It’s part of a series of actions by the Trump administration aiming to prevent illegal immigrants from obtaining taxpayer benefits or preferential treatment.
The Justice Department on Thursday filed a complaint in federal court against a New Jersey law that allows in-state tuition rates and financial assistance to illegal aliens, arguing the measures unconstitutionally discriminate against U.S. citizens and violate federal law.
The suit, filed in the District of New Jersey, names as defendants the state of New Jersey, the Higher Education Student Assistance Authority, the state’s acting Secretary of Higher Education Margo Chaly, the board of directors of the New Jersey Educational Opportunity Fund, and the New Jersey Commission on Higher Education. The defendants did not immediately return a request for comment.
It requests enforcement of state laws and compliance with federal law.
“Imagine being denied the opportunity of education in your own country,” U.S. Associate Attorney General Stanley Woodward said. “By granting illegal aliens in-state tuition, the state of New Jersey is doing just that.”
Assistant Attorney General Brett A. Shumate of the Justice Department’s Civil Division said this is a simple matter of federal law.
“In New Jersey and nationwide, colleges cannot provide benefits to illegal aliens that they do not provide to U.S. citizens,” he said. “This Department of Justice will not tolerate American students being treated like second-class citizens in their own country.”
The complaint is aimed at New Jersey laws requiring colleges and universities to provide in-state tuition rates to all aliens who have residency in the state, regardless of whether they are lawfully present in the United States. It also attempts to bar state provisions for financial assistance and scholarships to illegal aliens.
The department said the laws discriminate against U.S. citizens who do not receive the same reduced tuition rates, scholarships, or subsidies. Officials said the policies misalign incentives on behalf of illegal immigration and reward illegal immigrants with benefits for which citizens do not qualify, which is against federal law.
