The Trump administration has sued Pennsylvania State University, alleging that its tuition policy lets some undocumented students pay the lower in-state rate while U.S. citizens from outside Pennsylvania cannot receive the same benefit.
The Justice Department filed the lawsuit Thursday. It argues that federal law bars states and public universities from offering undocumented students reduced tuition unless the same rate is available to all U.S. citizens.
Assistant Attorney General Brett A. Shumate said the university’s policy violates that requirement and disadvantages American citizens. The department accused Penn State of giving undocumented students preferential treatment and asked a court to block the policy.
The lawsuit also seeks to prevent the university from adopting future tuition policies that, in the department’s view, favor undocumented students over U.S. citizens.
Penn State says undocumented students, including those with or without Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals status, may qualify for in-state tuition if they meet certain residency conditions. These include attending an accredited Pennsylvania high school for at least four years and graduating from one, or earning a Pennsylvania GED certificate.
The case is the Justice Department’s 27th lawsuit challenging in-state tuition policies for undocumented students. The department says it has received favorable court orders in six cases involving Texas, Kentucky, Oklahoma, Nebraska, Illinois and Kansas.
Associate Attorney General Stanley E. Woodward Jr. said the department is continuing its efforts to challenge state laws and university policies that it believes give undocumented students tuition benefits unavailable to other Americans.
