Hostile Takeover Attempt of LULAC — Sept. 2-3, 2022 Updates

LULAC is under attack, my friends. As posted previously, National LULAC experienced an attempted coup at its national convention on the island of Puerto Rico on July 30, 2022. My husband and I were there and witnessed this. It was no fun watching our 93-year-old civil rights organization with deep roots in Texas poised on the precipice of impending harm, possibly irreparable, had the Puerto Rican leadership associated with the Partido Nuevo Progresista (PNP) taken over. We're still not out of the woods.

Doing my best to keep folks updated as this is an evolving situation. I've combined three posts in one. All were written by Bernardo Uresti, Editor of the subscriber-only blog, the VOICE OF THE MAINLAND. 

The obvious problem is that, however unfortunate, a divided national office impacts the whole.

Beginning with the Texas Dream Act (House Bill 1403) on which Rep. Domingo Garcia led as a legislator in the Texas House—that is now the Federal DREAM Act—I, and so many others, have worked closely with him since 2001. He is an honest and honorable man and easily the most progressive leader LULAC has had in a good long while.

I should add that I have been a LULAC member for over 30 years and presently co-chair with Dr. Theresa Montaño its national Higher Education Committee on which my husband, Dr. Emilio Zamora—along with 15 other members—also serves. Our work continues regardless as there are pressing policy issues at hand in education that don't go away however embattled our organization. Thanks to President Garcia for representing well our interests as an organization and for fighting the good fight. 

May peace, justice, and a brighter future for LULAC prevail.

-Angela Valenzuela, Ph.D., Member

LULAC Council #4721, District VII

Related Readings: TRO & Whistleblower Account/Signed Affidavit

LULAC Was Served A Temporary Restraining Order (TRO), Averting a Hostile Takeover by Members of the Partido Nuevo Progresista (PNP)

 

Signed Affidavit: Eye-opening and Shocking Detail of the Behind-The-Scenes Politics in National LULAC

 

Sept. 2, 2022

Dear LULAC Familia,

As you know from my recent communications, the health and future of LULAC is under threat because of an ongoing attempt at a hostile takeover by individuals who have created hundreds of unlawful local councils. This attempted takeover is nothing short of an effort to undermine LULAC’s core mission of protecting the voting rights and ensuring social justice for all of LULAC’s members – something we have been doing for nearly a century. This is an existential threat. As National President of LULAC, I have had to devote much of my time and attention to fending off this takeover. These efforts have included dealing with a restraining order from a Texas court that prevented an unlawful election from occurring at last July’s national convention in Puerto Rico. These efforts also include stepped up efforts on my part to supervise and manage the operations of LULAC, including attempting to oversee our financial operations and supervise the performance of our Chief Executive Officer, which are key parts of my job description.

Unfortunately, I have faced multiple internal obstacles in my attempts to protect the health and future of LULAC, including resistance from our CEO to obtaining information necessary to evaluate her job performance and also basic financial information that is fundamental to our operations, and that would shed additional light on the origins of the hostile takeover. Because of this resistance and for additional operational reasons, I recently visited LULAC’s offices in Washington, D.C. for the purpose of temporarily suspending the CEO for her insubordination and multiple allegations of misuse of her office, and to obtain financial and other information that I am clearly entitled to as President of the organization. I was accompanied by our former National President, two highly respected female LULAC leaders. To my surprise, when we attempted to enter LULAC’s offices on the second day of our visit, the CEO prevented us from entering, even going so far as attempting to enlist the police in her effort. As a result, the CEO obstructed us from obtaining the information that, as President, I must have to monitor the operations of our beloved organization.

If that were not enough, as many of you likely have read in social media, after our attempted visit to LULAC’s Washington, D.C. offices, the CEO initiated an “anti-stalking” proceeding against me personally in a local trial court, claiming that I had engaged in intimidating and threatening behavior toward her. She did not notify me that she had initiated the proceeding and did not give me the opportunity even to respond to the highly inaccurate affidavit she submitted to the court. Contrary to the suggestions in her affidavit, I never even spoke with the CEO during my visit to the Washington, D.C. offices and did absolutely nothing that any reasonable person could construe to be a threat or any form of intimidation. These facts are fully corroborated by the three LULAC representatives who accompanied me on that visit. plus video and witness testimony. However, based on the CEO’s inaccurate affidavit and without any notice to me or opportunity to respond, the trial court entered a temporary anti-stalking order. A full hearing on that order will take place on September 8, 2022, which will finally allow me to respond to the CEO’s false statements and to defend myself against her completely unjustified claims. I will not allow her to smear the good name and reputation of our beloved LULAC, in addition to myself.

I ask for your patience and trust and promise that LULAC will survive this attempt to undermine the causes of voting rights, economic opportunity, and social justice that have defined us for nearly a century. We will not let that happen, and I need your support. Please stand up for LULAC and let others know we are united as we have been for 93 years to protect our community. Please help us ensure that LULAC continues to represent the millions of Latinos across the United States. There can be no room for compromise on our principles; together, we will win justice.

Feel free to contact me directly if you have any questions or comments that you wish to share with me. I respect you, and you have my word we will be successful in protecting and saving LULAC.

¡Hasta la Victoria!

Domingo

Domingo Garcia, LULAC National President

_______________________________________________________________________

My reflection on "Tea party bills targeting immigrant tuition, sanctuary cities die" by Tom Benning

It's clear that Texas Tea Partiers and the Republican Party Platform notwithstanding, the Republican Party in Texas wants to grand stand against "illegal immigration" but not actually do anything about it.  As we all know, anti-immigrant rhetoric makes for good pablum for those running for elective office.  It also allows them to reconcile their politics with the inescapable reality of a massive Mexican/Mexican American/Latino demographic.

