Thread: Arkansas: In-state Tuition for Undocumented Students Fails

In-state Tuition for Undocumented Students Fails
Reported by: Cecillea Pond-Mayo, KARK 4 News
Monday, Mar 30, 2009 @06:29pm CST


A bill that would have provided in-state tuition rates to undocumented students failed before the Arkansas Senate on Monday.

The vote was 13 for 21 against.

Sen. Joyce Elliott’s bill would have required undocumented students to have graduated from an Arkansas high school and have attended an Arkansas high school for at least 3 years to qualify to in-state rates.

Senators claim they were flooded with e-mails and phone calls over the weekend. Most of the response was against the bill.

http://arkansasmatters.com/content/full ... cid=206491

One Win Thank Goodness

Stay on guard, Elliot is threatening to being this back:
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3/30/09
Arkansas Senate rejects immigrant tuition bill
By ANDREW DeMILLO – 4 hours ago

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) — The Arkansas Senate on Monday rejected letting the children of illegal immigrants pay in-state tuition rates at state colleges and universities after opponents questioned the offer's legality and possibility it would attract more immigrants.

Sponsor Sen. Joyce Elliott said the bill was a way to offer higher education opportunities to students who are already in Arkansas but cannot afford the out-of-state rates they must currently pay.

"The bottom line is this: They are in our state. They are not leaving," the Democrat said. "We can choose to have them here as educated people, or we can choose to have them here as folks that we deny an education to. That's our choice."

The proposal to grant in-state rates to anyone who has attended an Arkansas high school for at least three years and has an Arkansas high school diploma failed on 13-21 vote. Elliott said she may bring back the measure if she can find more votes.

She has said 10 other states already offer the tuition break. But its Arkansas opponents said they were worried it would violate federal law and reward illegal immigration.

"Are we going to encourage people to do things legally, or are we going to encourage people to do things illegally?" said Sen. Denny Altes, a Republican who voted against the proposal.

Gov. Mike Beebe has said the tuition break could violate federal law. As attorney general in 2005, Beebe issued a legal opinion that said it could violate a 1996 federal law that said no higher education benefit could be made available to illegal immigrants' children unless it was also available to every U.S. citizen.

Elliott says she thinks the law could be interpreted to allow the state to offer the in-state tuition rates to the children of illegal immigrants and anyone else who meets the other requirements of attending school in the state for at least three years and having a diploma from a state high school.

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/art ... AD978MSP01

Populist Article:

"Are we going to encourage people to do things legally, or are we going to encourage people to do things illegally?" said Sen. Denny Altes, a Republican who voted against the proposal.

This Senator is smart.

Note the % of e-mails to Sen. Taylor that were against this bill.

And note how Elliott wants the vote expunged and is looking hard for four more votes:
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3/30/09
todaysthv.com
Update: Ark. Senate Rejects Immigrant Tuition Bill

At the capitol Monday it was quite the show-down in the senate as a bill that would allow the children of illegal immigrants to pay the in-state college tuition rate came up for a vote. The measure was defeated today but not before a heated debate. Some senators even quoted scripture.

Senator Joyce Elliott said she felt wounded when her colleagues voted down Senate Bill 799. In her opening remarks she told them how much Arkansas needs this bill to become law.

Elliott told the senators, "The bottom line is this; they are in our state and are not leaving. We can choose to have them here as educated people or we can choose to have them here as folks that we deny an education to."

The bill would allow children of illegal immigrants who have spent at least three years in an Arkansas high school to pay the cheaper in-state college tuition rate. They currently must pay the out of state rate. That can sometimes be two or three times higher.

The debate brought many senators to the microphone; including Senator Jimmy Jeffress who quoted scripture.

Jeffress says, "When an alien lives with you in your land do not mistreat him. The alien living with you must be treated like a native born. Love him as yourself."

Senators say they were flooded with emails and phone calls over the weekend. Senator Jerry Taylor of Pine Bluff spoke against it, saying 95-percent of his emails were from people against the bill.

Taylor says, "Why would you charge a citizen who's here illegally attend your colleges at a lower price than you charge a U.S. citizen from Oklahoma, Tennessee, Missouri?"

Senator Denny Altes from Fort Smith also spoke against the bill.

Altes says, "That's the question before us today; are we going to encourage people to do things legally or are we going to encourage people to do things illegally?"

Senator Elliott said immediately after the vote, she will keep trying to get the measure passed.

She requested the vote be expunged. The senator is now looking hard for four more votes. Senator Elliott can get the measure back on the senate calendar as soon as she's ready to try again.

http://www.todaysthv.com/news/local/sto ... 62&catid=2

The vote was 13 for 21 against.

That's quite a vote to overcome. And the governor is concerned if passed it may violate federal law.

Emails were overwhelmingly against this.

Doesn't look well for Elliott at this point.

Thanks for posting this story Jean.

Originally Posted by Populist

Thanks for posting this story Jean.

You're most welcome Populist. Thank you for adding info to it, appreciate it.

GO ARKANSAS! Kill the Bill. Send Elliott back to whatever she was doing before politics.

WOO-HOO! 21 people did the right thing. The other 13 need to get out of public service because they are not serving the interests of our country.