Student lived in state for years — but can’t get resident tuition rate
October 13, 2009 by Taylor HanniganPosted in: From the Courts, In this week's e-newsletter, Latest News & Views
What’s it take for a student to prove she should pay the in-state tuition rate? A Florida student found out the hard way.
After graduating from a Michigan high school in 2004, Emily Hallendy went to Florida and enrolled at Palm Beach Community College.
Hallendy transferred to Florida Atlantic University (FAU) in 2007, and after completing a year of studies there she got her Florida driver’s license and executed a declaration of domicile. A month later, she asked FAU to reclassify her as a Florida resident for tuition purposes.
FAU denied the request, saying the evidence showed Hallendy was in Florida incident to her enrollment at school and not as a permanent resident. That meant she wasn’t entitled to the in-state tuition rate, the school said.
A state court upheld the school’s decision, finding Hallendy didn’t do enough to prove she was in Florida permanently.
Cite: Hallendy v. Florida Atlantic University.
What do you think should be the test for getting an in-state tuition rate? Let us know in the comments section below.
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Tags: Florida Atlantic University, Palm Beach Community College, tuition
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October 14th, 2009 at 10:47 am
The decision is logical in one respect: If an out-of-state student wanted a degree from a college, he or she would be eligible for in-state status after a year or so, whereas the student really is going “home” after the degree is awarded.
On the other hand, earlier awarding of in-state status could be given because students often like to live and work in states where they went to college.
To achieve in-state status, a student may need to move into the state and THEN apply to enter a school . . . or a student may need to skip a term or a year, work in the state, and then apply for in-state status.
October 14th, 2009 at 12:34 pm
In Texas, they would generally need to be in in-state for a year AND not going to school to gain residency. Living in the state for a few years while you go to school does not really make you a resident.
October 14th, 2009 at 1:12 pm
Although many students do go back to their “home” state after graduation, the facts present a compelling argument for her residence to be viewed as Florida, to wit:
1) She obtained a Florida driver’s license
2) She “executed a declaration of domicile” for the state of Florida
3) She has lived in Florida since 2004
These details provide persuasive evidence that she intends to stay in the state. Many institutions only require a reasonable one-year residency prior to being granted in-state recognition, regardless of whether ‘the evidence is incident to the student’s enrollment at school and not as a permanent resident’.
My question would be whether there is an element of discrimination. Would a student who happens to be a close friend of the person or committee who made the above decision be denied under the exact same circumstances? Not likely.
October 14th, 2009 at 2:23 pm
As a doctoral student at one of the FL universities back in the early 1970s all that I had to do was to establish a residence, obtain drivers license and then become a REGISTERED VOTER in FL.
Unless the state laws have changed, committed individuals should explore viability of becoming a registered voter and then apply for in-state tuition.
October 14th, 2009 at 3:04 pm
One key element was not provided – was Emily claimed on her parents’ federal income tax for the academic semesters involved? New York State’s SUNY system generally considers that the parent/guardian residence is the student’s domicile, particularly if the student is claimed as a dependent. This makes sense – the funding for providing lower tuition rates to state residents is generated by property taxes. Students living out of their home state for educational purposes generally do not own property. Some of them may pay real property taxes indirectly through rent on off campus housing, but many make no contribution to the tax revenues that support the college or university.
October 14th, 2009 at 5:50 pm
Emily probably would have had an easier to prove case if she had been paying state income tax. Unfortunately for her, Florida does not have an income tax.
I had the same problem in reverse. I left Florida at the age of 17 to attend a private college in Indiana. After marrying and living in Indiana for about twenty years, I decided to further my education at a state school. To my amazement, they turned me down for in-state tuition. The reason given was that my parents had a Florida address. No matter that I hadn’t been a dependant, or lived in Florida, for two decades. After considerable argument, I won the day by showing them my children’s birth certificates, which I happened to have in my purse. As I pointed out, it was very unlikely that I was really a Florida resident who just likes to have her babies delivered in Indiana. If that hadn’t worked, I would have had to return with copies of my state income taxes.
In Emily’s case, she apparently moved to Florida to attend college. If they allowed her to pay in-state rates, then every out-of-state student would be eligible for in-state rates after their first year or two of college, as long as they declared residency. In my case, however, I think when a student is in their 40s (and married), it is ridiculous to base anything on a parent’s address.
October 14th, 2009 at 7:45 pm
I live in Florida. I believe it’s fairly common knowledge that you need to declare domicile when you move into the state. It’s a free, 15 minute trip to the county clerk. Top it off with an state ID (or drivers license) and you’ll have no problems.
