Trump brings four more states into battle over tuition breaks for immigrants

The Justice Department asked four federal judges to block in-state tuition for noncitizen students in Arizona, New Mexico, Oregon and Washington.PHOENIX (CN) — The Trump administration sued four more states over laws allowing students without permanent legal status to receive in-state tuition and financial aid, some of which have been on the books for decades.The Department of Justice says statutes in Arizona, New Mexico, Oregonand Washington run afoul of federal law, by “favoring illegal aliens over U.S. citizens.”States are prohibited from offering benefits to noncitizens based on in-state resident status. Because laws in those states offer in-state tuition to noncitizens, the DOJ asked four federal judges to pause their enforcement in four lawsuits filed Thursday morning.“Over 30 years ago, Congress made clear that states cannot put illegal aliens before our nation’s own citizens,” Associate Attorney General Stanley E. Woodward, Jr. said in a press release. “By granting illegal aliens in-state tuition, Washington, Oregon, New Mexico, and Arizona are pushing citizens to the side and ignoring federal law. No more.”The four states also offer financial aid and scholarships to all residents regardless of legal status.“This is a simple matter of federal law,” Assistant Attorney General Brett Shumate added. “Colleges cannot provide benefits to illegal aliens that they do not provide to U.S. citizens.”The feds cite an Arizona Center for Investigative Reporting estimate that more than 3,600 noncitizens could qualify for in-state tuition. Arizona public university data shows that at least 720 noncitizens received in-state tuition, including 432 at Arizona State University.Last year, the DOJ estimated ASU students without legal status received about $10.5 million in reduced tuition.Arizona passed Proposition 308 in 2022, allowing public universities to offer in-state tuition to any person, regardless of legal status, who received high school or equivalent education for two years and obtained a diploma or equivalent status in Arizona. Those students are similarly eligible for any financial aid.In a letter last year to Democratic state Senator Flavio Bravo in 2025, Attorney General Kris Mayes defended the state law’s constitutionality.Federal law preempts states from offering noncitizens preferential treatment to out-of-state students “on the basis of residence within a state.” But Arizona’s law requires that students receive high school education in the state — not that they reside in the state during college — thereby sidestepping the residency issue.“That’s the standard the voters wrote into law — tied to where a student attended school and where they graduated, not their residency,” Mayes’ spokesperson Taylor Richie said in an email. “As such, it falls outside the scope of 8 U.S.C. § 1623 and is consistent with federal law.”Similarly, New Mexico’s 2005 law grants in-state tuition and financial aid to all students, regardless of legal status, who attended high school for one year and graduated in New Mexico. The statute does not say those students need to be permanent residents at the time of their postsecondary education.Oregon adds the requirement that a student “shows intention to become a citizen or a lawful permanent resident of the United States.”“The program represents Oregon’s values and priorities, and we look forward to defending it against attacks from the federal administration’s hateful agenda,” an Oregon Department of Justice spokesperson told Courthouse News.The state of Washington requires the same, but neither requires a student be a resident at the time of their postsecondary education; only that they resided in the state when they earned their secondary certification.“The administration is challenging longstanding Washington laws that recognize the potential of all our residents regardless of citizenship status,” a Washington Attorney General’s Office spokesperson said. “We look forward to defending Washington law against this politically motivated lawsuit.”The DOJ challenged additional laws in Washington, Oregon and New Mexico that offer financial aid to immigrants without legal status on similar grounds. Across its four lawsuits, the DOJ asserts 15 violations of the U.S. Constitution’s supremacy clause.The complaints raise the total number of states sued to 21. The DOJ has earned favorable rulings in Texas, Kentucky, Oklahoma, and Nebraska and Illinois while suffering a loss in Minnesota in March.Lawsuits against other states with similar laws are pending across the country Virginia, California, New Jersey, Kansas, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Maryland, Colorado, New York, Connecticut and Vermont.Subscribe to our free newslettersOur weekly newsletter Closing Arguments offers the latest about ongoing trials, major litigation and rulings in courthouses around the U.S. and the world, while the monthly Under the Lights dishes the legal dirt from Hollywood, sports, Big Tech and the arts.Additional Reads