The law was passed in 2001 to allow young adults who were in the United States illegally to pay reduced in-state tuition if they met certain residency criteria. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton challenged the law in a joint lawsuit with the Trump administration, citing President Donald Trump’s executive orders looking to crack down on illegal immigration. U.S. District Judge Reed O’Connor quickly ruled in favor of the lawsuit, saying the law violated the supremacy clause and was “unconstitutional and invalid.”
“Today, I entered a joint motion along with the Trump Administration opposing a law that unconstitutionally and unlawfully gave benefits to illegal aliens that were not available to American citizens,” Paxton said in a statement. “Ending this discriminatory and un-American provision is a major victory for Texas.”
Attorney General Pam Bondi also praised the decision.
“Under federal law, schools cannot provide benefits to illegal aliens that they do not provide to U.S. citizens,” she said. “The Justice Department will relentlessly fight to vindicate federal law and ensure that U.S. citizens are not treated like second-class citizens anywhere in the country.”
TRUMP RACKS UP NEW WINS IN TARIFF LEGAL BATTLE
In the filing, Paxton argued that “in direct and express conflict with federal law, Texas education law specifically allows an alien who is not lawfully present in the United States to qualify for in-state tuition based on residence within the state, while explicitly denying resident-based tuition rates to U.S. citizens that do not qualify as Texas residents.”
The legal victory and celebrations around it from Republicans show the sea change in American politics since 2001, when the law was first passed by overwhelming majorities in the Texas legislature. It was signed into law by then-Republican Gov. Rick Perry.
