Labor & Employment Law Daily Wrap Up, IMMIGRATION NEWS—DOJ sues three more states over state laws that provide tuition assistance to ‘illegal aliens’, (Aug 11, 2026)

By Jason Albright, J.D.

The three new suits “mark 17 lawsuits challenging in-state tuition for illegal aliens,” according to DOJ.

Yesterday, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced that it had filed lawsuits against New York, Connecticut, and Vermont, challenging state laws in the respective states that provide in-state tuition and financial assistance for individuals the agency described as “illegal aliens.” In the complaints, the federal government seeks to enjoin enforcement of New York, Connecticut, and Vermont laws, regulations, and policies that require colleges and universities to provide in-state tuition rates for “all aliens who maintain in-state residency, regardless of whether those aliens are lawfully present in the United States,” according to DOJ. Additionally, the complaints seek to enjoin the three states from enforcing state laws, regulations, and policies that afford financial assistance and scholarships to “illegal aliens.”

“These laws unconstitutionally discriminate against U.S. citizens who are not afforded the same reduced tuition rates or scholarships, create incentives for illegal immigration, and reward illegal aliens with benefits that U.S. citizens are not eligible for, all in direct conflict with federal law,” said the agency.

DOJ’s rationale. “Congress long ago made clear that States cannot put illegal aliens over our Nation’s own citizens,” said Associate Attorney General Stanley Woodward. “By granting illegal aliens in-state tuition, New York, Vermont, and Connecticut are doing just that. No more. As of today, we have now sued every state in the Second Circuit that seeks to thwart Congress’s clear prohibition by placing alien over citizen. And our efforts will not cease until President Trump’s promise is fulfilled: illegal aliens will not receive benefits denied to our Nation’s own citizens.”

Federal concern? “This is a simple matter of federal law: colleges cannot provide benefits to illegal aliens that they do not provide to U.S. citizens,” said Assistant Attorney General Brett A. Shumate of DOJ’s Civil Division. “This Department of Justice will not tolerate American students being treated like second-class citizens in their own country.”

In-state tuition based on state residency. In the Connecticut complaint, by way of example, DOJ argues, “Connecticut law rewards an illegal alien with eligibility for in-state tuition based on residence within the State, while denying eligibility for resident tuition rates to U.S. citizens who are not Connecticut residents.”

17 lawsuits in all. “Today’s lawsuits mark 17 lawsuits challenging in-state tuition for illegal aliens,” noted DOJ. “Under the leadership of Attorney General Todd Blanche, the Department’s efforts have already delivered wins for the American people, as five similar lawsuits in Texas, Kentucky, Oklahoma, and Nebraska, and Illinois have resulted in favorable orders permanently enjoining and declaring unconstitutional analogous laws that gave reduced tuition to illegal aliens, including an order from the Fifth Circuit. Lawsuits against other states that similarly put illegal aliens ahead of U.S. citizens are pending across the across the country in Minnesota, Virginia, California, New Jersey, Kansas, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Maryland, and Colorado.”

Underlying EO. According to the nonprofit Higher Ed Immigration Portal, the cases stem from President Trump’s April 28, 2025 executive order (EO) entitled “Protecting American Communities from Criminal Aliens,” which signaled “a renewed federal effort to undermine state and institutional policies that expand access to higher education for undocumented students.” Specifically, Section 5 of the EO, “Equal Treatment of Americans,” directs the Attorney General to identify and halt enforcement of state or local laws that allegedly favor noncitizens.

The EO invokes 8 U.S.C. § 1623, enacted in 1996, which provides, “Notwithstanding any other provision of law, an alien who is not lawfully present in the United States shall not be eligible on the basis of residence within a State (or a political subdivision) for any postsecondary education benefit unless a citizen or national of the United States is eligible for such a benefit (in no less an amount, duration, and scope) without regard to whether the citizen or national is such a resident.”

“[E]ffort to restrict state authority.” “These cases represent a significant federal effort to restrict state authority over higher education policy and threaten long-standing statutory frameworks that promote affordability, access, and economic mobility for immigrant students,” notes the Higher Ed Immigration Portal. “Importantly, the EO itself does not alter or invalidate existing state tuition equity laws, and each legal challenge turns on state-specific statutory language and legal interpretation.”

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