Under a statute that has allowed tens of thousands of immigrants to obtain higher education that many would not otherwise be able to afford, undocumented immigrants who completed high school in California have been eligible for in-state tuition advantages at public colleges and universities for the past 24 years.
After Texas, California became the second state in the country to adopt such tuition regulations in 2001 when the California Legislature passed Assembly Bill 540. Bipartisan initiatives swiftly expanded nationwide, with over 20 states enacting such legislation.
However, recent court decisions by the Trump administration are raising concerns among international students and raising questions about the tuition benefit in California, which has the highest number of undocumented immigrants in the US.
Nation & World
The administration of President Donald Trump has requested that a federal judge invalidate a Kentucky statute that it claims illegally grants undocumented students access to discounted in-state college tuition.
The U.S. Department of Justice filed a lawsuit against Texas on June 4 for its tuition law for undocumented immigrants, claiming that it broke a federal rule that forbids anyone without legal status from receiving public assistance. After a federal judge halted the bill, Texas chose to back the Trump administration rather than defend its own legislation, leaving 57,000 undocumented college students in the state in a condition of educational limbo.
The DOJ filed a similar lawsuit in Kentucky last week, requesting that a federal judge invalidate a state policy that it claims illegally allows undocumented immigrants to receive in-state college tuition while American citizens from other states must pay more to attend the same institutions.
Regarding the Texas complaint, Atty. Gen. Bondi said in a statement that hinted at a larger battle that schools are not allowed to offer benefits to illegal aliens that they do not offer to U.S. citizens under federal law. In order to uphold federal law and guarantee that Americans are not treated like second-class citizens anywhere in the nation, the Justice Department will not let up.
Is California next?
The question, according to legal experts, is not whether the Trump administration will change California law, but rather when and how. The White House is already at odds with the state over liberal policies, like as diversity, equality, and inclusion initiatives in education, sanctuary towns’ opposition to ongoing federal immigration sweeps, and support for transgender students in school athletics.
Immigration expert Kevin R. Johnson, dean of the UC Davis law school, stated, “We are just waiting to see when it’s California’s turn.” Johnson said that before California, where Trump likely encounter strong opposition, the White House would target lower-hanging fruit in more conservative states.
California’s illegal pupils have been alarmed by the possible danger.
Osmar Enr Quez, who received an associate’s degree from Santa Rosa Junior College last month and will start an undergraduate program in media studies at UC Berkeley in August, said, “I really don’t know what I would do if I no longer qualify for lower tuition.”
For individuals like Enr Quez, the gap between in-state and out-of-state tuition can range from tens of thousands at CSU and UC universities to thousands at a community college. Out-of-state tuition is paid by international students. An in-state student at Santa Rosa Junior College typically pays $621 for two semesters of tuition. It is $5,427 for an out-of-state student.
Enr Quez, who hopes to run a public relations firm someday, stated, “I think the Trump administration is attempting to exclude us.” They oppose our education and ascent to positions of authority. They are merely attempting to dehumanize us in whatever way they can in light of all that is now happening.
California
Undocumented families are struggling with how to have important discussions with their children as anxiety over ICE raids grows throughout Los Angeles.
More than 80,000 undocumented college students in California
Estimating data on undocumented student demographics at the campus and university level might be challenging.
While colleges and universities record the number of undocumented students who are granted tuition exemptions under AB 540, the data also includes citizens who are eligible for in-state tuition. Before their families relocated, these students attended a California high school and grew up in the state.
Changes to the California Dream Act application, which was created to allow students without documents to apply for state aid but has since been extended to include citizens with an undocumented parent, further confuse the numbers.
Between 2,000 and 4,000 of the over 296,000 students enrolled in the University of California system are estimated to be undocumented. Approximately 9,500 of the 461,000 students enrolled at California State University are undocumented immigrants. Community college students and recent graduates like Enr Quez make up the largest undocumented group in the state, estimated at 70,000.
