Justice Department Sues 3 States and DC Over In-State Tuition for Illegal Immigrants

The Department of Justice filed lawsuits on Sept. 10 accusing three states and the District of Columbia of favoring illegal immigrants over U.S. citizens by providing them in-state college tuition that out-of-state Americans can’t receive.

The four newly filed lawsuits are against Hawaii, Arkansas, Utah, and the District of Columbia, with additional defendants such as the University of Hawaii, Arkansas Higher Education Coordinating Board, Utah Board of Higher Education, and Board of Trustees of the University of the District of Columbia. 

“Federal law prohibits illegal aliens in the United States from being eligible for postsecondary education benefits based on their residence within a state that are not available to United States citizens regardless of their residence,” the complaint against the State of Utah alleged.

The wording in Utah’s lawsuit was similar to the other lawsuits filed over the same in-state tuition issue.

Associate U.S. Attorney General Stanley E. Woodward, Jr. said the move was to stop “placing illegal aliens over American citizens.”

“We have now sued every state across our Nation that has a state law or regulation granting illegal aliens in-state tuition,” said Woodward.

“We look forward to favorable court rulings and will continue to deliver on President Trump’s promise: illegal aliens will not receive benefits denied to American citizens.”

The DOJ suggested in a statement on Thursday that the state’s laws “unconstitutionally discriminate against U.S. citizens who are not afforded the same reduced tuition rates or scholarships, create incentives for illegal immigration, and reward illegal aliens with benefits that U.S. citizens are not eligible for, all in direct conflict with federal law.” 

“This is a simple matter of federal law: colleges cannot provide benefits to illegal aliens that they do not provide to U.S. citizens,” said Assistant Attorney General Brett A. Shumate of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “This Department of Justice will not tolerate American students being treated like second-class citizens in their own country.”

The Arkansas attorney general’s office in an email on Thursday night told The Epoch Times: “We agree with the U.S. Department of Justice that federal law preempts state law in this case, and that this state law should not be enforced. We are reviewing the complaint to determine our next steps.”

The Epoch Times reached out to the attorneys general of Hawaii, Utah, and the District of Columbia for comment but did not hear back by publication time.

A total of 25 lawsuits have been filed by the DOJ relating to in-state tuition policies for illegal immigrants, with DOJ wins in Texas, Kentucky, Oklahoma, Nebraska, Illinois, and Kansas.

Previously filed lawsuits are pending in Minnesota, Virginia, California, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Maryland, Colorado, New York, Connecticut, Vermont, Arizona, New Mexico, Oregon, and Washington state.