Oh, so Americans have to pay for this but foreigners no longer have to?
On Friday, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed a bill that paves the way for certain students residing in Mexico near the border to access in-state tuition rates at specific community colleges, as confirmed by his administration on their official website.
Sadly however, if you are an American looking to get in-state tuition in California, you are out of luck.
According to Fox, this legislation was part of a comprehensive “legislative update” announcement, marking the conclusion of Governor Gavin Newsom’s actions for the 2023 legislative session. The announcement on Friday stated, “The desk is clear.”
This bill, which was introduced by Assemblymember David Alvarez from San Diego, primarily impacts economically disadvantaged students who live within 45 minutes of the California border.
Assemblymember David Alvarez shed light on the rationale behind the bill, stating, “There are students who might actually be U.S. citizens but happen to be living in the Baja region due to the high cost of living. So there are some students who find themselves in that situation who don’t have a California residence because families can’t afford to live here.”
The California legislation draws inspiration from a Texas law that has been in place for decades, permitting students residing near the Texas-Mexico border to receive exemptions from nonresident tuition fees.
Agustin Guzman, a student at Texas A&M International University in Laredo, Texas, who lives in Nuevo Laredo, Mexico, shared his experience, saying, “At some point, I stopped believing I could go to college. But now, I tell people that I cross every day — that I do three hours on the bridge just to get a college education.”
Under the California law, approximately 150 students enrolled in the eight partner community colleges located in San Diego and the Imperial Valley will benefit from a “nonresident fee exemption.”
The pilot program in California is slated to commence next year and extend until 2029.