It pays to be illegal, especially in the state of Minnesota. Lawmakers there approved a bill that would give illegal immigrants the benefit of the state’s education aid program, meaning for most a 100% free college education.
All Minnesota residents qualify if their families earn less than $80,000 per year, and that includes those in the nation illegally.
Minnesota will soon begin offering state taxpayer-funded college and university tuition to illegal aliens from families earning less than $80,000 annually, at no cost to them. https://t.co/Nct1qxBERk
— Breitbart News (@BreitbartNews) June 6, 2023
HF 2073 cleared both the Minnesota House and Senate, and Democratic Gov. Tim Walz signed the program into existence on May 24.
The free tuition covers those who attend a two or four-year program within the state system.
Applicants must have either graduated from a Minnesota high school or have been a resident of the state for at least one year. They may not have been enrolled in college in the past six months and are required to apply for the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) or state aid.
The North Star Promise Program will begin in the 2024-25 academic year. It is estimated to cost state taxpayers approximately $117 million for the coming fiscal year beginning July 1 and nearly $50 million per year thereafter.
The intrinsic unfairness of the program to hard working Americans is impossible to overstate. As many Republicans noted, the $80,000 limit will absolutely limit families who are working multiple jobs and still need assistance to send their children to state schools.
They will be excluded while illegal immigrants will enjoy free tuition.
Minnesota Higher Education Committee chair Omar Fateh (D) told the Associated Press that the state is experiencing shrinking enrollment on all campuses. “If we don’t do something quick, we’re at risk of shutting down some campuses…I see this bill as an enrollment driver.”
The only Republican on the committee, Rep. Marion O’Neill, said that she was “completely frozen out of all discussions.”
The state already supplies assistance under the Minnesota Dream Act. For the 2021-22 school year, over 300 illegal students received state grants averaging $2,400 for the fall term.
Students who apply for this assistance for the 2024-25 school year will automatically be up for the North Star Promise program.
California has a similar program benefiting illegal immigrants in higher education.