I do want to give credit though to both our great legislative leadership and very well organized and powerful statewide movement against these proposals.  The vast majority of those involved of course are the constituency that was created out of HB1403 out-of-state tuition waiver bill itself passed in 2001 session when Rick Perry, a republican, was governor.

To wit, here is a list of pertinent Twitter handles and hashtags:

Handles:
@TexasDreamers
@UnitedWeDream
@TX_Legislature
@TexasHB1403
@KeepHB1403

Hashtags:
#TxDREAMers
#KeepHB1403
#DREAMerAlumni

I often think that these legislative proposals are intended to harm and disparage us as a Mexican/Mexican American/Latin@ community in Texas as a subtle or not-so-subtle form of psychological warfare.  These proposals foster an enormous amount of anxiety, anger, and frustration among so many of us that have to face up to the vitriol.  

However, I increasingly sense that they are also intended to keep us as a community in a defensive, and thusly, a reactive posture.  While our youth and community would certainly not possess the organizing skills that they have as a result of their having to perpetually defend themselves against these proposals, I suspect that they may be a strategy for political containment—that is, they absorb the attention and therefore contain the activism of our community within a specific policy arena to the neglect of other vital policy arenas.

I dream for the day—that I trust shall come—when we can shift our attention and sophisticated movement tools, know-how, and energy to other arenas of public policy like public education, higher education, criminal justice, energy resources, environmental regulation, human service, etc. that are sorely in need of voice, presence, and action for a community that is simultaneously profoundly affected by the work of these committees and largely not present—indeed relatively voiceless on matters of such great importance, or at least so in any way that comes close to their participation in all the anti-immigration battles.  This is not a criticism, just an observation and a hypothesis.

All told, we need to see these other arenas of policy similarly as part and parcel to the broader agenda of disenfranchising Latin@s, African Americans, and the already underprivileged, in general.  After all, undereducated people do not vote to the same degree as educated ones do. 

What is encouraging though are the strategic alliances and networks that we have formed over time and the passion for justice that they inspire.

-Angela

Tea party bills targeting immigrant tuition, sanctuary cities die

By TOM BENNING Follow @tombenning tbenning@dallasnews.com

Austin Bureau

Published: 27 May 2015 10:43 PM

Updated: 28 May 2015 09:59 PM

Related

 

 

AUSTIN — Bills offered by tea party Republicans to target illegal immigration appear to have died quietly, after stirring up some of the most emotional and intense debate of the 140-day legislative session.
Barring some last-ditch maneuvering, a proposal to repeal a law that allows some students who are in the country illegally to pay in-state college tuition is done. The same goes for an effort to crack down on “sanctuary city” policies.
Also going nowhere is a measure to create an interstate border security compact that would seek ways for Texas to enforce federal immigration laws.
None of the measures even got as much as a hearing in the House State Affairs Committee, led by Rep. Byron Cook, R-Corsicana. And in the Senate, only the border compact was debated; it passed, but died in the House at a key deadline late Tuesday.
Republicans are poised to succeed in providing a major border security boost — spending $800 million on it over the next two years. But the Legislature’s more conservative members couldn’t get enough traction to force the issue on more contentious policy.
“We just don’t have the time in 140 days to deal with the big-ticket issues and also pander to a small percentage of movement conservatives,” Rep. Jason Villalba, a Dallas Republican who opposes such proposals, said last month.
The Senate gave final approval Tuesday to a border security bill that helps solidify the state police’s presence at the Texas-Mexico border. If the House accepts the Senate’s changes, it will head to GOP Gov. Greg Abbott, who has indicated he’ll sign it.
Many Republicans view the other immigration measures as unnecessary and harmful to their efforts to win over Hispanic voters. Others, having heard from the GOP base, say the state needs to cut off “magnets” to illegal immigration as a key part of border security.
“It’s just bad policy that rewards illegal immigration in perpetuity,” Sen. Donna Campbell, R-New Braunfels, said last month, explaining why she wrote the bill to repeal the in-state tuition program.
It appears that divide will linger unresolved for at least two more years.
On Twitter:
 @tombenning

The Truth About the "Texas Dream Act" - 84th 2015 Texas Legislative Session

Here is the truth about in-state tuition for non-citizen, resident Texans from the Center for Public Policy Priorities—otherwise referred to as "HB1403" or the "Texas Dream Act." Texas, btw, was the first state to pass this in 2001 and was followed by California AB 540 and now a good number of states have it.  This is good and just policy, my friends.

Senate Bill 1819 by Senator Campbell et al.  is a threat to HB 1403.  Her bill mends state law so that a person unauthorized to be present in the United States cannot be considered a resident of this state for the purposes of receiving in-state tuition at a public institution of higher education. Undocumented students who currently receive in-state tuition at a public institution of higher education with at least 30 hours of credit before the 2015-16 academic year will be exempt from the changes.

This bill will get heard on April 6th, at 8AM Veteran Affairs & Military Installations-S/C Border Security Committee (which, btw, offensively frames DREAMers as a security threat!) at the Texas State Capitol in 2E.20 (Betty King Cmte. Rm.).

DREAMers and allies will be coming from throughout the state to challenge this.  Get your voice heard, too.  I think that there will also be a 10:30AM press conference outside the hearing room, too (will confirm).

#LatinoEdu #TxLege #EdPolicy #DREAMAct  #TxDREAMers #TxTuitionEquity  #TexasDREAM

-Angela

Dallas man launches effort to preserve Texas Dream Act

Glad to see this leadership out of Dallas.  Texas was the first state to pass the in-state tuition waiver law, culminating in what is today known as the federal DREAM Act.  It's definitely going to be a struggle next legislative session holding onto it.  It will not be good for Texas to move backwards on this.  Our legislators need to hear from everyone on how this is good for Texas.

A good resource on this is the Reform Immigration for Texas Alliance (RITA), an immigrant rights coalition that has heretofore successfully challenged opposition in Texas to its own law (HB 1403).

