I 
116TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 3391 
To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to provide for in-State tuition 
rates for refugees and asylees. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JUNE 20, 2019 
Mr. HUFFMAN (for himself, Mr. VARGAS, Ms. NORTON, Mr. JOHNSON of 
Georgia, Mr. BLUMENAUER, Mr. WELCH, Mr. PETERS, Mr. PALLONE, 
Mr. HASTINGS, Ms. JACKSON LEE, Mr. THOMPSON of California, Mrs. 
NAPOLITANO, Ms. SA´NCHEZ, Ms. OMAR, Ms. MATSUI, Mr. COHEN, Mr. 
MOULTON, Ms. SPEIER, Ms. BROWNLEY of California, Mr. RASKIN, Ms. 
SCHAKOWSKY, Ms. CASTOR of Florida, Mr. MCGOVERN, Mr. SCHIFF, Mr. 
GALLEGO, Ms. GABBARD, Mr. CARSON of Indiana, Mr. POCAN, Mr. 
VEASEY, Mr. LANGEVIN, and Ms. ESHOO) introduced the following bill; 
which was referred to the Committee on Education and Labor 
A BILL 
To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to provide 
for in-State tuition rates for refugees and asylees. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘To Offer Refugees Col-
lege Help (TORCH) Act’’. 
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SEC. 2. IN-STATE TUITION RATES FOR REFUGEES, ASYLEES, 
AND CERTAIN SPECIAL IMMIGRANTS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Higher Education Act of 
1965 is amended by inserting after section 135 (20 U.S.C. 
1015d) the following: 
‘‘SEC. 135A. IN-STATE TUITION RATES FOR REFUGEES, 
ASYLEES, 
AND 
CERTAIN 
SPECIAL 
IMMI-
GRANTS. 
‘‘(a) REQUIREMENT.—In the case of an alien de-
scribed in subsection (b) whose domicile is in a State that 
receives assistance under this Act, such State shall not 
charge such alien tuition for attendance at a public insti-
tution of higher education in the State at a rate that is 
greater than the rate charged for residents of the State. 
‘‘(b) ALIENS DESCRIBED.—An alien is described in 
this subsection if the alien was granted— 
‘‘(1) refugee status and admitted to the United 
States under section 207 of the Immigration and 
Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1157); 
‘‘(2) asylum under section 208 of such Act (8 
U.S.C. 1158); or 
‘‘(3) special immigrant status under section 
101(a)(27) of such Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(27)) pur-
suant to— 
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‘‘(A) section 1244 of the National Defense 
Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2008 (8 
U.S.C. 1157 note); 
‘‘(B) section 1059 of the National Defense 
Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2006 (8 
U.S.C. 1101 note); or 
‘‘(C) section 602 of the Afghan Allies Pro-
tection Act of 2009 (8 U.S.C. 1101 note). 
‘‘(c) LIMITATIONS.—The requirement under sub-
section (a) shall apply with respect to an alien only until 
the alien has established residency in the State, and only 
with respect to the first State in which the alien was first 
domiciled after being admitted into the United States as 
a refugee or special immigrant or being granted asylum. 
‘‘(d) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section shall take ef-
fect at each public institution of higher education in a 
State that receives assistance under this Act for the first 
period of enrollment at such institution that begins after 
July 1, 2019.’’. 
(b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The table of con-
tents for the Higher Education Act of 1965 is amended 
by inserting after the item relating to section 135 the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘Sec. 135A. In-State tuition rates for refugees, asylees, and certain special im-
migrants.’’. 
Æ 
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