Norton Thanks D.C. for Clarifying Student Eligibility for DCTAG

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) thanked District of Columbia Mayor Muriel Bowser and the Office of the State Superintendent of Education (OSSE), which administers the D.C. Tuition Assistance Grant Program (DCTAG), a federal program Norton created, for announcing today that the city intends to clarify that students 18 years of age or older may participate in DCTAG, regardless of their parents' immigration status, and that parents with Temporary Protected Status (TPS) may establish domicile.

"DCTAG, a program we created and got the support of a Republican Congress, is the most successful education and workforce training program in the District of Columbia," Norton said. "I am pleased that the D.C. government is working to ensure DCTAG applies to D.C. residents 18 years or older who are U.S. citizens, permanent residents, or lawfully in the U.S. with the intent to become such, regardless of their parents' immigration status. Good jobs in this knowledge-oriented region virtually depend on some post-high school education of the kind DCTAG provides. The more young D.C. residents who get higher education and pay taxes, the better all of us are."

The federal law that created DCTAG requires students to be a U.S. citizen, permanent resident, or lawfully in the U.S. with the intent to become such, and be domiciled in the District. Under OSSE's prior guidance, students under the age of 24 who were dependents had to establish domicile through their parents. However, under federal case law, a minor generally cannot establish domicile, which includes both physical presence and the intent to remain, nor it appears can undocumented residents. As a result, under the prior guidance, students under the age of 24 who were dependents and whose parents were undocumented were not able to establish domicile and therefore could not participate in DCTAG.