-Angela

Dallas man launches effort to preserve Texas Dream Act

Mercedes Olivera oliveramercedes@ymail.com

Published: 26 December 2014 10:50 PM

Updated: 26 December 2014 10:56 PM

Dallas businessman Jorge Baldor is not waiting for the beginning of the 2015 Texas legislative session on Jan. 13.

He has started working now to defeat a possible push by newly elected Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and other Texas Republicans to repeal HB 1403, which allows unauthorized immigrants to pay in-state tuition at Texas colleges and universities. Patrick has called such benefits “magnets” for illegal immigration.
“They’re lumping 1403 with immigration issues and made it a rallying cry for conservatives,” said Baldor, who has launched a website — Keep1403.com — to bring awareness of what the law has done and what it has meant for more than 16,000 students and their families.
“This is a mean-spirited effort, based on a geographic definition,” he said of the repeal effort. “A lot of these students have faced incredible hardships and are working to help their families. We’re going to work with business and religious groups to show that opponents are on the wrong side of history.”
He’s got some facts to back him up.
What’s wrong with educating a child who was brought to this country by their undocumented parents?
Nothing. So said the U.S. Supreme Court in 1982, when it ruled in Plyler vs. Doe that denying state funds to educate these children was unconstitutional.
Nearly 20 years later, a GOP-controlled state Senate and a bipartisan state House expanded that educational path to undocumented students by passing 1403, known as the Texas Dream Act, almost unanimously.
Dallas attorney Domingo Garcia, one of the authors of the bill in the state House in 2001, said he was very concerned about this new push and said it could set Texas back economically.
“We’re going to fight this tooth and nail,” Garcia said. “These kids aren’t asking for anything special — just the same tuition their high school classmates are paying.”
He makes the argument that most supporters of the bill have made: “If we don’t educate these young people, they won’t become an asset to Texas. They’ll become a liability.”
Leticia Van de Putte, who ran unsuccessfully against Patrick, was the sponsor of the bill in the state Senate. She struggled to get it out of the education committee and onto the Senate floor. It ended up with all the “qualifiers” it has today, she said.
Those qualifiers include the three-year residency requirement, as well as a requirement that the students apply for citizenship.
“These families have already paid into the tax base, so they’re not getting a free deal,” she said, referring to the arguments then and now.
“We’ve already made the investment in these kids. It’s working well. It would be economically stupid to deny them a higher education. Certainly, none of the universities have complained about it.”
Many Latino Republicans are also opposed to any effort to repeal 1403.
Victor Medina, a member of Café con Leche Republicans of Texas, said Patrick was trying to “score cheap political points.”
“By denying these young Texans the chance to earn a college education, you are creating a permanent underclass that will have ramifications both for their families and our state, as a whole, in the future,” Medina said.
“These kids have known no other home but Texas. They deserve a fighting chance.”

Texas DREAM Act Faces Revamp or Repeal

We fight this every session.  This is House Bill 1403 that you can learn more about by searching this blog (HB1403) passed in the 2001 session of the Texas State Legislature.  Our was the first state to pass this kind of legislation that has since culminated in the federal DREAM Act proposal.  This will obviously be a big fight this upcoming session. Governor Rick Perry was right on this one:

During the 2012 Presidential Campaign, Governor Perry received a very strong negative reaction to his statement to the audience of a presidential debate when he said if you do not support educating the children of illegal immigrants “I don’t think you have a heart.”

In 2001, this bill made sense as a workforce development bill.  That's why the republicans voted for it: It was good for the Texas economy.  It's no secret that this legislation—and legislation like it throughout the nation—has motivated higher educational attainment by the 60,000+ undocumented high school students that graduate annually in our nation.  This legislative proposal that became an agenda for our community across the nation, has further ignited a movement that is powerful and far reaching.  Indeed, for the Latino community, it is the civil and human rights struggle of our times.  Not that there was not a movement before.  There was  and many of us in the Civil Rights community (LULAC and MALDEF) were a part of it.  

Under state law prior to 2001, these youth were treated like "non-residents" when they had actually lived the bulk of their young lives in the U.S.  We saw children with enormous talent in their schools hitting a wall when they saw that graduation, much less higher education, didn't matter much for them despite their wishes to better themselves and their families and communities.  It was a very sad thing to see.  A number of them didn't even know they were "undocumented" until they looked into college.  These youth had been doing everything that they thought they were supposed to be doing as "good citizens" and the light in their eyes dimmed when they first came to a full awareness that higher education—however competent and technically qualified they were—was simply unattainable when they were forced to pay prohibitive out-of-state tuition costs like others coming from other states or countries.  

Fortunately, many republicans do see the importance of this legislation, but will there be enough...?  We'll see.  Clearly, many Texas republicans fear the building political strength of the Latino community and seek to stem it this next session by the revamping or repealing of HB 1403.  Since education and the vote are empirically linked, this is yet another way (besides Voter ID, redistricting and the like) to work toward the disenfranchisement of our community.  

Organize (more), we must.

-Angela

by Bob Price 11 Dec 2014 12 post a comment

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The law known as the Texas DREAM Act will face a “big revamp or repeal” according to one incoming State Senator. The measure passed into law during the 2001 legislative session and provides for in-state tuition for certain children of illegal immigrants. The law was a hot button issue during the primary and general election as well as the 2012 Presidential Campaign of Governor Rick Perry.