Enr Quez, who was born in Mexico and moved to the United States with his family when he was just a year old, claimed that in-state tuition had significantly reduced the cost of his education. In-state tuition and fees at UC Berkeley, his next destination, totaled $16,980 last year. The overall cost for international and out-of-state students was $54,582.
What students say
As the federal government conducts a third week of immigration raids throughout Southern California, a number of undocumented students from UCLA, Cal State Los Angeles, and other universities declined interviews with The Times or asked to be cited anonymously, citing their fear of being publicly identified.
All I want to do is go to school. What’s wrong with that? stated a Cal State Los Angeles graduate student without legal status who earned his undergraduate degree on a UC school. Fearing that he might be singled out by immigration enforcement, the Latin American studies student requested that his name be kept anonymous.
I want to attend a public university rather than just a school. My goal is to make a contribution to my university. He declared, “I want to be a professor so I can help the state of California and teach others.” Why are we so determined to prevent students from receiving an education and contributing to society?
Sandra, a student at Cal State Northridge who requested to be called by her first name, shared this opinion. She added that without the in-state tuition law, she would not be attending college. She is an undocumented immigrant whose parents brought her to Los Angeles from Mexico when she was two years old.
Sandra mentioned the Obama-era program that granted work authorization to undocumented immigrants who entered the country as youngsters but hasn’t accepted new applications since 2021, saying, “I was not eligible for DACA, so money is thin.” In the hopes that we would utilize our education to change the world and earn money in the future, we save money and make the most of fellowships and scholarships to cover the cost.
Legal questions
The 1996 federal law that states that individuals in the United States without legal authorization should not be eligible for any post-secondary education benefit based on residence within a state unless a U.S. citizen or national is eligible for such a benefit… regardless of whether the citizen or national is such a resident, is the basis for the Trump administration’s challenge to the tuition rules.
Ahilan Arulanantham, co-director of UCLA Law School’s Center for Immigration Law and Policy, stated that there are concerns regarding the precise meaning of that. Does that apply to colleges that use high school graduation in the state rather than residency as a criterion for tuition rates? “State practices differ,” he explained.
Generally, an undocumented immigrant in California would not be eligible for reduced tuition if they did not complete a California high school.
In court, the Justice Department has maintained that it is illegal to provide in-state tuition to foreign nationals without the required authorization. Although courts have interpreted the word “benefit” to encompass lower tuition, several Trump opponents point out that the statute does not directly address tuition rates.
Undocumented students, who are being represented by the Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Fund, have filed a motion in the recent Texas case, requesting that the judge grant them the opportunity to plead in favor of maintaining lower tuition rates.
Other legal challenges have not affected the tuition policies.
After a federal appeals court decided in 2023 that the University of North Texas could charge out-of-state students more than it does in-state undocumented immigrants, the Texas statute seemed to be legally sound prior to the Trump administration’s intervention. The plaintiffs’ argument that out-of-state students were unlawfully treated differently from noncitizens was dismissed by the court in that case. However, the court indicated that further legal challenges to tuition rates for undocumented immigrants might exist.
There have also been challenges to the California statute. After out-of-state students filed a lawsuit, the Texas Supreme Court affirmed its constitutionality in 2010. The U.S. Supreme Court declined to consider an appeal of the case the following year.
The California court came to the conclusion that undocumented immigrants were being given preferential treatment because they attended and completed California schools, not because of their immigration status. According to the justices, all U.S. residents who attended and completed state-run schools were given equal opportunities.
Nonetheless, there is growing support to eliminate in-state tuition for undocumented immigrants.
This year, Florida lawmakers removed a rule that had been in effect for over ten years that permitted tuition waivers for students without documentation. Texas lawmakers attempted, but were unable, to follow Florida’s example before the federal government took action against the state. Bills were also introduced in Kansas and Minnesota during this year’s legislative sessions, however they were unsuccessful.
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