Posted on 08/11/2011 6:42:41 AM PDT by hocndoc
I was the first in my family to graduate from college, much less to go to Medical school. I believe I was blessed by attending Texas elementary and high school, Tyler junior college, UT at Tyler, and then Med school and residency in San Antonio, Texas. I'm grateful, knowing that a “non-traditional student” (an older woman with a family) couldn't have done that in any place but the USA and Texas. No one took my place or squeezed my kids out of a good education, even though we live in a small city where more than 50% of the surnames are of Spanish origin and we know that we have kids of illegal aliens in our schools.
Our law in Texas, (unofficially called The Texas DREAM Act after the failed Federal Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors), allows a young adult — who was brought here as a minor through no fault of his own – to be counted as a resident only for calculating tuition rates in our State-supported colleges. The Federal residency or citizenship requirements do not change for someone going to college under this provision. Young people who finish at least 3 years of high school, get their diploma from a Texas high school, have lived in Texas the 12 months before applying, and who get admitted to a Texas college, pay in-state tuition. In contrast to what we often hear, the law doesn’t discriminate against legal aliens from other states: rather than 3 years of residency, they only have to live in Texas for one year to establish residency and it doesn’t matter where they went to high school.
In order to continue to qualify for in-State tuition rates, he must pass his classes, take a full or near-full load and promise to formally apply for legal residency status as soon as Federal law allows.
The “Texas DREAM Act” is the law in our state and was passed with veto-proof numbers by the Texas Legislature over 10 years ago, in 2001. HB 1403 passed in the Senate with 29 “yeas,”no "Nays." It received 130 votes in favor in the House. The text of the Bill is, here. The Texas Legislature has never repealed the DREAM Act, although it was revised and made stricter in 2005 with SB 1528. That Bill also appeared veto-proof, with 31 votes in the Senate, and a non-recorded vote in the House. This year, the sole attempt by Senator Birdwell to increase tuition for undocumented students failed to make it out of the 82nd Legislature’s Senate, even when he tried to tie an amendment onto the larger Education Bill.
On most immigration subjects, I’m probably to the right of many people. I would insist that adults who cross the border illegally must go back to their country of origin before beginning any path to citizenship or residency. They should start the process on the other side of the border -- *especially* if they have an anchor baby as proof that they have already broken our laws. No ifs, ands, or buts about it.
In fact, I'm all for identifying adults who came here illegally, breaking our laws and for deporting the whole family until they can get in line and come here legally. Otherwise, we are encouraging people to break the law over and over. They go “underground” and are vulnerable. As a consequence, young people often graduate from our high schools truly “undocumented” in either country.
However, Federal law interferes with any attempt by the State to stop the problem where it begins. The Feds won't deport people. They won't allow us to identify those illegal adults with kids in our schools and deport them. Federal Courts have ruled that we must bend over backwards to prevent any appearance of scrutiny that might "chill" the educational prospects of any child, from preschool to high school graduation. In spite of all these limits on what the States can do, there’s no Federal attempt at a legal provision for identifying their country of origin.
So, until we can get the federal law changed to better control and deport known adult illegal aliens, do we Texans encourage their identification as (grateful) United States Americans and Texans or do we make them men and women without a country?
The “Texas DREAM Act” is the law in our state and was passed with veto-proof numbers by the Texas Legislature over 10 years ago, in 2001. HB 1403 passed in the Senate with 29 “yeas,”no "Nays." It received 130 votes in favor in the House. The text of the Bill is, here. (Word doc.)
The Texas Legislature has never repealed the DREAM Act, although it was revised and made stricter in 2005 with SB 1528. That Bill also appeared veto-proof, with 31 votes in the Senate, and a non-recorded vote in the House. This year, the sole attempt by Senator Birdwell to increase tuition for undocumented students failed to make it out of the 82nd Legislature’s Senate, even when he tried to tie an amendment onto the larger Education Bill.
Yes, all it does is allow them to PAY to use our college and university system since the feds are going to allow them to be here. And because they’ve lived here all their lives. It is not a free pass by any means.
Que the Perry bashers in 3, 2...
I don’t recall asking for your opinion.
Thanks for the chuckle.
This is FreeRepublic.com. Don't need your permission to post or ping.
where’s your evil twin?
Gov. Perry and The TEXAS Dream Act
[snip]
It’s important to point out that there is a huge difference in the TEXAS Dream Act and the The Dream Act that was pushed in Congress and failed. The Dream Act in Congress was full of all kinds of goodies other than allowing children of illegals to receive in state tuition. The Texas Dream Act was focused only on that. I happen to agree with The Texas Dream Act, and so did everyone in the Senate in Texas. It passed with ZERO “no” votes. Add to that, it has been proven to be successful.
These are a few things you need to know about the [2001] Texas Dream Act. The child has to have lived in Texas the three years leading up to high school graduation. These students are given no special treatment in getting into Texas colleges and universities. They must get in on their own merit. They are paying the tuition (with or without financial aid). It’s estimated that these students make up about 1% of those entering college.
[snip]
Most of us agree that border control MUST be dealt with first. The problem with all other efforts on this issue in the past is that the borders were not sealed. If there is anyone who we can trust to do that it is Gov. Perry (if he decides to run for President). He knows what goes on down at the border. He has gone there many times. He knows what needs to be done. There is no doubt in my mind that if he were President, he would seal our borders. But Perry also understands Hispanic outreach.
do we make them men and women without a country?
___________________________________________
Nobody made them “men and women without a country”
They still have a country...
They just need to go back to their own country...
We dont owe them an education
As a REAL immigrant who managed to get a college education without an DREAM Act
I dont know why you wrote this ...