Many students keep their home state info so they may remain on their parents’ car and health insurance. If that’s the case, they’re really not in-state students.
Btw-I’m not judging. I moved into Florida for grad school and had to deal with all these issues.
October 16th, 2009 at 12:01 pm
I had to face a similar issue. I went to high school in Georgia and then came to Florida State for College. As an undergraduate I paid out-of-state tuition, but once I entered graduate school there was no way I wanted to pay triple what I paid as an undergrad. So, I got my Florida drivers license, changed my voter registration, got the declaration of domicile, and showed proof of having worked in the state of florida for over a year. The person in administration said the only thing that got me the in-state waiver was the proof of employment. Without it I would have encountered the same situation as the student in this article. I think this is something universities nationwide need to evaluate. I never understood the in-state/out-of-state distinction. Both people are getting the same education and services so why should one have to pay more? It’s a ridiculous concept in my opinion because of how much school costs and how much loan money the average student now takes out.
October 21st, 2009 at 2:11 pm
Interesting. I think I side with FAU for this situation. To prove intent to stay you should be employed in the state, a registered voter, declare domicile or purchase land, home, condo, etc… in the state. I think for a state institution there is nothing wrong with having an in-state/out-of-state distinction. To maintain a meaningful distinction it should be incumbent on the person petitioning for in-state status to really prove they have cut ties with the purse strings of their parents in the different state. It does not need to be clear they are going to stay forever but that they are at the present time working (self supporting) or real property owners independent of a parent somewhere else. I think it is basically unfair for students from out of state who have no financial ties to their parents (and are not declared dependents for tax purposes) who work and live in the state to get charged out-of-state tuition however. Basically, in that situation they are self supporting adults who work where they are going to school and really have “moved” to the state where the school is located even if they may move again after school, after all in-state students can move wherever they want after finishing, right?
October 22nd, 2009 at 10:53 am
Assuming she was out-of-state at PBCC, and that she never worked in Florida year-round, I would side with FAU as well. She could have easily gotten her proof while she was in school so that when the time came, she would be able to prove her residency. By the way, the state has changed the rules, significantly, and students under the age of 24 have to go under their parents’ state of residence unless they are living independently, and can show that Florida is their domicile.
The reason there is a distinction between in-state and out-of-state is because there has been an influx of individuals moving to Florida to take advantage of the cheap tuition. Once they get here, they realize it isn’t that easy. Residents of Florida should get a cost advantage over individuals who attempt to do that.
February 8th, 2010 at 1:02 pm
When I did this I was 1) not on my parent’s taxes, 2) worked and paid income tax in state for a year while not in school, 3) driver’s license, 4) registered voter.
Just being there a year doesn’t cut it.
February 8th, 2010 at 1:21 pm
This smells rotten….if a student is living in a state and paying taxes, after a year they should be considered a resident;othewise, it just sounds like the school is only interested in the money and really has no concern for the students……there has to be a path for students to gain residency if they want to, and odds are if the student does live there while going to school, they are most likely to end up staying there because the logistics are that people have a tendency to stay where they are….
February 8th, 2010 at 1:57 pm
Many of the replies here don’t address a key factor of most state, including FL’s, policies and that is INTENT. In this case, the student attended college in FL for approxmately 4 years before attempting to acquire the documentation that many states require to approve in-state residency.
February 8th, 2010 at 3:44 pm
Charging out-of-state students hefty tuition and fees is short-sighted on the part of state governments. Most students choose to attend college in another state because they think they want to live there and many, although not all, will remain in that state after their education is complete. States should be competing for the best and brightest students from other states by offering reduced tuition, not by charging them more.
February 8th, 2010 at 4:07 pm
A lot of states are pushing bills to give free college education to illegal immigrants (politically correct term is “undocumented immigrants”). In fact, New York State is already doing this or similar to this at the City University of New York (CUNY). There seems to be a disconnect here.
February 8th, 2010 at 4:21 pm
A different angle: The main reason residency matters is usually felt to be because state taxpayers contribute significantly to the cost of educating students. I can’t speak to FL, but I know that as a “state university,” our own annual state funding is now only about 30% of the cost of educating a student. I know many states are following similar courses. If that trend continues, residency may become irrelevant before the way to determine it can be defined fairly.
April 17th, 2010 at 9:56 pm
Real ID law should be Federal ID Fallacy
June 16th, 2010 at 7:52 pm
My daughter has her heart set on attending Colorado State University. I understand an increase of her (my) money going to the state of Colorado as opposed to the amounts that would be saved if she stayed in Texas. But the HUGE difference is what I truly do not understand. After all, it is the same classroom, the same professor, etc. Chances are she will purchase practically everything she needs in Colorado thereby paying state taxes anyway. I don’t feel it should be a liability to the student because they have parents who are paying property taxes in a different state. I feel more could be done to truly help students in this area – education is far too expensive!
