The Justice Department has filed a lawsuit challenging an Illinois law that provides student financial aid to illegal immigrants, arguing it “plainly violates federal law” by unconstitutionally discriminating against U.S. citizens.
Last month, Gov. JB Pritzker, a Democrat, signed a bill amending the Retention of Illinois Students and Equity Act, known as the RISE Act, to expand eligibility for state-funded scholarships, grants, stipends, and other financial aid administered by local governments and public universities to illegal immigrants in Illinois who aren’t eligible for federal aid. The law goes into effect on Jan. 1.
Illinois has more than 27,000 illegal immigrants enrolled in higher education, according to data from Higher Ed Immigration Portal.
Federal officials allege the practice discriminates against U.S. citizens living in other states, according to the complaint filed Aug. 28 against Pritzker, Democrat Attorney General Kwame Raoul, and public university boards of trustees in the Southern District of Illinois.
The complaint states that federal law prohibits institutions of higher education from providing benefits to noncitizens that are not offered to U.S. citizens and calls the Illinois law “a blatant and ongoing violation” of federal law that conflicts with the supremacy clause of the Constitution.
“Illinois has an apparent desire to win a ‘race to the bottom’ as the country’s leading sanctuary state,” U.S. Attorney Steven Weinhoeft for the Southern District of Illinois said in a statement in a news release Tuesday. “Its misguided approach mandating in-state tuition, scholarships, and financial aid to illegal aliens plainly violates federal law.
“This policy treats illegal aliens better than U.S. citizens living in other states and incentivizes even more illegal immigration, all on the taxpayer’s dime. Illinois citizens deserve better,” he said.
President Donald Trump signed an executive order in April targeting state laws that allegedly favor illegal immigrants over U.S. citizens. It cited in-state tuition as a benefit that gives students lacking legal status advantages over out-of-state U.S. citizens.
“While the Trump administration strips away federal resources from all Americans, Illinois provides consistent and inclusive educational pathways for all students — including immigrants and first-generation students — to access support and contribute to our state,” a spokesperson for Pritzker’s office told Newsmax.
“All Illinoisans deserve a fair shot to obtain an education, and our programs and policies are consistent with federal laws. This is yet another blatant attempt to strip Illinoisans of resources and opportunities.”
The DOJ successfully sued Texas and Oklahoma this year, forcing the states to end in-state tuition for students who are illegal immigrants. It has filed similar lawsuits against Minnesota and Kentucky.
Other Republican-led states, such as South Carolina, Alabama, Georgia, and Missouri actively block access to in-state tuition or state financial aid, according to the Higher Ed Immigration Portal.
“Under federal law, schools cannot provide benefits to illegal aliens that they do not provide to U.S. citizens,” Attorney General Pam Bondi said in a statement in the news release.
“This Department of Justice has already filed multiple lawsuits to prevent U.S. students from being treated like second-class citizens — Illinois now joins the list of states where we are relentlessly fighting to vindicate federal law,” she said.
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