Special Session legislation would block tuition wavers for undocumented immigrants

In keeping with an uptick in opposition to undocumented immigrants, a Florida Senator is proposing eliminating any potential waivers for out-of-state tuition for those who are not properly identified.

State Sen. Jonathan Martin, a Republican from Fort Myers, has submitted a bill, SB 20-4, that would prevent any easing of tuition fees for entrance into state colleges and universities in Florida for specific immigrants. The wording on the bill is explicit as the Florida Legislature gears up for a Special Session called by Gov. Ron DeSantis, which begins Monday. Though no formal agenda has been drafted, illegal immigration is a priority.

Martin’s senate bill wording addresses the issue.

The measure comes nearly simultaneously with Florida’s Lt. Gov. Jeanette Nuñez’s decision to back away from a House bill she supported in 2014 when she was a state Representative. That measure, HB 85, provided tuition waivers for children of undocumented immigrants.

Saturday, Nuñez said it’s time to repeal that measure.

“It’s been more than a decade since this law was passed. Our country looks very different today than it did then. It’s time to repeal this law. It has served its purpose and run its course. Florida will not incentivize illegal immigration through this law or any other,” Nuñez said in a social media post.

“Under the leadership of Gov. Ron DeSantis, Florida has enacted the strongest anti-illegal immigration laws in the country. In fact, our administration has banned sanctuary cities, prohibited drivers’ licenses and IDs for illegal aliens, enacted E-verify, sent illegal aliens to sanctuary jurisdictions, and deployed resources to the southern border to fight back against the unprecedented illegal immigration. These policies have, as intended, deterred illegal immigration and Florida has a responsibility to do more.”

While Martin’s bill is explicit, it also parallels another Florida Senator’s proposal.

Sen. Randy Fine’s legislation (SB 90) would end the 10-year practice of giving children of undocumented immigrants in-state tuition at colleges and universities, saving an estimated $45 million in taxpayer dollars currently encumbered for this purpose.

Fine’s bill, if enacted as written, would strike provisions from Section 1009.26 of the Florida Statutes that cater to any student who attended Florida high schools for at least three years before graduating in the state, and who applied to an in-state institution of higher learning no more than 24 months after graduating.

The waiver is currently “applicable for 110 percent of the required credit hours of the degree or certificate program for which the student is enrolled.”