The Justice Department filed four additional lawsuits on Thursday against Utah, Hawaii, Arkansas, and Washington, D.C., challenging policies that offer in-state college tuition benefits to eligible noncitizens, according to a September 11 report.
The lawsuits bring the total number of challenges against policies related to the Dream Act to 25. The Trump administration contends these policies are illegal because they provide benefits to noncitizens that are denied to out-of-state American citizens.
Federal lawyers alleged in the lawsuits that these policies unlawfully discriminate against American citizens. Associate Attorney General Stanley Woodward Jr. stated that the Department of Justice intends to ensure illegal aliens do not receive benefits denied to American citizens.
The administration's legal action follows an April 2025 executive order from President Trump directing the attorney general to stop the enforcement of policies that favor noncitizens over groups of American citizens. The administration is seeking to enjoin the three states and Washington, D.C., from enforcing the challenged tuition policies, as well as any state policies offering scholarships or financial assistance to undocumented residents.
Administrators argue the policies violate a 1996 federal statute. Assistant Attorney General Brett Shumate stated that colleges cannot provide benefits to illegal aliens that they do not provide to U.S. citizens.
The Arkansas Attorney General's Office indicated it may enter a consent agreement with the federal government. Spokesman Jeff LeMaster told Courthouse News that the office agrees federal law preempts state law in this matter and that the state law should not be enforced.
Of the 25 lawsuits filed by the Justice Department, five consent judgments have been received from Texas, Oklahoma, Kentucky, Nebraska, and Kansas. In a separate lawsuit against Illinois, a judge ruled in favor of the Trump administration, though the state is contesting that ruling.
