State Lawmaker Seeks Legal Opinion On Imigrant Tuition Law

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) -- A state lawmaker wants to know if allowing illegal immigrants to pay in-state tuition at state colleges and universities violates federal law.<br/><br/>Representative Randy Terrill

Tuesday, August 8th 2006, 9:40 am

By: News On 6

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) -- A state lawmaker wants to know if allowing illegal immigrants to pay in-state tuition at state colleges and universities violates federal law.

Representative Randy Terrill asked Attorney General Drew Edmondson for a legal opinion Monday. Terrill wants to know if illegal immigrants can attend Oklahoma colleges at all and, if so, whether they can pay in-state tuition.

Terrill, a Moore Republican, says illegal immigrants shouldn't be able to seek higher education at a public school. That's because a portion of those education costs are subsidized by Oklahoma taxpayers.

A task force survey found that in 2005-2006, the law's first full year, 215 undocumented students enrolled in Oklahoma colleges and universities. Almost half enrolled at Oklahoma City Community College.