Arizona Proposition 308: 'Dreamer' tuition measure passes as final votes tallied
Arizona voters approved a statewide ballot measure granting undocumented students the ability to pay in-state tuition at state colleges and universities.
A majority of Arizona voters backed Proposition 308, which was leading by more than 60,000 votes as of Monday.
The Associated Press called the race Monday night.
Proposition 308 also will allow students to receive state-funded aid like grants and scholarships.
Proposition 308 repeals portions of another statewide ballot measure passed in 2006 that put restrictions on undocumented students, also known as "Dreamers.
Under Proposition 308, any college student, regardless of their legal status in the U.S., qualifies for in-state tuition if they graduated from an Arizona high school and have lived in the state for two years prior.
Election Day coverage: Arizona election results
Supporters launched a campaign to convince voters to vote yes on Proposition 308 months before the election. It featured a chorus of prominent Democratic and Republican leaders, including U.S. Rep. Ruben Gallego, D-Ariz., and Arizona House Speaker Rusty Bowers, R-Mesa, as well as bilingual television and radio ads.
While there was not an organized campaign against the proposition, the ballot measure faced opposition from largely Republican voters and elected leaders.
With the passage of 308, Arizona becomes the 23rd state in the country to allow undocumented students to pay in-state tuition.
Dozens of student and youth organizers with community group Aliento celebrated the passage of Proposition 308 on Monday evening in Phoenix.
Many of the students and young people that gathered on Monday played important roles, helping make over 60,000 calls and knock on 4,000 voters, according to Jose Patiño, Aliento’s education and external affairs director.
Aliento mobilized in 2018 to advocate for undocumented students after the Arizona Supreme Court ruled that they were not eligible for in-state tuition. Voters had barred undocumented students from receiving in-state tuition in a 2006 referendum.
The group began pressing state lawmakers to build support for Dreamers and in May 2021, the Arizona Legislature passed Senate Concurrent Resolution 1044, sending Proposition 308 to voters this year.
Patiño was a senior at Carl Hayden High School when Proposition 300 passed in 2006. He said that's when the effort to fight for Dreamers began.
“I like to use a Mexican proverb, when they passed Prop. 300 and (then-Maricopa County Sheriff Joe) Arpaio did all those raids, they tried to bury us,” he said. “Comp dicen en Mexico, they didn’t know we were seeds. It took 16 years for us to sprout to be in this moment. But we’re here.”
Undocumented students now must pay a rate of 150% percent of in-state tuition costs in order to attend public colleges and universities in Arizona.
An analysis by the Arizona Budget Legislative Committee found that approval of Proposition 308 will slightly reduce tuition revenue at public schools because of the lower tuition rate. But it added that those would likely be offset by increased enrollment from students that would qualify for the in-state tuition rate.
Have any news tips or story ideas about immigration in the Southwest? Reach the reporter at rafael.carranza@arizonarepublic.com, or follow him on Twitter at @RafaelCarranza.
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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Arizona Prop. 308: Tuition measure for 'Dreamers' expected to pass
