Overview
- The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit issued a 2-1 decision on Thursday, July 9, 2026, refusing to allow outside groups to revive the Texas law that lowered in‑state tuition for some students without legal status.
- The decision leaves in place a consent judgment from June 2025 that Texas did not defend after the Justice Department sued and which a district judge approved within hours, ending enforcement of the Texas tuition benefit.
- The court’s majority held that a 1996 federal statute bars states from offering postsecondary benefits based on residence to people unlawfully present unless the same benefit is available to all U.S. citizens regardless of residency.
- Thousands of students are affected: a 2022 estimate put about 57,000 students without legal status in Texas colleges and reports show those who used the in‑state rate paid tens of millions in tuition and fees.
- A dissent warned the quick consent deal raised procedural problems and flagged potential Tenth Amendment questions, and other federal courts have reached different outcomes, which could push further appeals and split the circuits.