Judge blocks illegal alien students from challenging in-state tuition repeal in Texas
A federal judge denied illegal immigrant students the ability to challenge a case that ended their access to in-state tuition at Texas public colleges and universities.
Texas ended in-state tuition rates for illegal aliens after the Department of Justice sued the state in June, Campus Reform reported.
A federal judge denied a group of illegal alien students and political advocacy organizations the ability to challenge a legal case that ended their access to in-state tuition at Texas public colleges and universities.
U.S. District Judge Reed O’Connor ruled that the group Students for Affordable Tuition (SAT), a student from the University of North Texas, and two activist groups could not challenge a recent decision that ended in-state tuition benefits for illegal immigrant students.
The Texas Dream Act, in place since 2001, granted in-state tuition to illegal aliens who lived in the state for at least three years, graduated from a Texas high school, and promised to seek legal status.
[RELATED: Texas illegal alien students push to have in-state tuition reinstated]
After two decades in effect, the state law was overturned.
On June 4, the U.S. Department of Justice sued Texas, claiming the Texas Dream Act violated federal law. Texas agreed and settled the lawsuit the same day. The law was ruled unconstitutional and was struck down in under six hours.
Following the ruling, Campus Reform covered the illegal immigrant students’ motion to intervene in an attempt to overturn the decision.
The students argued the law’s removal would cause “severe financial hardship” by forcing illegal immigrants to pay “high out-of-state tuition rates.” Court documents show some illegal immigrant students could see tuition rise from $1,020 to $4,236 per semester.
Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund (MALDEF), which represents the illegal immigrant students, said the judge’s decision shut students out of a case that directly affects their education.
Judge O’Connor denied the motion and ruled the groups had no legal standing to defend the law.
Next up, the illegal immigrant students who filed the motion to intervene have stated their intent to appeal the judge’s decision.
The case will go to the Fifth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which will decide whether the students have standing to appeal.
Meanwhile, Texas Higher Education Commissioner Wynn Rosser directed Texas colleges and universities to identify illegal immigrant students before the fall semester begins in preparation for charging non-resident tuition.
Texas is home to nearly 74,000 illegal alien college students, according to the Higher Ed Immigration Portal.
Campus Reform contacted the parties mentioned in this article for comment. This article will be updated accordingly.
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