Fact Sheet
IN-STATE TUITION for UNLAWFUL ENTRANTS
INFORMATION SHEET
Governor Mitt Romney Vetoed/Defeated In-State Tuition Bills
National Review: Last year, the governor [Romney] threatened to veto a bill that would have allowed illegal aliens to obtain driver’s licenses, but the legislation never made it to his desk. He actually did veto a bill that would have given illegal aliens the right to in-state tuition at public universities ….”I’m against an amnesty and against anything that provides an incentive for people to come here illegally.” http://www.nationalreview.com/miller/miller200512141539.asp
Boston Globe: Giving children of illegal immigrants a tuition break would act as an incentive to draw in more illegal immigrants to Massachusetts, Romney said. By Steve LeBlanc, Associated Press Writer, November 1, 2005. http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2005/11/01/reilly_romney_spar_over_immigrant_tuition_bill/
Boston Globe. [Massachusetts] House lawmakers defeated a contentious in-state tuition bill [Jan. 2006]. The 57-96 vote was also a blow to the House Democratic leadership…. “Gov. Romney commends the members of the House who recognize, as we all do, that it is wrong to reward illegal immigration,” said Romney spokeswoman Julie Teer…..Before the vote Romney told reporters the state should focus on legal immigrants…..“Those individuals who are not here legally, in my view, should not receive a special benefit,” he said. “There’s not a bottomless pit in terms of money.” By Steve LeBlanc, Associated Press Writer, January 12, 2006, http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2006/01/12/house_defeats_in_state_tuition_bill_for_undocumented_immigrants?mode=PF
Students and Graduates Cannot Legally Work in the U.S.
Under current immigration law, Utah high school graduates who entered the United States unlawfully cannot legally work in the United States either before or after they graduate from a college or university. If they voluntarily leave the United States after graduation, they will not be eligible to re-enter legally for ten years.
Texas: In 2001, Texas became the first state to allow undocumented immigrants who graduate from a state high school to pay in-state resident tuition at public universities….But now the first group of students to benefit from the Texas law are preparing to graduate, and finding that regardless of their field of study – including in-demand fields such as nursing and engineering – they can’t [legally] be hired by an American firm. http://www.newsmax.com/archives/ic/2005/4/26/141623.shtml
Students Who Work Without Authorization Commit Multiple Felonies
If students unlawfully in the United States find a job either during the time they are attending college or after they graduate, they are violating immigration law. If they work for a reputable employer who requires the completion of an I-9 form, they will have to present a Social Security card and some other form of identification. Since they cannot legally obtain a Social Security number, they will have to commit document fraud, a felony, in order to get one and if they falsify they I-9, the will have committed yet another felony. If the Social Security number belongs to someone else, including our children and grandchildren as is so often the case, the students will also have committed identity theft, another felony.
A 2005 press release from the Utah Attorney General’s Office reads: The ongoing investigation has uncovered an alarming new crime spree involving illegal aliens and identities stolen from victims under the age of 12. “Identity thieves are no respecters of age. They will steal your children’s ID, ruin their credit and hurt them in ways never thought possible before they can graduate from grade school,” says Attorney General Mark Shurtleff. “Children are vulnerable even if parents do everything right.” …The suspects allegedly used the young victim’s social security numbers to get jobs…. http://attorneygeneral.utah.gov/PrRel/prjuly152005.htm
Utahns Oppose In-State tuition
According to a Deseret Morning News poll conducted between January 8-10, 2008, “63 percent of Utahns oppose letting undocumented students pay the in-state rate. Only 33 percent said it should remain as Utah law.” http://www.deseretnews.com/article/1,5143,695244503,00.html. According to a national poll conducted by the Los Angeles Times, only 12% of Americans support in-state tuition for individuals illegally in the United States. http://www.latimes.com/news/politics/la-na-immigpoll6dec06,1,1337412.story?coll=la-politics-campaign.
Citizens For Tax Fairness 