A Maricopa County Superior Court judge ruled Tuesday that undocumented students who have work visas under the federal Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program are allowed to pay the lower tuition rate.
The deferred-action program, launched by President Barack Obama in 2012, is intended to protect undocumented immigrants brought to the United States as minors from deportation if they meet certain criteria. Those approved can remain in the country for two years and receive federal work permits.
The ruling caps a 2-year-old lawsuit filed by then-state Attorney General Tom Horne. He sued the community-college district, arguing the students were not lawfully in the country and that the tuition policy violated a law enacted by voters in 2006 that banned public benefits to undocumented immigrants.
On Tuesday, Judge Arthur Anderson ruled the Arizona law doesn't bar benefits to immigrants lawfully in the country, and that under federal law, the DACA students are lawfully present.