Federal Judge Rejects DOJ Bid to Block Minnesota Tuition Aid for Migrant Students

A federal judge just shut down the Justice Department’s challenge to Minnesota’s tuition policy, handing the state a win in a broader immigration fight that is still playing out nationwide. The ruling matters now because it keeps lower public-college tuition and some aid available for qualifying students without legal status in Minnesota.

According to AP and the court order, Judge Katherine Menendez said the DOJ failed to show Minnesota’s law unlawfully discriminates against U.S. citizens. The administration had argued the state was violating federal law by letting some undocumented students qualify for in-state tuition and scholarships while some out-of-state U.S. citizens could not.

The key dispute was how Minnesota sets eligibility. State rules rely on attending a Minnesota high school for at least three years and graduating or earning a GED there, not simply living in the state, according to the Minnesota Office of Higher Education and the judge’s order.

That distinction was enough for the case to collapse, at least for now. AP also reported the judge said the DOJ lacked standing to sue Gov. Tim Walz and Attorney General Keith Ellison over laws they cannot directly rewrite.

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