The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) sued Oregon on Friday, Aug. 28, challenging a state law that lets undocumented immigrants pay in-state college tuition.
The federal lawsuit targets Oregon's 2013 Tuition Equity Act, which gives students without legal status access to resident tuition rates at all public universities and community colleges.
The savings can exceed $20,000 per year. At the University of Oregon, in-state tuition runs $17,475 for 2026-27, compared with $47,466 for out-of-state students, according to Higher Ed Dive.
The lawsuit could directly affect families in Beaverton, where Latino, Asian, Korean and Taiwanese communities have deep roots.
An estimated 4,730 undocumented students are enrolled in Oregon higher education, about 2.2% of the state's college population, according to the Presidents' Alliance on Higher Education and Immigration, as reported by The Oregonian.
No Beaverton-specific enrollment figures are publicly available.
The DOJ contends the tuition policy amounts to "blatant unequal treatment." The agency argues it violates a 1996 federal law that bars states from giving postsecondary benefits based on residency to immigrants not lawfully present unless the same benefit is available to all U.S. citizens regardless of where they live.
Associate Attorney General Stanley E. Woodward Jr. said the states are ignoring federal law and putting citizens "to the side."
Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield said the state will fight the lawsuit. His spokesperson, Jenny Hansson, called the program a success that has served Oregon's universities and students for more than a decade, according to The Oregonian.
Gov. Tina Kotek issued a statement on Aug. 29.
"Rather than focus on affordability and reduce costs for Oregon families, the federal administration seems determined to attack state laws that have been successful for a decade," Kotek said, according to Higher Ed Dive.
The lawsuit is part of a broader campaign. The Trump administration has now sued 21 states over similar tuition laws, following an April 2025 executive order directing the attorney general to target policies that favor noncitizens over U.S. citizens, according to UPI.
Courts have already struck down tuition laws in five states, including Texas, Kentucky and Nebraska. A federal judge in Minnesota dismissed a similar suit in March, and the DOJ is appealing.
In Beaverton, the school district has taken steps to support immigrant families. The Beaverton School District Board adopted a resolution on Jan. 14, 2025, affirming support for all students regardless of citizenship or immigration status. The district does not collect or maintain records on students' immigration documentation, according to district policy.
Local organizations including Centro Cultural, Latino Network and Adelante Mujeres also serve immigrant and refugee families in the area.
No court date has been set in the Oregon case. The Tuition Equity Act, signed into law on April 2, 2013, by then-Gov. John Kitzhaber, passed with bipartisan support. In 2023-24, 1,079 students used the program statewide; 381 were noncitizens and 698 were veterans, according to the state's Higher Education Coordinating Commission.
