DOJ Sues Arizona and Three Other States to Block In-State Tuition for Undocumented Students

For thousands of undocumented high school graduates in Arizona, New Mexico, Oregon, and Washington, the financial math of attending college is built on a specific foundation: the ability to pay in-state tuition rates. Without that classification, the cost of a university education can triple, transforming a manageable expense into an insurmountable barrier.

That foundation is now facing a coordinated legal assault. On Thursday, the U.S. Department of Justice filed federal lawsuits against those four states, asking federal judges to permanently block state laws that grant reduced tuition and state-funded financial aid to undocumented students.[1][2][5]

The lawsuits mark a significant escalation in a nationwide campaign initiated by the Trump administration following an April 2025 executive order. The Justice Department has now sued 21 states over similar tuition-equity policies, arguing that the state laws unlawfully favor undocumented immigrants over U.S. citizens who reside out of state.[1][6]

At the center of the dispute is the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996. Specifically, the DOJ points to 8 U.S.C. § 1623(a), a federal statute declaring that an immigrant who is not lawfully present cannot be eligible for any postsecondary education benefit "on the basis of residence within a State" unless all U.S. citizens are eligible for the same benefit regardless of residency.[2]

Assistant Attorney General Brett A. Shumate of the Justice Department's Civil Division framed the lawsuits as a straightforward enforcement of federal supremacy. "Colleges cannot provide benefits to illegal aliens that they do not provide to U.S. citizens," Shumate stated, asserting that the targeted states are actively ignoring federal law.[3][4]

The Arizona lawsuit specifically targets Proposition 308, a measure narrowly approved by voters in 2022 with bipartisan support. Prior to its passage, undocumented students in Arizona were barred from receiving in-state tuition due to a 2006 ballot initiative known as Proposition 300.[1][3]

Proposition 308 was carefully drafted to navigate around the 1996 federal statute. Rather than granting in-state tuition based on "residence," the Arizona law conditions eligibility on educational attainment. To qualify, a student must have attended an Arizona high school for at least two years and graduated from an Arizona high school or obtained an equivalent diploma.[1][3]

Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes and other state officials argue this distinction is legally paramount. Because Proposition 308 bases eligibility on a student's educational history rather than their state residency or immigration status, state defenders contend it falls entirely outside the scope of the federal restriction cited by the Justice Department.[1][3]

The federal government rejects this interpretation. In its complaint, the DOJ argues that the two-year high school attendance requirement functions as "a near-perfect proxy for residence," effectively violating the spirit and letter of the federal prohibition.[1]

The financial disparity at the heart of the lawsuit is stark. At Arizona State University, for example, the difference between resident and nonresident tuition is approximately $24,000 per year. The DOJ estimates that in the fall 2025 semester alone, at least 720 undocumented students received in-state tuition at Arizona public colleges, including 432 at ASU, totaling roughly $10.5 million in reduced tuition.[5]

The four new lawsuits join a rapidly shifting legal landscape. The Justice Department has already secured victories in several states. Texas, Kentucky, Oklahoma, Nebraska, and Illinois have ended their tuition-equity policies following similar federal litigation, leaving undocumented students in those states with drastically reduced educational options.[5]

In Texas, the reversal of House Bill 1403—often called the Texas Dream Act—by a federal judge fundamentally altered the state's higher education system. The law had previously allowed tens of thousands of undocumented students to pay in-state rates. Following the DOJ's successful lawsuit, tuition for these students at institutions like the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley jumped from roughly $10,000 to $19,000.[5]

Not all federal courts have sided with the Justice Department. A similar challenge against Minnesota's tuition policy was dismissed at the district court level and is currently on appeal, indicating that the legal theory underpinning the DOJ's campaign may face a divided judiciary.[5]

The Arizona Board of Regents, which oversees the state's public universities, announced it is reviewing the lawsuit and coordinating with state leaders. Meanwhile, advocacy groups are preparing for a protracted legal battle, warning that the elimination of in-state tuition will severely impact the state's workforce and economy by pricing out a generation of prospective college graduates.[1][4]