Judge blocks Texas law granting in-state tuition for illegal migrants

A federal judge overturned a Texas law on Wednesday that offered illegal migrants in-state tuition rates for nearly 25 years. The ruling came the same day the Department of Justice sued the state over the law, alleging it unconstitutionally discriminates against legal citizens in other states who aren’t offered the same in-state tuition rate.

Federal law bars schools from giving illegal migrant benefits that aren't even offered to legal U.S. citizens, according to Attorney General Pam Bondi. The DOJ’s filing came after two executive orders from President Donald Trump instructing the government to ensure illegal migrants do not receive taxpayer benefits or other preferential treatment.

How did the judge rule the same day it was filed? Both federal prosecutors and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton filed a joint motion asking U.S. District Judge Reed O’Connor to overturn the law. O’Connor approved the motion and issued a permanent injunction on the law, ending the case less than 24 hours after it began. Paxton issued a statement celebrating the court’s ruling and described the law as unlawful and un-American. The judge’s ruling was a major victory for Texas, he added. Texas will no longer provide illegal migrants with in-state tuition, Gov. Greg Abbott confirmed Wednesday evening.

What do critics of the decision have to say? Migrant education advocate groups TheDream.US and The Presidents’ Alliance on Higher Education and Immigration condemned the lawsuit in a Wednesday statement. The DOJ’s lawsuit against the tuition policy is fundamentally flawed and its suggestion that undocumented students receive benefits denied to citizens is false, Presidents’ Alliance attorney Monica Andrade said. Any U.S. citizen who meets the necessary criteria—like attending and graduating from a Texas high school—qualifies for in-state tuition and it has nothing to do with immigration status, she argued.

The DOJ’s lawsuit is harmful and self-defeating for the future of Texas, according to CEO of TheDream.US Gaby Pacheco. Many undocumented migrants grow up in Texas communities and graduate from state K-12 schools, but can’t access federal aid like their documented peers, she said. The DOJ’s actions present harm to the futures of both the state and its students, she added.

Dig deeper: Read Josh Schumacher’s report on a Texas law forcing local law enforcement to comply with ICE migrant arrests.