State Senator-Elect Lois Kolkhorst (R-Brenham) wasted no time in addressing the issue that also dogged her in her recent campaign that ended last Saturday night with her election to the Senate. She voted for the 2001 in-state tuition bill as freshman state representative. She spoke out against in-state tuition for the children of illegal immigrants during the campaign and is now ready to move forward on her campaign promise.
“We are definitely looking to modify that bill, and Governor Abbott has told me he would sign it – whether that be a complete repeal or a toughening of the standards,” said Kolkhorst in an interview with the Houston Chronicle.
Kolkhorst told the Chronicle she has spoken with Lt. Governor-Elect Dan Patrick and Governor-Elect Greg Abbott about the possible legislative actions on the issue. Both Abbott and Patrick have expressed their commitment to either reform or repeal the law. Abbott said, during a gubernatorial debate with State Sen. Wendy Davis, he would not veto a bill that would repeal the Texas DREAM Act, but his campaign staff said they would prefer to reform the measure. Patrick pledged to repeal the bill throughout his campaign.
The incoming Senator said she expects this will be one of several pieces of legislation relating to illegal immigration to come before the new legislative session which launches in January.  “Whatever role the lieutenant governor wants me to play on the issue, I will play,” Kolkhorst said.
Kolkhorst was elected to Senate District 18 last Saturday in a special election to fill the vacancy created by the election of Senator Glenn Hegar to the position of Comptroller of Public Accounts. SD-18 runs from Giddings down to Port Aransas and includes Brenham, Katy and Victoria. She is expected to be sworn in to the Senate later this month.
During the 2012 Presidential Campaign, Governor Perry received a very strong negative reaction to his statement to the audience of a presidential debate when he said if you do not support educating the children of illegal immigrants “I don’t think you have a heart.”
The Texas DREAM Act was a landmine issue for several candidates during the 2014 Republican Primary season where many challengers attacked incumbents who voted in 2001 to approve the in-state tuition issue.
Bob Price is a senior political news contributor for Breitbart Texas and a member of the original Breitbart Texas team. Follow him on Twitter @BobPriceBBTX.

Native Legislator Ponka-We Victors Turns Tables at Immigration Hearing in Kansas

 

Ponka-We Victors on Illigal Immigrants

 This has gone viral.  As it should. We, too, in Texas have to fight back every legislative session attempts to repeal HB 1403, Texas' tuition-waiver legislation passed in 2001 with Rick Perry as governor.  Here's a bit of legislative history.

HB 1403 was passed as a workforce development bill and ours was the first state in the nation to pass this legislation. California followed suit with AB 540, and now there are at least 17 states nationwide that have provisions that allow for in-state tuition rates for undocumented, immigrant youth. This effort is mirrored at the national level with he Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors—better known as the DREAM Act.  Authored by Dick Durbin and Orrin Hatch, the federal DREAM Act was subsequently first introduced in the Senate on August 1, 2001.

House Bill 1403 (or the "Texas DREAM Act") was signed into law on June 16, 2001 effective immediately.  So far our community has successfully mobilized against right-wing attempts to abolish it in Texas.  Every session nevertheless presents a new set of challenges.

A quote by Civil Rights leader Cesar Chavez is applicable here that actually helps to explain the animus against the DREAM Act:
“Once social change begins, it cannot be reversed. You cannot un-educate the person who has learned to read. You cannot humiliate the person who feels pride. You cannot oppress the people who are not afraid anymore.

Cesar Chavez
Address to the Commonwealth Club in San Francisco, Nov. 9, 1984

The story here also illustrates the power of pointed, honest rhetoric. Happy Saturday, friends.

^-Angela

 

 Native Legislator Ponka-We Victors Turns Tables at Immigration Hearing in Kansas

ICTMN Staff

3/22/13

A remark about immigration made by a Native State Representative at a hearing in the Kansas House of Representatives has attracted the attention of major media -- and yet to many Natives, it's merely the plainest of facts.

The hearing concerned the legality of offering children of illegal immigrants to pay the in-state tuition rate to attend universities and community colleges in Kansas. The Legislature was seeking to overturn a statute that has been on the books for nearly a decade -- a Topeka Capital-Journal story described the effort as an "annual attempt." 

Ponka-We Victors (D-Wichita), a member of the Ponca Tribe of Oklahoma and the Tohono O'odham Nation, and the only American Indian in the Kansas State Legislature, offered her reading of the situation to Kris Kobach, Kansas' Secretary of State.

"I think it’s funny Mr. Kobach, because when you mention illegal immigrant, I think of all of you," Victors said, prompting cheers from the gallery, described by the Capital-Journal as "heavily pro-immigrant." Rep. Arlen Siegfreid (R-Olathe) the chairman of the House Federal and State Affairs Committee, felt moved to tell the room, "Please don't do that."

The encounter takes on added significance when one considers the man Victors was addressing. Kris Kobach is known around the country as an anti-immigration hawk, and had a hand in such controversial measures as Arizona's SB 1070. As Mother Jones puts it, "if there's a controversial new anti-immigration law that's captured national attention, chances are that it has Kris Kobach's imprimatur."

The moment was encapsulated with the image below (note that it borrows the upraised hand and feather from Idle No More posters) which has been heavily shared on social media:

Read more at http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2013/03/22/native-legislator-ponka-we-victors-turns-tables-immigration-hearing-kansas-148309

Bill Would End Tuition Break for Illegal Immigrants

Ok. So on one end the state is up in arms about poor college completion rates, and places this concern and its goal to be a top-ten-state in college graduates at the fore. Then comes this... an explicit, ideological attack on immigrant students that completely contradicts the previous goal. This is both offensive and shameful!

-Patricia

by Aziza Musa | Texas Tribune
May 19, 2011

When she was 12 years old, Edilsa Lopez was abducted when she was walking on a street in her native country, Guatemala. The kidnappers brought her to the United States and moved her from city to city along the U.S.-Mexico border.

Lopez, who told her story earlier this year when she testified before the House State Affairs Committee, managed to eventually run away and called an aunt who lived in Houston. Lopez dreamed of being the first person in her family to graduate from college. So she worked hard: She learned English in one year, enrolled herself in a local high school, graduated in the top 10 percent of her class and decided to go to college. Lopez said that when she learned she could pay lower in-state tuition rates even though she was not in the U.S. legally, it motivated her to succeed in school.

