On Aug. 27, the United States Department of Justice filed a lawsuit against the New Mexico Higher Education Department and its acting Executive Officer, Stephanie Rodriguez, for “offering in-state tuition to immigrants.”
In the lawsuit, the DOJ claims New Mexico’s Senate Bill 582 and its non-discrimination principle “extend eligibility for in-state tuition benefits and financial aid at New Mexico colleges to illegal aliens while denying those benefits to U.S. citizens from other states.” SB 582 and its related policy “prohibit[ed] denial of admission or eligibility for education benefits on account of immigration status.”
The lawsuit was filed in conjunction with three others sent to western U.S. states, including Washington, Arizona and Oregon, according to a DOJ Office of Public Affairs press release.
The lawsuit is not directly aimed at the University of New Mexico, but does refer to University policies multiple times. Sen. Jonah Bearden, the Vice Chair of the Associated Students of New Mexico’s Steering & Rules Committee and member of UNM’s Rainbow Coalition, says the lawsuit adds stress to undocumented students who may already feel threatened after claims from some students he’d spoken to about the presence of Homeland Security agents near campus.
The Rainbow Coalition, an advocacy group made up of UNM students that is not officially affiliated with the University, was created partially as a result of the lawsuit to “champion our unique social issues from the University to Federal level,” Bearden told the Daily Lobo. The group created a resolution, authored by Bearden, which seeks to protect “undocumented, DACA-eligible, and mixed status students who rely on tuition equity and privacy safeguards to access higher education.
A modified version of the resolution, sponsored by more than 10 members of the ASUNM Senate and Student Body President Hope Montoya, was passed by unanimous vote by the Steering and Rules Committee last week and is set to be voted on by the entire legislature during the Sept. 23 Full Senate Meeting, where Bearden said he was optimistic it will pass.
Bearden says the DOJ does not have a solid claim against the state because of the Western Undergraduate Exchange tuition waiver, which awards in-state tuition to qualifying students in 14 western U.S. states, including Alaska and Hawaii.
“New Mexico already extends resident or near‑resident tuition to out‑of‑state U.S. citizens through WUE and reciprocity programs, which significantly weakens the factual basis of the disparities alleged in the lawsuit,” Bearden said.
In the Office of Public Affairs press release, the DOJ claims similar lawsuits brought about by the agency — among the now 21 in total, counting the four filed together in August — have “resulted in favorable orders permanently enjoining and declaring unconstitutional analogous laws that gave reduced tuition to illegal aliens.”
In a statement to the Daily Lobo, Director of University Communications Steve Carr wrote that the University was “aware of the lawsuit.”
“UNM remains committed to supporting our students and providing access to educational opportunities consistent with applicable law,” Carr wrote. “We will continue to closely monitor the matter and assess any potential implications for our students and the broader campus community.”
Karina Onofre is a freelance reporter for the Daily Lobo. She can be reached at news@dailylobo.com or on X @DailyLobo
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