The House overwhelmingly approved a measure extending in-state tuition rates to some undocumented students, sending the charged legislation to the Senate, where it faces a less certain fate.
The House passed the bill (HB 851), a top priority of House Speaker Will Weatherford, with an 81-33 vote Thursday evening. Weatherford, R-Wesley Chapel, lost nearly half his caucus on the vote and had to rely on Democrats to help push it through. The measure allows undocumented immigrants to pay cheaper, in-state tuition rates if they attend Florida middle and high schools for at least four straight years before going to college.