Now, Lopez is an economics, business and international relations senior at the University of Texas. But Lopez says a measure championed by Sen. Brian Birdwell, R-Granbury, and other Republicans may threaten her ability to finish school and could hurt the chances for other Texas students who are not living here legally to attend college.

In 2001, Texas became the first state to allow students without legal documentation of citizenship to pay in-state tuition rates, provided they could show they lived in the Texas for at least three years before their high school graduation. The law requires the students to sign an affidavit promising they will apply for permanent residency as soon as they meet the requirements. Currently, 11 other states have a similar system in place.

Birdwell’s bill would repeal that law. GOP state Reps. Bill Zedler, of Arlington, and Erwin Cain, of Como, have also filed amendments to a budget bill the House is expected to debate today that would effectively repeal the in-state tuition provision. Based on rates published on the UT website, that would mean Lopez could pay about $10,500 more each semester as a full-time liberal arts student.

With less than two weeks left in the legislative session, the measure is stuck in the Senate Higher Education Committee. Birdwell, though, has tried to unstick his bill and attempted last week to tack it on as an amendment to another education-related bill. When Democratic senators raised concerns about the amendment, Birdwell withdrew it.

Birdwell argues that his bill makes tuition rates fairer, requiring students who are not living here legally to pay the same amount as out-of-state students. And he said he doesn't worry that the measure will drive down college attendance.

But Richard Piñeda, an associate communication studies professor at UT-El Paso, disagrees. Most students in this situation arrive in Texas at a very young age, and he said it's unlikely they will return to their country of origin. Repealing in-state tuition could send students living in Texas without documentation to other states in search of higher education. Texas would lose money, and those students who remain would likely be less educated, he said.

"The idea is if you keep locking people out of different services and benefits, it doesn't necessarily solve the problem. It doesn't deter the forces of immigration," he said.

According to a recent report by researchers at Roger Williams University's Latino Policy Institute, states that let students without legal citizenship pay in-state tuition rates saw a 31 percent increase in college enrollment and a 14 percent decline in the number of high school dropouts. Of the nine studies reviewed, the researchers found two that said in-state tuition provisions cost taxpayers.

The Higher Education Coordinating Board estimates that almost 20,000 students would be affected by the change. Assuming many of these students would enroll in less expensive schools or drop out altogether if faced with higher tuition costs, the coordinating board calculates that the state's institutions of higher learning would suffer a net loss of almost $92 million in tuition in fiscal year 2016 alone.

Dominic Chavez, the board’s spokesman, said that if the bill passed, students would have to show legal proof of their residency status; the board would determine what satisfied residency requirements and universities would review the documents.

Birdwell offered a new version of the bill on May 11 clarifying that his legislation would exclude non-residents who have already completed 30 or more credit hours.

Supporters of the bill — like Duke Machado, director of GOP Is for Me, a group that educates the Hispanic community on conservative issues — say they do not want their tax dollars to fund education for non-citizens. “The bottom line is that we have to make the determination that we are American citizens and that our money, our tax dollars should go to our citizens,” Machado told the Senate Higher Education Committee.

The bill has staunch opponents, though, including Sen. Carlos Uresti, D-San Antonio, and the Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Fund. They say the legislation wouldn't save taxpayer money because undocumented immigrants contribute to the tax base and to the economy. And if the non-citizen immigrants are better educated, they can contribute more.

Luis Figueroa, a MALDEF Southwest Regional Office staff attorney, said the bill could lead to more school dropouts. Figueroa argues the state would not save money because the number of affected students paying tuition would drop. “There’s no real reason to single them out and make them pay more,” he said.

For Lopez, the bill could mean an early end to her college career. “It would be heartbreaking because I have worked so hard,” she said. She pays her own tuition, without family support, and she's not eligible for federal financial aid. Lopez said she could not afford to pay thousands more to finish her degree.

“All we want is an opportunity,” she told lawmakers at the hearing earlier this year.

MALDEF FORCES WITHDRAWAL OF LEGAL CHALLENGE TO TEXAS’ INSTATE TUITION LAW, HB 1403

110 Broadway, Suite 300, San Antonio, TX 78025 Office: 210-224-5476

NEWS RELEASE
For Immediate Distribution
May 16, 2011

CONTACT:

Laura Rodriguez: (310) 956-2425

lrodriguez@maldef.org

David Hinojosa: (210) 224-5476

dhinojosa@MALDEF.org

MALDEF FORCES WITHDRAWAL OF LEGAL CHALLENGE TO TEXAS’ INSTATE TUITION LAW, HB 1403

Hard-Working Immigrant Students Retain Path to Achieving the “Texas Dream”

SAN ANTONIO, TX – Because of the intervention of University Leadership Initiative (“ULI”), hard-working undocumented immigrant students no longer face a legal claim from the Immigration Reform Coalition of Texas (IRCOT) to be stripped of their right to pay instate tuition and take part in the “Texas Dream” of achieving a quality higher education.

On April 21, 2011, MALDEF filed a motion on behalf of University Leadership Initiative, defendant-intervenor in the case of IRCOT v. Texas, to dismiss IRCOT’s claim. In response, IRCOT dropped its claim seeking to strike down the instate tuition law. Known as Texas House Bill (“HB 1403”), and signed into law by Governor Rick Perry in 2001, the instate tuition law provides educational access to all qualified Texas residents, regardless of immigration status.

"We are very satisfied to have preserved instate tuition laws for undocumented immigrant students," stated David Hinojosa, MALDEF's Southwest Regional Counsel. "These are hardworking, deserving students who have succeeded in school, and they should have every opportunity to achieve their full academic potential."

