On August 27, 2026, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) sued the State of New Mexico, the New Mexico Higher Education Department, and Higher Education Secretary Stephanie Rodriguez to block state laws providing in-state tuition and state-funded financial aid to certain students regardless of immigration status. The lawsuit challenges New Mexico’s Opportunity and Lottery Scholarships, which has been in place for more than two decades. Under the law, students who attended a New Mexico secondary school for at least one year and graduated or earned a high school equivalency credential in the state may receive resident tuition and state-funded financial aid regardless of immigration status. DOJ claims New Mexico’s policy is violating federal law and discriminating against U.S. citizens who reside outside the state by providing benefits to undocumented students while denying them to out-of-state U.S. citizens.