A decades-old federal prohibition on subsidized tuition for illegal immigrant students remains widely unenforced, prompting new legislation aimed at cutting off the practice nationwide.
By yourNEWS Media Newsroom
American taxpayers spend more than $1 billion each year subsidizing the college education of illegal immigrant students, even though a federal law enacted nearly 30 years ago prohibits public colleges and universities from offering discounted in-state tuition to individuals who are not lawfully present in the United States, according to findings published by Judicial Watch.
Despite the restriction, 22 states and the District of Columbia currently provide in-state tuition rates to illegal immigrant students. The practice persists even though Section 505 of the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 bars states from granting reduced tuition and fees to individuals based solely on residence if they are not lawfully present, unless the same rates are offered to U.S. citizens regardless of where they live.
In response, Arkansas Sen. Tom Cotton introduced legislation known as the Put American Students First Act, which would explicitly prohibit any alien not lawfully admitted for permanent residence from receiving in-state tuition at public institutions of higher education. The bill states that the existing prohibition has been routinely ignored and argues that enforcement is necessary to restore compliance with federal law.
Beyond tuition discounts, many of the states extending in-state rates also provide additional financial assistance to undocumented students, including grants and scholarships. The Trump administration has challenged several of these policies in court, but most have remained in place. States identified as offering the benefits include Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Hawaii, Illinois, Kansas, Maryland, Massachusetts, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, and Washington.
The Department of Justice filed lawsuits against multiple states over the policy. Only Texas, Oklahoma, and Kentucky have ended their in-state tuition benefits for undocumented students. Others, including California, Oregon, Washington, Colorado, and Illinois, have continued the practice. Illinois went further by rejecting the DOJ’s lawsuit and enacting a new state law that makes undocumented students eligible for state and local financial aid beginning in January 2026, including grants, scholarships, and stipends. The law also extends the same benefits to transgender students who are disqualified from federal aid for failing to register for selective service.
An estimated 500,000 illegal immigrants are currently enrolled in U.S. colleges and universities, according to the Presidents’ Alliance on Higher Education and Immigration, a Washington, D.C.-based coalition of academic leaders that supports policies benefiting undocumented students. The group reports that roughly three-quarters of those students reside in about a dozen states, with the largest concentrations in California, Texas, Florida, and New York. California alone is home to nearly 90,000 undocumented college students.
Undocumented Students in Higher Education June 2025 by yourNEWS Media
The alliance describes in-state tuition for undocumented students as “tuition equity” and argues that the policy benefits institutions and the broader U.S. economy. The group has said that undocumented students “are an integral part of American society and the U.S. higher education system,” contributing to research, innovation, and campus leadership.
Cotton’s legislation challenges that approach, arguing that the subsidies undermine federal law and create incentives for illegal immigration. The bill states that the policy penalizes U.S. citizens and lawful residents, particularly students from neighboring states who must pay higher out-of-state tuition rates while undocumented students receive taxpayer-subsidized discounts.
“Students of the United States in higher education, including students from modest-income families in neighboring States, are effectively penalized by States that provide such subsidies,” the proposed measure states. It adds that nationwide enforcement is necessary to restore fairness, deter illegal immigration, and prioritize educational benefits for citizens and lawful permanent residents.
If enacted, the Put American Students First Act would take effect in July and authorize the U.S. Department of Education to withhold federal funding from states that continue to offer in-state tuition or related financial benefits to undocumented students in violation of federal law.
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