The US Justice Department has sued Penn State over its policy allowing undocumented students to pay in-state tuition, alleging that the arrangement unlawfully discriminates against American citizens.
The case, filed on Thursday, challenges the university’s decision to let undocumented students qualify for reduced rates when they meet Pennsylvania’s residency requirements.
Under Penn State’s current rules, non-citizen applicants must have attended an accredited Pennsylvania high school for at least four years and graduated from one to be eligible for in-state tuition.
Federal prosecutors argue that the policy breaches a law prohibiting preferential treatment for undocumented immigrants in higher education unless the same benefit is available to all US citizens.
The department is asking a court to stop Penn State from offering in-state tuition to undocumented students, including those living in Pennsylvania, regardless of their immigration status. It also wants to prevent the university from adopting future tuition policies that give undocumented students preferential treatment over citizens.
“Congress made a deliberate policy choice that states and their public institutions may not grant tuition benefits to illegal aliens unless those same benefits are made to all US citizens,” Brett Shumate, assistant attorney general in the Justice Department’s Civil Division, said.
Public universities in the US generally charge lower fees to students who live in the state where they study, while those from elsewhere pay more. Supporters say the system encourages students to remain in their home state and recognises the contribution of local taxpayers.
Advocates of extending the reduced rates to undocumented students say many were brought to the US as children and face significant barriers to further education. The Justice Department, however, claims federal law prevents benefits based on state residency being offered to undocumented students when they are not available to citizens from other states.
The lawsuit forms part of a wider campaign by the administration of President Donald Trump against state policies granting reduced tuition to undocumented students. The department said it has now filed 27 such cases, with court orders permanently blocking similar policies in Texas, Kentucky, Oklahoma, Nebraska, Illinois and Kansas.
Prosecutors also argue that the 1996 Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act bars public benefits from acting as an incentive for undocumented immigration, and described the Penn State policy as unconstitutional.
Penn State said it was aware of the complaint and was reviewing it.
