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State Lawmaker Wants To Open Up In-State Tuition To The Children Of Immigrants

MyFloridaHouse.gov

 

Undocumented students who graduate from a Florida high school might be on the way to becoming eligible for in-state tuition when they go to college.

Most Florida high school students get a hefty price break on tuition if they decide to go to college in Florida, but not everyone who graduates from a Florida high school gets that deal.

Right now, students whose parents are undocumented are not allowed to get this break—even if they have a legal immigration status themselves.

State Rep. Carlos Trujillo, R-Miami Dade and Collier County, wants to change that, though. He says it’s not fair to the students.

“It’s cost prohibitive for students that are doing well, who are born and raised in Florida by not granting them in-state tuition," Trujillo says. "It’s cost prohibitive for them to continue their education. And it really slows down their ability to contribute to society and be productive members of society.”

If Trujillo’s bill passes, any student who has attended a Florida high school for all four years will be eligible to get in-state tuition.

However, there is a catch. They have to enroll in college within a year of graduating from high school.

Trujillo's bill follows a federal court ruling that says students who are U.S. citizens should be eligible for in-state tuition regardless of whether their parents are documented.

However, Trujillo’s bill includes more students. For example, his bill will allow students who are permanent residents to qualify for in-state tuition, as well as undocumented students who were brought here illegally as children by their parents.

Currently, students’ eligibility for in-state tuition relies solely on the status of their parents.

Ashley Lopez is a reporter forWGCUNews. A native of Miami, she graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with a journalism degree.
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