Paying Illegal Immigrants'College Tuition Makes No Sense

Maria Fotopoulos,FloydReports.com

There is a very Kafkaesque feel to this week’s decision by the California Supreme Court to allow illegal aliens who graduated from state high schools to continue receiving in-state tuition at California’s public universities and colleges.

So,let’s get this straight. Thousands of people in California public colleges and universities are in the state and the country illegally. They are rewarded for this with in-state tuition rates,while those in the country legally – but not California residents – pay higher rates to attend California schools. Yes,that’s definitely Kafkaesque.

Here’s the back-story.

In 1996,Congress passed the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act,which says that those in the U.S. unlawfully are not entitled to postsecondary education benefits on the basis of residence in a state unless U.S. citizens or nationals are eligible for the same benefits. The intent seems clear – no rewards for illegal behavior.

But,defying logic,California’s Supreme Court chose to ignore this and uphold AB 540 which said that attending a California high school for three years was sufficient status to receive in-state tuition. AB 540,which has been called a blatant attempt to create a loophole in federal law,went into effect for the ’02-’03 school year essentially giving illegal aliens in California a significant tuition break over out-of-state students.

This break now equals approximately $20,000 at University of California or $11,000 at California State schools per year. In total,according to the Immigration Reform Law Institute,illegal aliens receive more than $200 million annually in California tuition benefits. Ten other states give preferential tuition to….

Read more.