HUNT VALLEY, Md. (TNND) \u2014 The Trump administration sued California on Thursday over its law on college tuition benefits for immigrants living in the country illegally.<\/p>\n
California\u2019s 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\u2019t pay out-of-state tuition rates if they meet educational requirements.<\/p>\n
\u201cCalifornia is illegally discriminating against American students and families by offering exclusive tuition benefits for non-citizens,\u201d U.S. Attorney General Pamela Bondi said in a statement<\/a>. <\/p>\n \u201cThis marks our third lawsuit against California in one week \u2014 we will continue bringing litigation against California until the state ceases its flagrant disregard for federal law.\u201d<\/p>\n The California Community Colleges system, one of the case\u2019s defendants, said in a statement <\/a>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\u2019s 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.<\/p>\n \u201cFederal 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,\u201d the DOJ wrote in its complaint. \u201cYet 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.\u201d<\/p>\n 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 \u201cmeritless, politically motivated lawsuits against California.”<\/p>\n \u201cGood luck, Trump. We\u2019ll see you in court,\u201d the spokesperson added.<\/p>\n An official in the governor\u2019s office noted that California\u2019s \u201capproach\u201d to tuition <\/a>\u201capplies to all residents, regardless of where they were born.\u201d U.S. citizens and non-citizens receive the same tuition benefits if they meet the criteria, the official explained.<\/p>\n