A group of out-of-state students currently attending California
public universities has appealed a court decision which allows
undocumented immigrants living in California to pay in-state
fees.
42 students and their parents sued the California public college
and university systems last December, contending that California
Assembly Bill 540, which allows students who attended high school
in California for at least three years and received a graduation
certificate in California to pay in-state tuition, violates federal
law.
AB 540, in effect, allows undocumented students to attend
California schools at in-state costs, which is the point of
contention for the plaintiffs.
The students’ attorney, Michael Brady, argues that two
federal laws passed in 1996 require that if undocumented immigrants
are given in-state tuition, all out-of-state students must also be
entitled to that tuition.
“The students are asking that they be given the benefit
that Congress required since 2002,” Brady said. “That
if UCLA gives in-state tuition to any illegal aliens it must give
in-state tuition to all out-of-state students going
there.”
Yolo County Superior Court Judge Thomas E. Warriner ruled in
favor of the state’s college and university systems earlier
this month.
The court concluded that AB 540 does not violate the federal law
and instead operates within the federal framework, according to a
University of California press release.
The specifics of the ruling have not yet been filed and the
judge cannot comment until that time.
“This ruling allows the university to continue to provide
access to a top-notch education to hundreds of deserving
students,” said University Counsel Christopher Patti in the
press release.
Brady did not see the Yolo County judge’s decision as
final, as the decision will be appealed to an appellate court.
“The decision of the trial judge makes no
difference,” he said. “The decision in the trial court
only related to issues of law, not issues of fact.”
He added that he does not accept the trial judge’s ruling
to be considered in the appellate judge’s ruling.
Kendra Fox-David of The Lawyers’ Committee for Civil
Rights said they expected the judge to rule in their favor because
AB 540 was carefully constructed to ensure that it did not violate
federal immigration law.
Aaron Dallek, one of the plaintiffs and a UC Berkeley alumnus,
is originally from Chicago, Ill. Dallek was required to pay out-of
state tuition of over $20,000, in addition to room and board, while
undocumented immigrants pay the California resident fee of about
$7,000.
“American students are being treated four times worse by
UCLA than illegal aliens,” said Brady. “It is one thing
to treat an illegal alien equally, it’s another to treat a
U.S. citizen four times worse.”
Dallek decided to join the lawsuit after finding out about it in
an advertisement in the Berkeley newspaper.
“The reason I took part in this is not necessarily because
I agree or disagree with the (national) law when it comes to
illegal immigration,” he said. “I feel that there is a
lack of accountability in our government today and I think
it’s absolutely ridiculous what is allowed to go on in our
government, and this is just a small example of it.”
But other out-of-state students said that they understand why
they are paying out-of-state tuition while undocumented immigrants
living in California get the opportunity to pay in-state
tuition.
“I wish that I could pay the in-state tuition,”
Daniel Meyer, a first-year political science student who is
originally from Beverly, Mass., said. “But it’s
understandable that illegal immigrants in California can pay
in-state tuition because it’s not really about whether you
live in America but whether or not you live in
California.”
But some undocumented immigrants said that they are worried
about what this legal challenge might mean for the undocumented
immigrant student community.
“This is my last year, but I’m afraid for other
students who could be affected by this lawsuit,” said Jose
Perez, an undocumented immigrant from Mexico and a senior at UC
Davis. “(AB 540) is what allows us to stay in school because
we can’t receive any type of financial aid.
“I don’t understand why we should pay out-of-state
tuition if we have been living in California our entire
lives,” he added.