be a party to the lawsuit. 'Under Kentucky law, CPE is independent, has sole authority to determine student residency requirements for the purposes of in-state tuition and controls its own regulations,' Staley said in the statement. Beshear in the past has denounced Trump's anti-immigrant language as 'dangerous' and 'dehumanizing' and has called for a balanced approach on immigration: one that protects the nation's borders but recognizes the role legal immigration plays in meeting business employment needs. Beshear has said he believes that 'Dreamers' should be able to get full American citizenship. A spokeswoman for CPE, another defendant in the Kentucky case, said Wednesday that its general counsel was reviewing the lawsuit and regulation but had no additional comments. Kentucky's Republican attorney general, Russell Coleman, said he has 'serious concerns' that CPE's policy violates federal law and said his office supports the Trump administration's efforts. A handful of Republican lawmakers in Kentucky tried to bring up the issue during this year's legislative session, but their bill made no headway in the GOP-supermajority legislature. The measure would have blocked immigrants in the state illegally from claiming Kentucky residency for the purpose of paying in-state tuition at a state college or university. The Justice Department suit says the regulation is in direct conflict with federal law by allowing an undocumented student to qualify for reduced in-state tuition based on residence within the Bluegrass State while denying that benefit to US citizens who don't meet Kentucky's residency requirements. 'Students from other states generally pay higher tuition rates than in-state students to attend Kentucky public colleges,' the suit says. 'Exceptions exist when a reciprocity agreement with another state allows for reduced tuition rates for qualifying students from that other state,' it said. The regulation recognizes undocumented immigrants who graduated from Kentucky high schools as Kentucky residents, in conflict with federal law, the suit says. 'It directly conflicts with federal immigration law's prohibition on providing postsecondary education benefits–such as lower tuition rates–based on residency to aliens not lawfully present in the United States that are not available to all US citizens regardless of residency,' the suit says.
Associated Press
2 days ago
- Politics
- Associated Press
Justice Department challenges Kentucky reg allowing in-state tuition for undocumented students
FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) — President Donald Trump's administration has asked a federal judge to strike down a Kentucky regulation that it says unlawfully gives undocumented immigrants access to in-state college tuition. The U.S. Justice Department's lawsuit says the regulation violates federal immigration law by enabling undocumented students to qualify for the lower tuition rate at Kentucky's public colleges and universities, while American citizens from other states pay higher tuition to attend the same schools. 'Federal law prohibits aliens not lawfully present in the United States from getting in-state tuition benefits that are denied to out-of-state U.S. citizens. There are no exceptions,' the suit said. The lawsuit, filed Tuesday in a federal court in Kentucky, follows a similar action by Trump's administration in another red state as part of its efforts to crack down on immigration. A federal judge blocked a Texas law that had given college students without legal residency access to reduced in-state tuition. That order only applied to Texas but was seen as an opening for conservatives to challenge similar laws in two dozen states. Such laws were intended to help 'Dreamers,' or young adults without legal status, to be eligible for in-state tuition if they meet certain residency criteria. 'The Department of Justice just won on this exact issue in Texas, and we look forward to fighting in Kentucky to protect the rights of American citizens,' Attorney General Pam Bondi said in a statement. The lawsuits in both states follow recent executive orders signed by Trump designed to stop any state or local laws or regulations the administration feels discriminate against legal residents. The Texas suit listed the State of Texas as the defendant but did not name the state's Republican governor as a defendant. The suit in Kentucky names Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear as one of the defendants. The Kentucky regulation in question appears to have been issued by the state's Council on Postsecondary Education before 2010, Beshear's office said Wednesday in a statement that attempted to separate the governor from the legal fight. Beshear — who was first elected governor in 2019 and is now in his second and last term due to term limits — is widely seen as a potential presidential candidate in 2028. Beshear spokeswoman Crystal Staley said the governor has no authority to alter the regulations of the education council, or CPE, and should not be a party to the lawsuit. 'Under Kentucky law, CPE is independent, has sole authority to determine student residency requirements for the purposes of in-state tuition and controls its own regulations,' Staley said in the statement. Beshear in the past has denounced Trump's anti-immigrant language as dangerous and dehumanizing and has called for a balanced approach on immigration: one that protects the nation's borders but recognizes the role legal immigration plays in meeting business employment needs. Beshear has said he believes that 'Dreamers' should be able to get full American citizens. A spokeswoman for CPE, another defendant in the Kentucky case, said Wednesday that its general counsel was reviewing the lawsuit and regulation but had no additional comments. Kentucky's Republican attorney general, Russell Coleman, said he has 'serious concerns' that CPE's policy violates federal law and said his office supports the Trump administration's efforts. A handful of Republican lawmakers in Kentucky tried to bring up the issue during this year's legislative session but their bill made no headway in the GOP-supermajority legislature. The measure would have blocked immigrants in the state illegally from claiming Kentucky residency for the purpose of paying in-state tuition at a state college or university. The Justice Department suit says the regulation is in 'direct conflict' with federal law by allowing an undocumented student to qualify for reduced in-state tuition based on residence within the Bluegrass State, while denying that benefit to U.S. citizens who don't meet Kentucky's residency requirements. Students from other states generally pay higher tuition rates than in-state students to attend Kentucky public colleges, the suit says. Exceptions exist when a reciprocity agreement with another state allows for reduced tuition rates for qualifying students from that other state, it said. The regulation recognizes undocumented immigrants who graduated from Kentucky high schools as Kentucky residents in conflict with federal law, the suit says. 'It directly conflicts with federal immigration law's prohibition on providing postsecondary education benefits — such as lower tuition rates — based on residency to aliens not lawfully present in the United States that are not available to all U.S. citizens regardless of residency,' the suit says.
