California , New Mexico, Washington, Utah, Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Illinois and New York all support in-state tuition for illegal aliens.
So they are breaking a federal law. Is this being litigated?
Here is the most recent article on the lawsuit I could find:
Out-of-state UC students keep pursuing lower fees
Group appeals decision to let undocumented immigrants pay in-state costs, citing unfairness
Jennifer Gottesfeld (Contact)
Published: Tuesday, October 24, 2006
A group of out-of-state students currently attending California public universities has appealed a court decision which allows undocumented immigrants living in California to pay in-state fees.
42 students and their parents sued the California public college and university systems last December, contending that California Assembly Bill 540, which allows students who attended high school in California for at least three years and received a graduation certificate in California to pay in-state tuition, violates federal law.
AB 540, in effect, allows undocumented students to attend California schools at in-state costs, which is the point of contention for the plaintiffs.
The students’ attorney, Michael Brady, argues that two federal laws passed in 1996 require that if undocumented immigrants are given in-state tuition, all out-of-state students must also be entitled to that tuition.
“The students are asking that they be given the benefit that Congress required since 2002,” Brady said. “That if UCLA gives in-state tuition to any illegal aliens it must give in-state tuition to all out-of-state students going there.”
Yolo County Superior Court Judge Thomas E. Warriner ruled in favor of the state’s college and university systems earlier this month.
The court concluded that AB 540 does not violate the federal law and instead operates within the federal framework, according to a University of California press release.
The specifics of the ruling have not yet been filed and the judge cannot comment until that time.
“This ruling allows the university to continue to provide access to a top-notch education to hundreds of deserving students,” said University Counsel Christopher Patti in the press release.
Brady did not see the Yolo County judge’s decision as final, as the decision will be appealed to an appellate court.
“The decision of the trial judge makes no difference,” he said. “The decision in the trial court only related to issues of law, not issues of fact.”
He added that he does not accept the trial judge’s ruling to be considered in the appellate judge’s ruling.
Kendra Fox-David of The Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights said they expected the judge to rule in their favor because AB 540 was carefully constructed to ensure that it did not violate federal immigration law.
Aaron Dallek, one of the plaintiffs and a UC Berkeley alumnus, is originally from Chicago, Ill. Dallek was required to pay out-of state tuition of over $20,000, in addition to room and board, while undocumented immigrants pay the California resident fee of about $7,000.
“American students are being treated four times worse by UCLA than illegal aliens,” said Brady. “It is one thing to treat an illegal alien equally, it’s another to treat a U.S. citizen four times worse.”
Dallek decided to join the lawsuit after finding out about it in an advertisement in the Berkeley newspaper.
“The reason I took part in this is not necessarily because I agree or disagree with the (national) law when it comes to illegal immigration,” he said. “I feel that there is a lack of accountability in our government today and I think it’s absolutely ridiculous what is allowed to go on in our government, and this is just a small example of it.”
But other out-of-state students said that they understand why they are paying out-of-state tuition while undocumented immigrants living in California get the opportunity to pay in-state tuition.
“I wish that I could pay the in-state tuition,” Daniel Meyer, a first-year political science student who is originally from Beverly, Mass., said. “But it’s understandable that illegal immigrants in California can pay in-state tuition because it’s not really about whether you live in America but whether or not you live in California.”
But some undocumented immigrants said that they are worried about what this legal challenge might mean for the undocumented immigrant student community.
“This is my last year, but I’m afraid for other students who could be affected by this lawsuit,” said Jose Perez, an undocumented immigrant from Mexico and a senior at UC Davis. “(AB 540) is what allows us to stay in school because we can’t receive any type of financial aid.
“I don’t understand why we should pay out-of-state tuition if we have been living in California our entire lives,” he added.
Any idea on the status of the appeal? Amazing that the Cali courts said, basically, ignore this federal law. What if Wyoming took that approach to the Brady Bill?