HUNT VALLEY, Md. (TNND) — The Trump administration sued California on Thursday over its law on college tuition benefits for immigrants living in the country illegally.
California’s statute, Education Code Section 68130.5, treats non-state residents unfairly by allowing qualifying immigrants to receive in-state college tuition rates, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) claimed in its lawsuit. The law states that immigrants who are in the country illegally can’t pay out-of-state tuition rates if they meet educational requirements.
“California is illegally discriminating against American students and families by offering exclusive tuition benefits for non-citizens,” U.S. Attorney General Pamela Bondi said in a statement.
“This marks our third lawsuit against California in one week — we will continue bringing litigation against California until the state ceases its flagrant disregard for federal law.”
The California Community Colleges system, one of the case’s defendants, said in a statement that the law in question has been in place for many years and was implemented in accordance with long-standing legal guidance. The DOJ claimed that federal law contradicts the state’s statute, however. Section 1623 of U.S. Code’s Title 8 states that an immigrant who is in the U.S. illegally is ineligible for in-state college benefits unless U.S. citizens are eligible for them.
“Federal law prohibits aliens illegally present in the United States from receiving in-state tuition benefits that are denied to out-of-state U.S. citizens … There are no exceptions,” the DOJ wrote in its complaint. “Yet California Education Code … extends eligibility for in-state tuition benefits at state postsecondary educational institutions, including resident tuition, scholarships, and subsidized loans, to illegal aliens, while requiring U.S. citizens from other states to pay higher tuition rates.”
A spokesperson for Gov. Newsom, who, along with state Attorney General Rob Bonta and the University of California and California State University systems, is also a defendant, said that the DOJ has filed three “meritless, politically motivated lawsuits against California.”
“Good luck, Trump. We’ll see you in court,” the spokesperson added.
An official in the governor’s office noted that California’s “approach” to tuition “applies to all residents, regardless of where they were born.” U.S. citizens and non-citizens receive the same tuition benefits if they meet the criteria, the official explained.
The DOJ sued California earlier this week over laws on law enforcement’s use of masks and officers’ identification. The state is trying to discriminate and regulate the federal government, the DOJ claimed, although California rejected the accusations.
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