RICHMOND, Va. — A 2020 Virginia law allowing undocumented students to receive in-state tuition rates at public colleges and universities is now under federal legal challenge, creating a political battle between outgoing and incoming state officials.
The Virginia Interfaith Center for Public Policy celebrated what they called "historic legislation" when Democratic Gov. Ralph Northam signed the law in April 2020. The measure allows students who are undocumented but meet residency requirements to access in-state tuition at Virginia colleges and universities regardless of their immigration status.
The financial impact is significant. For example, at Virginia Commonwealth University, which is a state university, Virginia residents pay approximately $32,000 annually, while out-of-state students pay over $55,000.
Henrico Del. Rodney Willett, a Democrat who voted for the legislation, defended the policy.
"We need to educate people here in Virginia," Willett said. "This is part of that education process, we provide K-12 schooling for folks who come here as immigrants, and it's absolutely the right thing to do."
However, five days ago, Republican President Donald Trump's Attorney General Pam Bondi sued the Commonwealth over the law and others, claiming they conflict with federal law. The lawsuit alleges the policies "unconstitutionally discriminate against US citizens who are not afforded the same reduced tuition rates, scholarships or subsidies, create incentives for illegal immigration, and reward illegal immigrants with benefits that US citizens are not eligible for."
The following day, Republican Attorney General Jason Miyares entered a joint motion with the Department of Justice, agreeing that federal law preempts Virginia law on this issue.
On social media, Miyares wrote that "rewarding non-citizens with the privilege of in-state tuition is wrong and only further incentivizes illegal immigration."
Republican State Sen. Glen Sturtevant, who represents parts of Chesterfield, supported Miyares' decision.
"I'm glad that the Department of Justice and Attorney General Miyares were able to reach this proposed settlement that is no longer going to allow Virginia taxpayers to subsidize higher education for illegal aliens who shouldn't be here in the first place," Sturtevant said.
Attorney General-elect Jay Jones, a Democrat who takes office in weeks, criticized the Trump administration's lawsuit as "an attack on our students“ and "a deliberate attempt to beat the clock to prevent a new administration from defending them."
Dr. Bob Holsworth, a political analyst for CBS 6, noted the timing of Miyares' decision.
"Certainly you have a situation right now where the outgoing Attorney General decides on his way out that he's going to do something that, in some ways, is going to handcuff the viewpoint of the person who is the incoming Attorney General," Holsworth said.
Jones said he is "reviewing all legal options available to the Commonwealth."
A judge must still accept the joint motion. Meanwhile, the Legal Aid Justice Center and the ACLU of Virginia have filed an emergency motion challenging the federal lawsuit.
Holsworth suggested that Virginia Republicans' alignment with Trump policies has been politically costly.
"In eight years in Virginia of Trump, they have gone from 66 members of the General Assembly to 36 members of the General Assembly, and you saw the worst election for Republicans in 60 years at a statewide level," Holsworth said. "We've seen Republican leaders in Virginia connect themselves to Donald Trump very closely, but at great political cost to their own party."
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