The U.S. Department of Justice filed a federal lawsuit against the University of Delaware and its Board of Trustees on October 1, challenging a policy that allows qualifying students who are unlawfully present in the United States to receive in-state tuition.
The complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware, alleges that the university’s policy violates federal law by providing residency-based tuition benefits to those students while denying the same benefits to U.S. citizens living outside Delaware.
According to the complaint, the university charges Delaware residents approximately $15,740 in annual tuition, compared with approximately $42,470 for nonresidents.
The lawsuit targets Section VII of the university’s Student Residency Classification for Tuition and Fee Purposes policy. According to the filing, applicants qualifying under that section must have attended a Delaware high school for at least three years, graduated or received a GED, and lived with a parent or legal guardian while attending high school. They also must enroll at the university within 18 months of graduation, provide evidence of an application seeking U.S. citizenship or permanent residency, and satisfy other residency requirements.
Federal attorneys allege that those requirements do not require lawful presence in the United States. They argue that the policy conflicts with a federal statute restricting residency-based higher education benefits for people who are unlawfully present unless equivalent benefits are available to U.S. citizens regardless of where they live.
The government also alleges that the university’s policy violates a separate federal requirement because eligibility for such state or local public benefits must be authorized through an enacted state law rather than a university policy.
The Justice Department asks the court to declare the challenged provision invalid and issue a permanent injunction preventing the university, its trustees and their agents from enforcing it or a similar subsequent policy. The government also seeks costs and fees.
