U.S. sues Arizona over tuition for undocumented immigrants

A federal lawsuit could affect how some Tucson students pay for college, including undocumented graduates of Arizona high schools who attend the University of Arizona or Pima Community College. The Trump administration is challenging Arizona’s voter approved policy that allows certain students without lawful immigration status to qualify for in state tuition. The case targets the Arizona Board of Regents, which oversees the University of Arizona, Arizona State University and Northern Arizona University, and could also affect financial aid policies at community colleges.

The U.S. Department of Justice argues that Arizona’s policy violates a 1998 federal law. That law bars states from providing higher education benefits based on state residence to undocumented students unless the same benefits are available to U.S. citizens from other states. Federal attorneys say Arizona’s system produces the prohibited result because undocumented Arizona residents can receive lower tuition than citizens who live elsewhere. The complaint also asks a federal judge to invalidate Proposition 308, the ballot measure that established the current policy.

Arizona voters approved Proposition 308 in 2022 by a margin of 51.2% to 48.8%. The measure allows a student, regardless of immigration status, to receive the same tuition rate as an Arizona resident if the student attended an Arizona high school for at least two years and graduated from an Arizona high school, or met equivalent homeschool requirements. The law specifically states that people without lawful immigration status may qualify. Under the measure, a U.S. citizen from another state can be charged the higher nonresident rate even if an undocumented student meets the Arizona school attendance and graduation requirements.

Attorney General Kris Mayes has argued that distinction makes the policy legal. In a nonbinding opinion issued last year, she said Proposition 308 does not award tuition based on where a student is a resident. Instead, eligibility depends on attendance and graduation in Arizona. Mayes noted that a student could attend Arizona schools, graduate, move to another state and later return for college, or live legally in another state while crossing into Arizona daily to attend school. Conversely, an Arizona resident who did not meet the school attendance and graduation requirements would not qualify for the lower rate.

The Justice Department has rejected that interpretation, saying the practical effect matters more than the wording of the eligibility rules. The lawsuit follows an executive order President Donald Trump issued last year directing the Justice Department to challenge state policies that provide benefits to undocumented immigrants when those benefits are not available to all U.S. citizens. The order specifically identified state tuition programs that favor undocumented students over American citizens from outside the state. Federal officials said the department has filed 21 similar lawsuits, including cases against New Mexico, Oregon and Washington, and that judges have already struck down policies in five states.

The issue has a measurable connection to Tucson. A January report by the Arizona Center for Investigative Reporting found that fewer than 70 undocumented students at the University of Arizona received in state tuition under the policy. At Pima Community College, the number was nearly 200. Arizona schools are not required to track the number of undocumented students receiving the benefit, so the figures are not a complete statewide accounting. The Justice Department estimated that about 432 students at Arizona State University received the lower rate, representing nearly $10.5 million in reduced tuition based on a $24,600 difference between in state and out of state costs. Pima College did not comment on the lawsuit, and Maricopa County colleges did not immediately respond.

The possible financial impact has been described differently by supporters and federal officials. During the 2022 campaign for Proposition 308, the American Immigration Council estimated that more than 3,600 Dreamers could gain access to lower tuition and enroll in college. The organization also estimated that higher educational attainment could lead to better employment and generate an additional $4.9 million each year in federal, state and local tax revenue. The Justice Department cited the enrollment estimate in its complaint but did not include the tax projection.

The dispute follows years of changing policy. President Barack Obama’s administration created Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA, in 2012 for certain people brought to the United States as children. DACA recipients who meet the program’s requirements may remain and work in the country. Arizona’s community college system and the Board of Regents eventually allowed DACA recipients to pay in state tuition, but the Arizona Supreme Court ruled in 2018 that Proposition 300, a 2006 voter approved measure, barred public benefits for people without lawful immigration status, including subsidized tuition. Proposition 308 was written to create an exception to that rule.

Mayes called the federal case a political effort to overturn the decision Arizona voters made and said it would harm students who have done nothing wrong. Her office maintains that the federal government’s legal theory is flawed. Reyna Montoya, chief executive of Aliento, an Arizona nonprofit serving undocumented students and families with mixed immigration status, also urged Dreamers to continue pursuing college. She said the lawsuit does not change their current ability to seek in state tuition. The Board of Regents said it is reviewing the complaint and will coordinate with state leaders on next steps. The outcome could determine whether the tuition rules remain available at Arizona’s public universities and community colleges, including the institutions serving students in Tucson.