Last week the House of Delegates of the Commonwealth announced that it had passed a bill mandating that illegal immigrants will pay out-of-state tuition even if they reside in the Commonwealth. This comes from efforts to limit the education of illegal immigrants. However, many illegal immigrants pay taxes to the Commonwealth of Virginia just like legal residents do. Illegal immigrants should retain their in-state status if they are paying taxes to the Commonwealth.
The House of Delegates initiative to make illegal immigrants pay out-of-state tuition is unfair and discriminatory toward illegal aliens. These immigrants are here in the United States to try to improve their lives. They should be applauded for putting forth the effort and succeeding in what may be tough circumstances.
The House of Delegates wants to make illegal immigrants pay out-of-state tuition to increase revenues coming to public universities, particularly in light of the recent budgetary troubles. Illegal immigrants make an easy target to try to squeeze more money into the system since their living inside the country itself is suspect and, of course, "illegal." This however, is not the best way to acquire additional revenues, as many illegal aliens come from financially disadvantaged homes. Instead of increasing revenues, this bill will simply make immigrants unable to afford attending a state university.
Additionally, the House of Delegates may be acting on pressures to let more in-state applicants in following the proposal of James K. "Jay" O'Brien Jr. (R- Fairfax) to the General Assembly in 2000, which asked for a lowered percentage of out-of-state applicants admitted. If illegal immigrants were forced to pay as much as out-of-state students, this would cut down on the number of illegal immigrants who would be able to attend college, as many such immigrants are of meager means.
The Commonwealth wants to make illegal immigrants pay full tuition to keep them out of state schools and make sure that spots are reserved for legal residents. As Attorney General Jerry W. Kilgore, who was pushing the bill, stated: "It is outrageous that, in these tough economic times
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