Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich recently disappointed DREAMers with the decision to appeal a judge's ruling that grants in-state tuition to eligible DACA recipients. Nonetheless, advocacy groups insist that DREAMers continue to register for school.

Earlier this year, Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Arthur Anderson ordered that DREAMers who qualify for the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program are eligible for in-state tuition at Arizona State Universities and community colleges. Judge Anderson stated, "Federal law, not state law, determines who is lawfully present in the U.S."

Just days after the ruling, the Arizona Board of Regents stated DREAMers attending the state's three public universities were eligible for in-state tuition.

The July 1 appeal by Brnovich comes nearly two months after Judge Anderson's ruling. Prior to Brnovich's actions, former attorney general Tom Horne sued the college district's policy that allowed in-state tuition to DACA recipients, claiming that it violated voter-approved legislation that denies in-state tuition to undocumented immigrants. At that time, a Maricopa County Superior judge upheld the college district policy.

However, Brnovich took the fight to the Arizona Court of Appeals, arguing that the appeal is about the rule of law and enforcing voter-protection laws. The appeal marked the second case regarding the legal rights of young DREAMers that Brnovich has taken a stance on since entering office. Last month, he filed an appeal in a separate ruling that granted young immigrants Arizona driver's licenses since 2012 as long as they are qualified for work permits.

"The filing is about defending the will of the Arizona voters," said Ryan Anderson, the director of communications for the Attorney General's office. "It is not about immigration. It is about Proposition 300 and when voters decided several years ago that they did not want to extend public benefits including in-state tuition to individuals who did not have legal status in the state."

Young immigrants and advocacy groups don't agree with Horne, Brnovich or Ryan Anderson, and they believed that the appeal was an assault on the rights of hard-working young people.

"It is time for Governor Ducey and Attorney General Brnovich to drop the anti-immigrant and anti-dreamer rhetoric. This latest action continues the vindictive approach of Arizona state officials and their willingness to deny dreamers the ability to contribute to the good of all in the state, in order to pander to anti-immigrant attitudes," said organizers from the Arizona DREAM Act Coalition (ADAC) in a statement. "As seen in the ADAC drivers license litigation, courts have found that the decision permitting in-state tuition was clearly correct."

ADAC stated that a plan to continue the lawsuit is to continue to waste Arizona's tax dollars. ADAC has aligned itself with the fight for equality and access to higher education for every Arizonian.

"We encourage all DACAmented students to continue to register for school, this appeal does not take away in-state tuition immediately. These intimidation tactics have no place in our community we are certain that the courts will be on our side," said ADAC.

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