Immigrants who challenged in-state tuition policy win case
Source: Associated Press
KATE BRUMBACK, ASSOCIATED PRESS
ATLANTA (AP) A judge says the Georgia university system must allow immigrants to pay in-state tuition if theyve been granted temporary permission by the federal government to stay in the U.S.
Georgias state colleges and universities require verification of lawful presence in the U.S. for in-state tuition. The Board of Regents had said students with temporary permission to stay under a 2012 program known as Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA, didnt meet that requirement.
A lawyer for 10 young immigrants who meet all the other requirements and who have been granted deferred action status argued in a petition filed in April that the federal Department of Homeland Security has said people who have qualified for the program are lawfully present.
Lawyers for the university system rejected that argument, saying the statement about lawful presence appeared in an FAQ section of the departments website and not as an official policy or regulation.
In an order dated Friday, Fulton County Superior Court Chief Judge Gail Tusan said that while an official policy would be helpful, the fact that it is part of the departments official website means it should be taken as an accurate statement of the federal governments position.
Read more: http://www.salon.com/2017/01/03/immigrants-who-challenged-in-state-tuition-policy-win-case/
Hoyt
(54,770 posts)greymattermom
(5,754 posts)I once had a PhD student who lived within walking distance of the school, in a different state (which can easily happen in Kansas City). She was denied in state tuition while the foreign students who had just arrived paid in state rates. She had to move across the state line.
Response to greymattermom (Reply #2)
Jake Stern This message was self-deleted by its author.
MichMan
(12,001 posts)J_William_Ryan
(1,760 posts)that one might be undocumented doesnt mean he is illegal, and is entitled to benefit from state laws, programs, and policies, such as paying in-state tuition to attend state colleges and universities.
Once a court determines the immigrant has entered the country absent authorization, or came to the country legally but remained in the country absent authorization, the immigrant is subject to deportation, rendering the issue of in-state tuition moot.