The U.S. Department of Justice has filed suit against Kentucky to stop the state from granting in-state college tuition rates to illegal immigrants.
U.S. v. Andrew Beshear alleges the policy “unconstitutionally discriminates against U.S. citizens not afforded the same privilege.”
The Justice Department filed the lawsuit against Democrat Governor Andy Beshear, Kentucky Education Commissioner Robbie Fletcher and the Council on Postsecondary Education (CPE) in the Eastern District of Kentucky on Tuesday. The complaint asserts that federal law prohibits “aliens not lawfully present” in the country from getting a benefit denied to out-of-state citizens.
“No state can be allowed to treat Americans like second-class citizens in their own country by offering financial benefits to illegal aliens,” U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi stated in a press release, Tuesday.
In the complaint, the United States seeks to enjoin enforcement of a Kentucky regulation that requires public colleges and universities to provide reduced in-state tuition rates for illegal aliens who are deemed to be Kentucky residents. Federal law prohibits public institutions of higher education from providing benefits to illegal aliens that are not offered to U.S. citizens. This regulation blatantly conflicts with federal law and thus is unconstitutional under the Supremacy Clause of the U.S. Constitution.
Bondi said the lawsuit is similar to a case in Texas that was also challenged.
“The Department of Justice just won on this exact issue in Texas, and we look forward to fighting in Kentucky to protect the rights of American citizens,” the AG said.
Crystal Staley, a spokesperson for Beshear told the Kentucky Lantern that the governor’s office had not been served with the lawsuit as of Wednesday morning “and had no advance notice, nor any prior discussion with the Department of Justice about it.”
She added that the state regulation in question was issued by the Council on Postsecondary Education (CPE) before 2010. Beshear was elected as governor in 2019. The regulation was re-codified in 2022.
“Under Kentucky law, CPE is independent, has sole authority to determine student residency requirements for the purposes of in-state tuition, and controls its own regulations,” Staley said. “The Governor has no authority to alter CPE’s regulations and should not be a party to the lawsuit.”
In a statement Wednesday afternoon, the Republican Party of Kentucky said Beshear was “working to turn Kentucky into a shadow sanctuary state by providing taxpayer-funded benefits to individuals in the country illegally — benefits not available to U.S. citizens.”
“We’re demanding that Andy Beshear stop violating longstanding federal law and end the practice of offering in-state college tuition to illegal aliens,” Kentucky GOP spokesman, Andy Westberry, said.
Republican Kentucky Attorney General Russell Coleman said in his own statement that he had “serious concerns” that the policy violates federal law.
“Preserving in-state tuition for our citizens at the Commonwealth’s premier public universities is important to fostering Kentuckians’ potential and encouraging a vibrant state economy,” Coleman said. “Our Office will support the Trump Administration’s efforts to uphold federal law in Kentucky.”
President Donald Trump signed two executive orders earlier this year to “ensure illegal aliens are not obtaining taxpayer benefits or preferential treatment,” the DOJ noted.