Table One: State Laws Allowing Undocumented College Students to Establish Residency, 2015 (* allowing financial aid and residency) (+ repealed)

Table One: State Laws Allowing Undocumented College Students to Establish Residency, 2015 (* allowing financial aid and residency) (+ repealed)

*Texas, H.B. 1403, 77th Leg., Reg. Sess. (Tex. 2001) [amended by S.B. 1528, 79th Leg., Reg. Sess. (Tex. 2005), relating to student financial aid]; TEX. EDUC. CODE ANN. § 54.052 and 54.053

*California, A.B. 540, 2001-02 Cal. Sess. (Cal. 2001); CAL. EDUC. CODE §68130.5; A.B. 30 (2011), amending CAL. EDUC. CODE §68130.7 and adding §66021.7, relating to nonstate funded scholarships); A.B. 131, October 8, 2011 (amending Section 68130.7 of and adding Sections 66021.6, 69508.5, and 76300.5 to the Education Code, relating to state financial aid); A.B. 844, October 8, 2011 (amending Section 72023.5 and adding Sections 66016.3 and 66016.4 to the Education Code, relating to state financial aid to certain student leadership positions) ; S.B. 1210, Ch. 742 (2014) (amending Cal. Educ. Code §§ 70030 et seq., providing DREAM loans)

Utah, H.B. 144, 54th Leg., Gen. Sess. (Utah 2002); UTAH CODE ANN. § 53B-8-106

New York, S. B. 7784, 225th Leg., 2001 NY Sess. (NY 2002); N.Y. EDUC. LAW §355(2)(h)(8)

*Washington, H.B. 1079, 58th Leg., Reg. Sess. (Wash. 2003); WASH. REV. CODE ANN § 28B.15.012; and S.B. 6523, 63d Leg., Reg. Sess. (Wash. 2014); 2014 Wash. Sess. Laws ch. 1; amending Wash. Rev. Code § 28B.92.010 (2014) (relating to state financial aid)

Oklahoma, S.B. 596, 49th Leg., 1st Reg. Sess. (OK 2003) [financial assistance provisions rescinded, Oklahoma Taxpayer and Citizen Protection Act of 2007 (H.B. 1804)]; OKLA. STAT.ANN.TIT. 70, § 3242

Illinois, H.B. 60, 93rd Gen. Assemb., Reg. Sess. (Ill. 2003); 110 ILL. COMP. STAT. ANN. [amended by S.B. 2085, 97th Gen. Assemb., Reg. Sess. (Ill. 2011), relating to nonstate funded scholarships; 110 ILL. COMP. STAT. ANN.]

Kansas, H.B. 2145, 2003-2004 Leg., Reg. Sess. (KS 2004); K.S.A. §76-731a

*New Mexico, S.B. 582, 47th Leg. Reg. Sess. (2005); N.M.STAT. ANN. §21-1-1 [allowing resident tuition and financial assistance]

Nebraska, L.B. 239, 99th Leg. 1st Sess. (Neb. 2006); NEB REV. STAT. ANN. § 85-502

+Wisconsin, 2009 Assembly Bill 75 (2009 WISCONSIN ACT 28); WIS. STAT. § 36.27 [repealed by AB 40, June 26, 2011]

Maryland, S.B. 167, 2011 Leg., Reg. Sess. (Md. 2011); MD. CODE ANN. § 15-106.8 ["suspended," pending state referendum: MD Const. XVI, Sec. 2] [Ballot measure approved in general election, November, 2012]

Connecticut, H.B. 6390, 2011 Leg., Reg. Sess. (Conn. 2011); CONN. GEN. STAT. § 10a-29; H.B. 6844 (2015) Conn. Public Act No. 82, CONN. GEN. STAT. § 10a-29 [reducing 4 year requirement to 2 years]

Rhode Island, S. 5.0, R.I. Board of Governors for Higher Education, September 26, 2011

