The Justice Department sued Penn State and its board of trustees Thursday, asking a federal court to block the university’s in-state tuition policy for eligible undocumented students. The case was filed in the Middle District of Pennsylvania.
Federal lawyers argue that the policy gives some students a lower tuition rate based on Pennsylvania residency while U.S. citizens from other states cannot receive the same rate. The complaint asks the court to declare the policy unlawful and bar the university from enforcing it. Those are the government’s allegations and requested remedies. The filing itself does not change what students owe.
The Justice Department says the case is its 27th challenge to this type of tuition policy. In Pennsylvania, the dispute now turns on the university’s eligibility rules and how the federal residency restriction applies to them.