Editor: Below is the latest action by our Washington State Attorney General Bob Ferguson who has challenged the U.S. Department of Education decision to block aid for Dreamers and other Washington students from funds made available in the CARES Act. For readers who would like to read about other ways to support undocumented youth, check out our earlier article, "A DREAM Deported: What Undocumented American Youth Need their Schools to Understand."
AG Ferguson challenges Department of Education decision blocking
coronavirus aid for thousands of Washington students
FOR IMMEDIATE
RELEASE:
May 19 2020
DeVos blocking
Dreamers and other Washington students from accessing money in the CARES Act
intended to help college students impacted by COVID-19
*Updated 5/20/20
with link to Washington's motion for preliminary injunction
SPOKANE — Attorney
General Bob Ferguson today challenged aU.S. Department of Education decision that deprives thousands of
Washington college students from receiving critical aid included in the
Coronavirus Aid, Relief & Economic Security (CARES) Act.
Under its Higher
Education Emergency Relief Fund, the CARES Act appropriated more than $12
billion to higher education institutions across the nation to prevent, prepare
for and respond to the COVID-19 pandemic. The CARES Act required that at least
50 percent of the funds be disbursed to students as emergency grants for
expenses related to the disruption of campus operations.
On April 21,
without congressional authorization, the Department of Education announced that
only students who are eligible for federal financial aid may receive CARES Act
grants. No such requirement is in the text of the CARES Act itself.
The Department
of Education’s restriction excludes many students in need, including students
without a high school degree, adult basic education students, students who have
Deferred Action for Childhood Arrival (DACA) status and more.
“Betsy DeVos is
unlawfully trying to deny Dreamers and other Washington students the assistance
they need — and that Congress intended,” Ferguson said.
“The pandemic
has caused unprecedented disruption for all of Washington’s students without
regard for the arbitrary, harmful lines the Department of Education has drawn,”
Gov. Jay Inslee said. “Congress intended this aid to be distributed to all
students struggling to cope with the COVID-19 emergency, not only those Betsy
DeVos deems eligible for assistance. All higher education students in
Washington state deserve to be part of our recovery.”
Ferguson’s
lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Washington in
Spokane, asserts that the department’s decision is unlawful and a violation of
the Administrative Procedure Act, as well as Article I of the U.S.
Constitution, which gives exclusive “power of the purse” to Congress.
Ferguson asserts
that the department’s actions violated the Administrative Procedure Act because
they exceeded the department’s statutory authority, lacked any reasoning or
explanation and therefore were arbitrary and capricious, and were adopted
without proper procedures.
Ferguson
also filed a motion for apreliminary injunction, asking a judge to immediately block the
Department of Education’s restrictions on the grants.
Impacts to
Washington students
As a result of
the department’s decision, thousands of Washington higher education students
who desperately need financial assistance have been excluded from the program.
These are among
the students whose financial survival and lifeline to higher education is most
threatened by COVID-19, because, for example, they worked part-time to pay for
tuition, health care and childcare, or they did not have high school diplomas.
They include:
·
Adult basic education students at Washington’s 34
community and technical colleges who are acquiring reading, writing, math and
language skills to leverage a job, college degree or a trade certification
·
Many of Washington’s roughly 17,000 “Dreamers,” individuals
brought to the country at an early age, who have been educated by Washington
schools, and are protected under the DACA program
·
Students whose academic progress has fallen below a C
average
For example,
according to the Washington State Board of Community & Technical Colleges,
nearly 52,000 of the state’s 363,000 community and technical college enrollees
are adult basic education students, the majority of which are not eligible for
CARES Act funding. Adult basic education students account for about 14 percent
of community and technical college enrollment.
According to the
U.S. Department of Education, more than 85 Washington universities, community
and technical colleges and cosmetology schools have received more than $113
million for emergency grants to students.
Assistant
Attorneys General Jeff Sprung, July Simpson, Paul Crisalli and Spencer Coates
are handling the case for Washington.
Ferguson has now
filed 61 lawsuits against the Trump Administration. Ferguson has 28 legal
victories against the Trump Administration and one defeat. Eighteen of those
cases are finished and cannot be appealed.
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The Office of
the Attorney General is the chief legal office for the state of Washington with
attorneys and staff in 27 divisions across the state providing legal services
to roughly 200 state agencies, boards and commissions. Visit www.atg.wa.gov to learn more.
Contacts:
Brionna Aho,
Communications Director, (360) 753-2727; Brionna.aho@atg.wa.gov
