Federal authorities have escalated a simmering legal and political battle by filing a lawsuit against the state of Illinois, targeting a recently enacted law that extends state-funded financial aid to undocumented students. The move, announced on September 2, 2025, by the U.S. Department of Justice, signals the latest flashpoint in the ongoing national debate over immigration, education equity, and states’ rights.
The lawsuit, filed in the Southern District of Illinois, specifically challenges House Bill 460, which Governor JB Pritzker signed into law in August 2025. The measure amends the state’s Retention of Illinois Students and Equity (RISE) Act, granting undocumented immigrants access to in-state tuition, scholarships, grants, and stipends starting in 2026. Supporters argue the law helps students who are otherwise barred from federal aid, but federal officials see it very differently.
According to Spectrum News, the Department of Justice’s complaint is sweeping: it names not only Governor Pritzker and Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul, but also the state itself and the boards of trustees of state universities. The DOJ contends that by offering benefits to undocumented students that are not equally available to all U.S. citizens, Illinois is engaging in unconstitutional discrimination. In their words, the law treats American citizens as “second-class citizens.”
“Under federal law, schools cannot provide benefits to illegal aliens that they do not provide to U.S. citizens,” Attorney General Pamela Bondi said in a statement, as reported by The Bold Bureau. “This Department of Justice has already filed multiple lawsuits to prevent U.S. students from being treated like second-class citizens — Illinois now joins the list of states where we are relentlessly fighting to vindicate federal law.”
U.S. Attorney Steven D. Weinhoeft, representing the Southern District of Illinois, echoed this sentiment in unusually sharp terms. “Illinois has an apparent desire to win a ‘race to the bottom’ as the country’s leading sanctuary state,” he said, according to Spectrum News. In a separate statement reported by The Bold Bureau, Weinhoeft added: “This policy treats illegal aliens better than U.S. citizens living in other states and incentivizes even more illegal immigration, all on the taxpayer’s dime. Illinois citizens deserve better.”
The lawsuit’s timing is no accident. It comes on the heels of two executive orders signed by President Donald Trump, both aimed at preventing undocumented immigrants from obtaining taxpayer-funded benefits. The Trump administration has made immigration enforcement a centerpiece of its policy agenda, and Illinois has become a frequent target. The state’s leaders have routinely pushed back against federal efforts, defending Illinois’ sanctuary laws and other measures designed to shield undocumented residents from deportation or discrimination.
Governor Pritzker, a Democrat and a possible presidential contender for 2028, has not been shy about his opposition to Trump’s approach. The governor has repeatedly clashed with the White House in recent weeks. President Trump has threatened to send the National Guard and a strike team of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents into Chicago, ostensibly to address violent crime. Pritzker, however, has characterized those threats as an attempt to “use the U.S. military to occupy a U.S. city, punish his dissidents and score political points,” according to The Bold Bureau.
The legal landscape surrounding these issues is shifting rapidly. On the very same day the DOJ filed its lawsuit against Illinois, a federal judge in California ruled that the Trump administration itself had violated federal law by deploying National Guard troops to Los Angeles. And just weeks before, in July and late August, federal judges dismissed or blocked separate Trump administration lawsuits that sought to overturn sanctuary policies in Illinois, Chicago, and Cook County. These rulings, noted by The Bold Bureau, highlight the deep legal uncertainty at the intersection of federal immigration law and state-level protections for undocumented residents.
Illinois’ House Bill 460, the law at the center of the current lawsuit, is part of a broader effort by state lawmakers to ensure that all high school graduates, regardless of their immigration status, have a shot at higher education. The RISE Act, originally passed in 2019, was designed to fill the gap left by federal restrictions that bar undocumented students from receiving federal financial aid. By expanding access to scholarships, grants, and stipends, Illinois lawmakers say they are investing in the state’s future workforce and giving every student the chance to succeed.
But the Department of Justice sees it as a violation of federal law and a misuse of taxpayer resources. The DOJ’s complaint argues that offering in-state tuition and state-funded scholarships to undocumented students, while denying those same benefits to U.S. citizens from other states, amounts to unconstitutional favoritism. “The complaint challenges Illinois laws that provide in-state tuition and scholarships to undocumented students, claiming these laws unconstitutionally discriminate against U.S. citizens who do not receive the same benefits,” Spectrum News reports.
Attorney General Pamela Bondi was unequivocal in her rationale: “This Department of Justice has already filed multiple lawsuits to prevent U.S. students from being treated like second-class citizens — Illinois now joins the list of states where we are relentlessly fighting to vindicate federal law.”
Illinois officials, for their part, have been measured in their response. A spokesperson for Attorney General Kwame Raoul said his office is reviewing the case and declined further comment, as reported by The Bold Bureau and Spectrum News. The governor’s office did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The stakes of this legal fight are high, not just for Illinois but for other states considering similar measures. The DOJ’s action could set a precedent for how far states can go in extending benefits to undocumented residents—and how aggressively the federal government will intervene. The outcome may also influence the political climate heading into the 2026 midterm elections, where immigration and education are expected to be major issues.
This case is just the latest in a series of legal skirmishes between Illinois and the Trump administration. Previous attempts by the federal government to overturn Illinois’ sanctuary laws have been met with resistance in the courts, with judges repeatedly siding with the state. Still, the DOJ shows no signs of backing down, and the rhetoric on both sides continues to escalate.
As the lawsuit moves forward, students, educators, and policymakers across Illinois—and the nation—will be watching closely. The question at the heart of the dispute is a fundamental one: Who gets access to opportunity, and who decides?
For now, the future of financial aid for undocumented students in Illinois hangs in the balance, as federal and state leaders prepare for another round in a legal and ideological tug-of-war that shows no signs of ending soon.