To qualify for HB 1403, a student must: 1) graduate from a Texas high school or receive a GED after attending for three consecutive years; 2) live with a parent, legal guardian or conservator during that time; 3) register as an entering student in a higher education institution; and 4) sign an affidavit stating that they will apply for permanent residency at the earliest opportunity they are eligible to do so.

Texas was the first of eleven states to pass instate tuition laws. HB 1403 has proven to be a tremendous success in helping undocumented immigrant students become productive members of society.

"We're ecstatic that the attack against instate tuition has been dropped," stated Julieta Garibay, Board President of University Leadership Initiative. "We will continue our mission to encourage all Texans to pursue higher education and will remain vigilant against anything that threatens the future of our education."

Michael Bongiorno, David F. Olsky and Somil Trivedi of the law firm of WilmerHale served as pro-bono co-counsel with MALDEF in the case.

MALDEF

Founded in 1968, MALDEF is the nation’s leading Latino legal civil rights organization. Often described as the “law firm of the Latino community,” MALDEF promotes social change through advocacy, communications, community education, and litigation in the areas of education, employment, immigrant rights, and political access.

Birdwell Tries, Fails to Hike Tuition for Undocumented

by Becca Aaronson | Texas Tribune
May 9, 2011

An effort by Sen. Brian Birdwell, R-Granbury, to require undocumented Texas students to pay out-of-state tuition rates sparked emotional debate in the Senate today, and forced Birdwell to pull the measure down.

Birdwell tacked the amendment, which would have required undocumented students to pay much higher out-of-state tuition rates, onto an education finance bill. Those currently paying in-state tuition would have been grandfathered in under the measure, but the amendment could have affected some 16,000 students.

“You’re putting a dagger in the hearts and the hopes of these students,” said Sen. Leticia Van de Putte, D-San Antonio, the first senator to voice concern. “...We’re punishing the students, the children, because of a transgression of their parents.”

Sen. Eddie Lucio, D-Brownsville, argued: “They’re in college trying to make something of themselves, and if we in any way interfere, they won’t get their education.”

Birdwell said constituents have complained about paying tuition for illegal residents. He said his intention was “fairness for the Texas taxpayers.”

But Sen. Carlos Uresti, D-San Antonio, said that argument was “illogical” because undocumented residents are taxpayers. Uresti said he saw students sobbing after the federal government failed to pass the DREAM Act, and now "what’s happened at the federal level is filtering down here with your amendment.”

After senators took a moment to conference, Birdwell withdrew the amendment “for the continued survival” of the education finance reform bill.

In-state rates for illegal immigrants attacked

By SUSAN CARROLL | Houston Chronicle
Dec. 15, 2009

Attorneys for an anti-illegal immigration organization are challenging a Texas state law that allows illegal immigrant students to attend colleges and universities at in-state rates, saying it violates federal law.

David A. Rogers, a lawyer for the Immigration Reform Coalition of Texas, an organization that opposes illegal immigration, said the lawsuit filed on Monday in Harris County District Court marks the first direct court challenge of the Texas law.

Texas is one of 10 states in the nation that have laws offering in-state tuition to illegal immigrants who meet certain criteria, including graduating from a local high school and pledging to legalize their immigration status as soon as possible.

The lawsuit specifically names the University of Houston, Houston Community College and Lone Star College systems. A spokesman for UH declined to comment on Tuesday, citing the pending litigation. HCC officials said a copy of the lawsuit was under review by their attorneys. A Lone Star spokesman said the college was not prepared to comment Tuesday afternoon.
Injunction requested

In the lawsuit, the plaintiffs allege that at least 8,000 illegal immigrants attend Texas colleges and universities at discounted tuition rates for in-state residents or receive some form of state financial aid, saying the statute violates federal law. The lawsuit also requests an injunction barring illegal immigrants from receiving the in-state break on tuition or state-funded financial aid.

“We don't think that taxpayers should break federal law in order to subsidize people who are in the United States illegally,” Rogers said.

Michael A. Olivas, a University of Houston law professor who specializes in higher education and immigration issues, said that the lawsuit filed Monday was based on a flawed reading of federal statutes and the Texas residency law.

In 2001, Texas became the first state in the country to pass a law that allowed undocumented students to pay in-state rates and possibly receive state financial aid, provided they meet certain criteria.

Since then, California, Illinois, Kansas, Nebraska, New Mexico, New York, Utah, Washington and Wisconsin have passed similar laws. Oklahoma also approved a bill granting in-state tuition to undocumented students, but it later was rescinded and now only covers those grandfathered under the now-defunct statute.

Four states, including Arizona, have laws on the books that ban illegal immigrants from receiving in-state tuition.
Federal law cited

Olivas, who helped then-Rep. Rick Noriega, a Houston Democrat, draft Texas' original statute, said federal law clearly allows states to pass their own legislation regarding in-state residency for undocumented students.

Olivas also cited a 2008 letter from the Department of Homeland Security to the North Carolina Attorney's General office that said federal law does not prohibit the admission of undocumented students to universities and colleges.

“The state can, and did act properly, and the statute is constitutional,” said Olivas, who also served as an expert witness when a similar law was later challenged in Kansas.

Cesar Espinosa, a Houston immigrant advocate, said Texas' law has led to success stories for students who otherwise might not be able to afford higher education, even though they spent years in the K-12 public school system.

“We're hoping that the lawsuit doesn't go far,” Espinosa said. “The reason many students who are undocumented finish high school is because they know there is an opportunity to go on with their studies. If we want to keep students engaged, we have to have a means for them to continue with their education.”

After delay, bill challenging in-state tuition law all but dead

This is such very good news. BUT, Zedler's bill could resurrect as an amendment somewhere else. It's not over 'til it's over. -Angela
After delay, bill challenging in-state tuition law all but dead

House legislation sought to overturn policy allowing undocumented students to get cheaper tuition at universities.

