Why California might preserve in-state tuition rates for community college students who get deported

As the Trump administration works to end in-state tuition for undocumented students across the United States, California lawmakers are weighing a bill to preserve access to in-state tuition for community college students who get deported.

The bill would enable deported community college students to continue their coursework online while paying in-state tuition rates, until January 2030. Community college students who leave the U.S. because of the political climate and DACA recipients who are denied re-entry would also be eligible. If students manage to get back to the U.S. lawfully, they would be able to access in-state tuition when they return.

“Deportation should not erase a student’s dreams of higher education,” said Assemblymember José Luis Solache Jr. , a Democrat who repr