The Trump administration on Thursday filed a federal lawsuit against California and its public university system, arguing that the practice of providing state college tuition to undocumented immigrants who graduated from California high schools is illegal.
Costumewho named Gov. Gavin Newsom, the state's attorney. Gen. Rob Bonta, the University of California Board of Regents, the California State University Board of Regents, and the California Community Colleges Board of Governors are also seeking to repeal provisions of the California Dream Act that allow undocumented students to apply for state-funded financial aid.
“California unlawfully discriminates against American students and their families by offering exclusive tuition benefits to noncitizens,” U.S. Atty. Gen. Pam Bondi said in a Justice Department statement that the state is “flagrantly ignoring federal law.”
“These laws unconstitutionally discriminate against U.S. citizens who are not afforded the same reduced tuition rates, scholarships or subsidies, create incentives for illegal immigration, and reward illegal immigrants with benefits to which U.S. citizens are not entitled, all in direct violation of federal law,” the statement said.
Newsom spokesman Izzie Gardon said that “the Department of Justice has filed three baseless, politically motivated lawsuits against California in one week. Good luck, Trump. See you in court.” The remaining lawsuits target Proposition 50 redistricting and a state law prohibiting federal immigration agents from concealing their identities by wearing masks.
Representatives for Bonta and CSU declined to comment, saying they had not seen copies of the complaint.
UC spokeswoman Rachel Zaentz said the university follows “state and federal laws regarding in-state tuition eligibility, financial aid and scholarships.”
“While we will of course comply with the law as determined by the courts, we believe that our policies and practices comply with applicable legal standards,” Zaentz said.
The tuition lawsuit targets Assembly Bill 540, which passed with bipartisan support. in 2001 and offers in-state tuition rates for undocumented students who graduated from high school in California. The law also offers in-state tuition to U.S. citizens who graduated from California schools but left the state before attending college.
An estimated 2,000 to 4,000 students enrolled at the University of California (total student population of nearly 296,000) are undocumented. There are approximately 9,500 undocumented immigrants on California State University campuses out of a student population of 461,000. The largest group of undocumented people in the state, estimated at 70,000, are community college students.
The Trump administration's challenge to California's tuition law centers on a 1996 federal law that says people in the U.S. without legal authorization should not be “entitled by reason of residency within the State… to any post-high school benefits unless a citizen or national of the United States is entitled to such benefits… whether or not such citizen or national is such resident.”
Critics say the law does not specifically address tuition costs. Some courts have interpreted the word “benefit” to include cheaper tuition.
Scholars also debate whether the federal law affects California tuition costs, since it applies equally to citizens and noncitizens.
The California law has withstood previous tests. The state Supreme Court upheld it in 2010 after students from other states sued. US Supreme Court refused consider an appeal in the case.
In those cases, judges said undocumented immigrants received preferential treatment not because of their immigration status, but because they attended and graduated from California schools. They said the same opportunity was available to US citizens who graduated from state schools.
The complaint was filed Thursday in the Eastern District of California. This follows actions The Trump administration has spoken out against tuition practices in Texas, Kentucky, Illinois, Oklahoma and Minnesota.
In June, after the Trump administration sued the law in Texas, the state agreed to stop in-state tuition for undocumented immigrant students.