By Juan Castillo
AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF
Thursday, May 10, 2007
An attempt to overturn a groundbreaking 2001 Texas law allowing certain illegal immigrants to receive cheaper in-state tuition rates at state universities all but died in the House late Wednesday.

After Speaker Tom Craddick, R-Midland, upheld a challenge to House Bill 159 on a technicality, the legislation's sponsor, Rep. Bill Zedler, R-Arlington,said it was too late to bring the bill back to the floor.

"I feel we had the votes to do this," a disappointed Zedler told reporters. "Let me tell you, this has been a big issue with our constituents."

Zedler said he would look for an opportunity to attach the bill to other legislation during the session's waning days.

Rep. Roberto Alonzo, D-Dallas, hailed Craddick's decision, calling Zedler's legislation an attack "on the most defenseless, in this case students who are doing well" academically.

House Bill 159 would have amended the Texas Education Code, prohibiting illegal immigrants from being considered residents and eligible for the cheaper tuition.

Since 2001, 11,130 of the millions of students attending Texas higher education institutions have used the law to qualify for cheaper tuition at 81 state universities, health-related institutions and community, technical or state colleges.

The figure includes undocumented students and legal residents, according to the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board.

Since Texas enacted the law, with strong bipartisan support and little opposition, nine other states have passed similar legislation.

But with Congress unable to find solutions to illegal immigration, state legislatures are struggling to decide whether to extend or deny in-state tuition to illegal immigrants.

Three states have restricted access. In Arizona last year, voters approved a proposition denying in-state tuition to undocumented residents.

House Bill 159's supporters contended that making it easier for immigrants to attend public universities gives preference to people who violated immigration laws, costs taxpayers and provides incentives for illegal immigration.

"What we've done by this law is, we've encouraged illegal behavior," Zedler said during a contentious floor debate.

But Rep. Rick Noriega, D-Houston, who sponsored the original 2001 legislation in the House, said Zedler's legislation did not address whether the current policy has been successful.

Noriega said the bill affirmed voices of intolerance that believe immigrants cause "difficulties in our society."

"Do we believe that upholding immigration laws somehow equates to intolerance?" Zedler asked.

Noriega and supporters of the current law argued that it benefits the brightest overachievers with the greatest likelihood of contributing to Texas' economic future.

Having immigrants pay nonresident rates, which are more than three times higher, effectively puts higher education out of their reach, they contended.

They said it made little sense to effectively deny immigrants a higher education when the state spends tens of thousands per student to provide a primary and secondary education, required by federal law.

jcastillo@statesman.com; 445-3635


http://www.statesman.com/news/content/region/legislature/stories/05/10/10immigtuition.html

Texas’ Immigrant out-of-state tuition waiver bill in trouble

Most of the anti-immigration bills seem dead thanks to a lot of work by the University Leadership Initiative, the ACLU, the Texas Criminal Justice Coalition and many, many more. However, as Linda Christofilis in Rep. Noriega (Houston) states, the final target is HB 1403 passed in 2001. HB 1403 is Texas’ immigrant out-of-state tuition-waiver that has served as an inspiration for several other states to pass their own similar bills. When this bill passed, Rep. Noriega’s research showed that close to half of all the HISD valedictorians and salutatorians were immigrant. HB 1403 was sold as a workforce issue and that it no longer made sense to deny opportunities for a group that is a large and growing segment of our student population—and indeed, in many instances, achieving at a higher rate than their native-born peers. This is an investment that will only yield dividends. It’s shameful that some of our leadership seek to sacrifice these youth, together with Texas’ future. -Angela

From: Linda Christofilis

Sent: Friday, March 30, 2007 5:30 PM

Subject: HB 1403 (Texas’ Immigrant out-of-state tuition waiver bill)


Dear friends,

We have learned that it's likely that one or more of the bills filed to repeal the resident tuition for immigrant students under HB 1403 will be presented in a public hearing on April 16. We believe the Committee may also meet on April 12, but we think the bill(s) will not be heard until April 16.

Time is short so I am mobilizing our network to do as much damage control as possible prior to that date.

Recipients of this email can take action by sending a postcard or letter to the members of the House State Affairs Committee. It would be helpful if persons who might reside in the district of any of the members of the State Affairs committee... especially the chairman, David Swinford would write to their representative and express support for retaining access to higher education for ALL students. The other members are: Byron Cook, Ken Paxton, Dan Flynn, Corbin Van Arsdale, Tan Parker.

All of them may be addressed at P.O. Box 2910, Austin, 78768.

At the same time, cards or letters to the "leadership" (Governor, PO Box 12428, Austin 78711; Lt. Governor, PO Box 12068, Austin 78711; Speaker, PO Box 2910, Austin 78768) also are in order, especially the Speaker Tom Craddick Tell them you oppose any divisive debate in the state house on a federal matter, pointing out that the overwhelming testimony of business and attorneys at Wednesday's (Mar 28) joint hearing on immigration and border affairs was to the point that, first, state legislators have absolutely no concept of how complex are immigration laws and the unintended consequences of the ill conceived bills that have been filed; second, the problem must be fixed by Congress, not the Legislature; and third, that the state and the federal government need to provide sufficient funds and personnel to protect our borders form illegal traffic in both contraband and human beings. Texas business leaders also went on record, again, in support of continuing access to higher education for ALL students, as they are ALL critical to the future economic viability of this state.

The Speaker might be especially sensitive to cards or letters from Tech students or graduates, and/or educators in the district.

In 2001, the personal testimony of students to the Higher Education committee was a strong factor in the passage of HB 1403. Most of the State Affairs committee members are new to the legislature, certainly since 2001, and seven of the nine committee members are Republicans. If you are a student, or a teacher or professor who plans to bring students to Austin to testify at the hearing, please let me know as soon as you can. We would like to help make your experience at the capitol as comfortable and rewarding as possible, and perhaps coordinate disparate groups and help them make connections here. Email works best, easier to keep track of it, thanks.

