A judge ruled on Wednesday to block undocumented students from receiving in-state tuition at universities in Texas.
U.S. District Judge Reed O’Connor issued the injunction only hours after the Department of Justice brought a lawsuit against the state for a provision that allowed the students to get in-state tuition.
The decision was made quickly after Republican state Attorney General Ken Paxton told the judge Texas agreed with nixing the provision.
“Since 2001, Texas law has allowed unlawful aliens who establish residency in Texas to benefit from reduced, in-state tuition rates while denying that same benefit to U.S. citizens who are not residents of Texas,” the federal government argued in the case, pointing to executive orders recently signed by President Trump as backing for its lawsuit.
The judge said the provision that “applied to aliens who are not lawfully present in the United States” would be enjoined.
The provision was originally put in to help Dreamers through college.
In some cases in Texas, tuition for out-of-residents can be as much as $30,000 more a year compared to in-state tuition.
It is a major win for conservatives who have fought against this provision since it was established more than 20 years ago. It is also likely only the first of numerous lawsuits to come from the Trump administration as multiple other states have similar carveouts in their laws.