My children worked their way through college without any DREAM Act
Why do you think they should help the anchor children of illegal aliens ???
BTW this Saturday I will have been LEGALLY in this country 40 years...
I arrived here on August 13, 1971
AFTER completing ALL the necessary paperwork, medical tests and background checks
and swearing that I would not apply for welfare, food stamps free medical, anything...
If in 40 years I managed without your bleeding heart DREAM Act, whats wrong with your illegal aliens ???
good post, thank you!
Bump!
How is the Dream Act not in violation of the IIRIRA?
I’m proud of you and your children. I worked my way through, too, with a lot of help from my husband, parents and in laws, and those loans we’re paying off in spite of ever-changing regulations.
You didn’t read the part concerning the lack of documentation that so many of these people find themselves facing when they turn 18. The only papers they have are their transcripts from school. The courts have ruled that we can’t identify or “chill” the education of these children. That is the law we should be working on.
We’re not paying for the beneficiaries of the DREAM act. We are paying for the K-12 education of illegals. We need to stop them at the border, deport them early and often.
Other than for a few of the more elite colleges, there’s no shortages of slots in our State colleges and Universities.
However, if the National law allows them to be here and do well for 3 years in our High Schools, I’m for letting the ones who aren’t in gangs, who do well enough to get admitted on their own merit, to go to college. I would like to see college or military service toward citizenship in the United States as the goal of every family, rather than have them continue to stay - with the Feds’ active encouragement - and identify as Mexican or OTM partisans.
We can't refuse to educate or give health care, as everyone in every state is faced with the same situation, but since Perry is a border gov, he's held responsible for illegal aliens, where everyone vents their frustration about the problem using him as a whipping boy (and to make political points and take pot shots). Perry's asked for drones (went to Israel and asked how they protect Gaza Strip), has asked for 3000 people here on the TX border (crickets). Perry has set up an elite Texas Ranger unit to work on the border. Then we find out the Feds have been "running guns" across the border and we've had people killed because of that.
The Texas Dream Act was set up because we have a lot of kids here from the way the feds have allowed this to snowball. Students who have been in Texas for 3 years and graduated from a Texas high school get instate tuition (no benefits -- they pay their way) The entire Texas Senate voted for this in 2001. (The Texas Dream Act does NOT have all the hidden goodies the U.S. Congress "Dream Act" was trying to get into law.)
Perry has said: “If you show up illegally, without your card or you’re here as a criminal element, I’m for throwing the book at those folks, but the issue of people who want to legally, thoughtfully and appropriately come to America to work and help us build our economy — we should quickly come up with a program and an identification card to do that.”
The Texas legislature meets every 2 years for 140 days and the governor is allowed to call Special Sessions. He called a Special Session because he had put "sanctuary cities" on the agenda and the legislature dropped the ball -- but the Senate and then the House left again -- giving Gov. Perry nothing to sign (Texas legislators also have elections they'll be facing and no doubt didn't want a vote on this shadowing their re-election bids).
In this just ended session, after about 3 tries to slip it into a bill, a law that required people to show their birth certificate to get a drivers license got through [The amendment, added by Rep. Jim Pitts, R-Waxahachie, to the education funding bill legislators needed to balance the state budget had originally been included in Senate Bill 9, the so-called "sanctuary cities" bill that failed in the special session. It also had appeared in an omnibus homeland security bill by Sen. Tommy Williams, R-The Woodlands, that died in the regular session......By putting it into law the state potentially undermines an ongoing lawsuit that argues DPS doesn't have authority to check legal status.]. However, the ink on that law was barely dry before it was overturned by a judge – as usual.
In this last Texas Legislative session Gov. Perry signed the Texas Photo ID Voting Law -- it took 6 years to get it through -- Only 6 states have a PHOTO Voter ID requirement.
Texas has a long history with Mexico and being "Mexican" does not mean that you aren't an American, or a Texan. A lot of Texans have Mexican heritage or are married to someone who does. Perry doesn't lead with his chin. He's a thoughtful man.
Rick Perry is as ready to fix this as anyone and understands it probably better than anyone running -- or commenting anonymously on a chat site.
*************************************
On another thread a FReeper Comment: His refusal to deal with illegals is one reason I’m not enthusiastic about Perry.
FReeper Reply: “Keep one thing in context. He is the only person in the race (maybe) that has border security problems. Palin doesn't, Romney, Cain, Pawlenty, etc. None of them do. Every single one of these candidates can sit back and pick at Perry on border issues and not have to face the same questions.
Are you with me?
That being said,(and I am a native Texan,) I truly believe Perry has been smart on border issues. He cannot act unilaterally to solve the problem. Realize that, first. With what he has at his disposal, I think he's been very firm and solid - urging Obama to provide troops, passing a voter I.D. law (illegals can potentially vote with enough credentials short of a driver's license)...incidentally, since Perry has been governor, he has made it virtually impossible for illegals to get a D.L. in this state. Before Perry, they could walk in to any DMV office and obtain one without a birth certificate.
And finally, while his border record is within the scope of his duties as governor, he has operated in a way that I think will benefit him with hispanic voters in Texas and possibly elsewhere. In other words, while being as firm as he can, he hasn't alienated and pissed off hispanics in the process.
What you and I wish for on immigration, in the broader picture, can cripple a candidate, come voting time. Its a dangerous perch to be on and while the temptation to rattle sabres might suit you and me, you have to think about all the hispanic republicans and natives that a candidate can LOSE in that process. Slippery slope, proceed with caution.
He has." [end]
He’s taking the day off.
Interesting info, but it doesn’t answer my question :)
I’m not sure, but HB 1403 was passed 10 years ago. It’s survived, somehow.
Thank you for providing the actual facts regading the Texas law.
love you both!
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