*Oregon, H.B. 2787, 77th Leg., Reg. Sess. (Or. 2013); 2013 Or. Laws Ch. 17, § 2; Or. Rev. Stat. § 351.641 (2013); S.B. 932 (2015) Or. Laws ch. 846, OR. REV. STAT. §§ 348.180, 348.283, 348.303, 348.320, 351.641 [financial aid and scholarships: Sec. 8 ( effective 2016–2017 academic year); Sec. 9 (special appropriation for 2015-2016 academic year)]

*Colorado, S.B. 13-033, 69th Gen. Assemb., 1st Reg. Sess. (Co. 2013); amending Colo. Rev. Stat. § 23-7-110 and Colo. Rev. Stat. § 24-76.5-103 [allowing resident tuition and financial assistance]

Hawai'i, Haw. Code R. §§ 20-4-1-17 (LexisNexis 2013)

Minnesota, S.F. 1236, 88th Leg., 2013 Minn. Laws 75; MINN. STAT. § 135A.043 (2014)

New Jersey, S. 2479, 215th Leg., 1st Ann. Sess., N.J. STAT. ANN. § 18A:62-4.4 (West Supp. 2014)

Florida, Fla. Stat. § 1009.26 (2014)

Notes: Developments and DACA Issues

In several states, ongoing legislative efforts or cases are involved in implementing these residency and financial aid issues. In NJ, an administrative action has been filed to implement financial aid for Citizen children of undocumented parents, following A.Z. v. Higher Education Assistance Authority, 427 N.J. Super. 389, 398 (App. Div. 2012): https://www.aclu-nj.org/legaldocket/petition-rule-making-regarding-student-eligibility-financial-aid/ [N.J.A.C. 9A:9-2-2(a)(1)]. Ironically, in one of the more unnecessary legislative efforts in this entire area, Tennessee does not allow undocumented or DACA students to establish residency, but became the only state to assure that citizen children are eligible for both status benefits, irrespective of the immigration status of their parents. http://wapp.capitol.tn.gov/apps/BillInfo/Default.aspx?BillNumber=SB2115&ga=108 (legislation and legislative history) This superfluous statute makes it the obverse of NJ, which does not accord these children financial aid. In NY, a settlement was reached in the residency case, Strum, et al. v. SUNY, et al. (Index No. 2011/00064) www.suny.edu/tuitionsettlement, regarding out-of-state students who attended high school in the state.

In addition, a number of states have allowed DACA recipients who meet durational requirements to establish residency status, on the premise that they are lawfully present and not undocumented; examples include Massachusetts. In the Arizona v. MCCCCD case on May 5, 2015, a state judge ruled that Maricopa County Community College must accord resident tuition to eligible DACA recipients, and the Arizona Board of regents extended the resident tuition policy to the other state colleges: Statement, Arizona Board of Regents, ABOR Statement on In-State Tuition for DACA Students (May 7, 2015), http://azregents.asu.edu/Documents/ABOR%20Statement%20on%20In-State%20Tuition%20For% .

In an ongoing case [Olvera v. Univ. Sys. of Ga.’s Bd. of Regents, No. A14A2352 (Ga. Ct. App. Mar. 19, 2015): http://efast.gaappeals.us/download?filingId=e2388b2a-b4c8-488b-b18a-7625bfd5dc03], the Board of Regents is being sued to implement DACA as eligibility for resident tuition.

Other states such as Ohio have ruled that individual public colleges in those states are eligible to make the determination about DACA-recognition for resident tuition. In a small number of states, public institutions are charged by law or administrative regulation with devising their own admissions standards and resident tuition policies, as in Michigan. The University of Michigan, as one example, has adopted a policy that allows certain undocumented students who attended the State’s middle schools and high schools to establish resident tuition. Not all Michigan public colleges in the state have adopted accommodationist resident tuition policies. In Washington State, the Attorney General has ruled that DACA students may establish residence and eligibility for state financial aid:
http://www.law.uh.edu/ihelg/documents/DACA-FinancialAid.asp

Current as of December, 2015, Michael A. Olivas