July 12th, 2010 at 7:14 pm
The big Catch 22 is that you have already attended that college in that state for one year, (thinking that you will apply for residency the next year) taking out student loans. Then you find out only AFTER you moved there, that you have to have worked for one year prior to “initial enrollment” because they keep changing the laws. You are told by the residency coordinator that they encourage students to drop out for one year. The Catch 22 is that you have to pay on that student loan after 6 months once you drop out for that one year, and how can you get a job that will pay enough to pay on the loan without the degree? Therefore the college has you trapped with no choice but to keep going to school and take on more loans. I think one of the biggest problems with the economy is allowing education officials to keep changing their laws. They determine their tuition rates only AFTER they see what their enrollment is….it’s simply not FAIR to TRAP the consumer who is trying to get an education due to the bad economy. It is a vicious cycle.
July 13th, 2010 at 1:29 pm
How often do the Residency rules change? In CA, ours have been the same for quite a while, so I don’t consider it a Catch 22. It is unfair if some rules are changing every year. Is there an appeals process?
July 13th, 2010 at 1:40 pm
The reason that states charge out-of-state tuition is that education at state colleges and universities is subsidized by state-based taxes. To understand that subsidy, you need only compare the cost to attend a public college and a private one in the same state.
However, since most of that subsidy comes from resident taxpayers, there should be some component of that in criteria for determining who and when someone is eligible for in-state tuition. In California, most undergraduates (or students under 24) are ineligible for in-state tuition through most of their career. Graduate students can usually qualify after only a year in residence.
September 26th, 2010 at 10:02 am
I lived in Florida until i was 12, but i am bout to graduate in the state of Tennessee. Though born in Ohio, i still consider myself being from Florida. I have wanted to go to Florida State since i was in maybe 2nd grade, kinda a life long aspiration thing. But i know living in Tennessee I have to pay 17,000 more then i would if I still lived there. I am planning on staying there the rest of my lide, but i dont think any of that matters.God i hate Out of State tuition.
January 12th, 2011 at 4:41 pm
I was in a similar situation, and I’m still pretty livid over it. I spent 5 years as an out-of-state student in NC. My sophmore year I began working 35 hours a week paying state taxes, volunteered at a community center, got my car registered and insured in NC, got a NC driver’s license, registered and voted in NC, and moved into an apartment. I recieved NO financial assistance from my parents but they claimed me as a dependant. I applied for in-state tuition 4 times, got denied 4 times, and appealed 4 times. They claimed I hadn’t proven that I intended to live in NC permanently. I consulted a residency lawyer who stated there was nothing I could do except tell the alumni association to “****** themselves” when they asked for money (that was his professional opinion.
It’s now 5 years after I graduated, I STILL live in NC and have no intention of moving. I am saddled with $70,000 in debt that does not allow me to buy a home or save much. I realize I made the decision to go out-of-state, but for me in-state tuition in MA at the time was only $2,000 less a year. I feel that if this college had no intention of granting me in-state tuition, why list out all the things I needed to do, and then deny me anyway when I did them? Something needs to be done about this entire situation.
March 15th, 2011 at 10:40 am
I have a granddaughter that i raised. she graduated from a California High school in 2007l. moved to Georgia with her grandfather and me. we carry her on our taxes.complete and total support her, given this economy she can’t find a job,She does has a Georgia driving license Her own car that was bought and register in her name here in Georgia, a registered voter. Because she was never adopted by us. she can not get instate tuition. I think the law stinks. for all people that are born citizen of the united state. I don’t think the law will ever change” if we as citizens parent, grandparents and students should try to do something about it.It maybe to late for us, but we should at least try to make a different for others.
October 13th, 2011 at 2:51 pm
I was wondering if anyone to speak to if you bought a house for the student in the town of the college where all their mail went and taxes were paid and then after a year do you think you could be a resident.
February 2nd, 2012 at 10:37 pm
I think the whole thing is very crazy. Since when does a govermjent get to decide if you are going to stay in a state after you go to school. I got my education in Iowa and moved away as soon as i graduated! What the heck does that have to do with residency. Next they will be saying we cant use a public hospital because i might move? where whould that logic get any one!!!! My husband recently applied for school in florida and they will not classify his as a resident because he does not have a florida drivers licenses. but we have lived here for 4 years had a child here. what the heck?