If you are a student or the teacher of 1403 students who would like to offer a personal statementœ how/when you came to Texas, your family, goals, achievements, dreams, etc. we would be happy to receive those statements either electronically, faxed or emailed. We will add them to those I already have and share copies with the members of the committee.

They need not use their full name, if they wish. Statements or letters from teachers or anyone who works with these students are appreciated.

Finally, I ask that you share this information with your friends and associates who support equal access to higher education for all the children in Texas, regardless of their place of birth, and ask them to do the same, spreading the word like ripples in a pond. These students are vibrant, highly motivated, over achievers usually, from families with strong faith and family values, and a strong work ethic. They are creative and entrepreneurial, involved in their community and church, and they usually want to go into professional disciplines that we needœ teachers in science and math, nurses, doctors, engineers, business and finance. Please help us protect their dreams.



Call or email me at any time.



Linda Christofilis

512-463-0732

This UT student seems to have defied all the odds but one

This story by Carlos Guerra in the San Antonio Express-News is about a student who is the progeny of House Bill 1403, a bill that basically capitalizes on the incredible talent that exists among many of our immigrant youth. The bill was passed during the 2001 legislature and was sponsored by State Rep. Rick Noriega from Houston who like myself in my own work, observed correctly that many of our immigrant youth outperform our U.S.-born youth. 

 I lay all of this out in my award-winning book, SUBTRACTIVE SCHOOLING, a three-year study of a Houston, inner-city high school that allowed me to focus on differences in schooling orientations between immigrant Mexican and nonimmigrant U.S.-born, Mexican American youth. I in fact drew from my research to testify on the legislation in 2001. In Houston, what had been observed is that many immigrant youth had excellent and ranked at the top of their class AND these youth had essentially lived their entire lives in the U.S. and so in many ways, they were more Texan and North American than any other identity. 

 All HB 1403 did was it waived the prohibitive out-of-state tuition so that children from these low-income, immigrant families could attend college, providing that they signed an affidavit saying that they were on the path to normalizing their status. 

 This was well and good, however, because it takes at least 15 years for this to occur, these students--including the first cohort of this legislation that graduated in May, 2005--are still undocumented. These students and myself are now pushing for the DREAM Act to pass in Congress. 

The DREAM Act is an amendment to the Senate Judiciary bill on immigration (amended by Senator Richard Durbin (IL) and it would allow these students to get on a path to temporary and then permanent legal residence if they've either served in the military for at least 2 years or if they have attended the university or community college for at least 2 years. This complicates support for any legislation that is draconian but is a reality nevertheless. Hope that this provides some additional perspective on Mirla's account below. 

-Angela Valenzuela

Web Posted: 03/30/2006 12:00 AM CST
by Carlos Guerra
San Antonio Express-News

Now a senior, 21-year-old Mirla López seems like a typical University of Texas at Austin student.

Her life story, however, shows that she is anything but.

"Times were very hard in the Valley, so we became migrant workers when I was 6," she recalls. "We would go to Georgia or Florida and pick strawberries, onions, cucumbers, whatever."

She went into the fields with her mother until she was 12, when her mother started leaving her wherever they were staying to care for the younger kids.

She attended migrant schools and participated in migrant programs, but through her early high school years her schooling was chaotic and disconnected.

"Then, after my sophomore year, I told my mom that I wanted to stay put someplace, so I could finish high school from a certain place," she says. "So I went to Houston to stay with my cousin and to take care of her little daughter, and my mom joined me there later."

In 2000, she enrolled at Houston's highly acclaimed Sánchez Charter High School, in part because it was close to her cousin's apartment. Also, unlike conventional high schools, that charter school recognized all the credits López had earned in migrant programs, so she would not be demoted for a year.

She did well and, in 2002, when she graduated as the school's salutatorian, she made the news, she says. "I guess because I was a migrant and I graduated with such high achievements."

She had considered continuing her studies at a community college, but a visiting recruiter encouraged her to apply to UT, which readily accepted her and awarded her a four-year Longhorn Opportunity Scholarship.

However generous, the scholarship doesn't cover all her expenses in Austin. Every summer, López returns to Houston, where she cleans homes and offices in the mornings, works the lunch rush at a restaurant and baby-sits in the evenings.

She says she already has enough credits to get her bachelor's degree with a major in government and a minor in business. But she wants to earn a second major in history.

And last year, she publicly revealed another reason why she is in no hurry to finish.

"I came out last year at an Immigrants Speak Out (event) at UT," she says, referring to her very public admission that she is an undocumented immigrant.

"There was a lot of hate, and very nasty comments were being made, so I stood up and said, 'You know what, I'm undocumented, and I work just as hard, if not harder, than every one of you.

"'And I am not leaving.'"

Her admission startled many. And it focused attention on an obscure Texas law under which immigrants may enroll in public universities, and pay in-state tuition, if they meet certain criteria.

They must have lived in Texas for three years prior to graduating and have a high school diploma or GED. If they are undocumented, as are an estimated 280 UT students, they also must file an affidavit with the school promising to apply for permanent residence as soon as they are eligible to do so.

"Yes, I could graduate this year," López says, "but then there is nothing I will be able to do because even with a college degree, I won't be able to work legally."

And returning to Mexico isn't really an option either, she says. She hasn't been there since her mother brought her to the Rio Grande Valley at age 6.


To contact Carlos Guerra, call (210) 250-3545 or e-mail cguerra@express-news.net.
Online at: http://www.mysanantonio.com/columnists/stories/MYSA033006.01B.guerra.1614985.html

http://www.mysanantonio.com/columnists/stories/MYSA033006.01B.guerra.1614985.html