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Published on January 15, 2025
Oklahoma Superintendent Sues DHS, ICE Leaders for $474M Over Costs Imposed by Immigration PolicySource: Wikipedia/United States House Committee on Education and the Workforce, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Oklahoma State Superintendent Ryan Walters is taking a stand against what he deems are the Biden Administration's failed immigration policies by filing a $474 million lawsuit. The legal action, announced just yesterday, targets Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas and US Immigration and Customs Enforcement Deputy Director Peter Flores. Walters aims to recoup what he claims are the exorbitant costs incurred by Oklahoma's education system due to the federal government's alleged mismanagement of the US border, according to the Oklahoma State Department of Education.

According to a press release posted on the Oklahoma State Department of Education's website, Walters asserts that Oklahomans are unfairly shouldering the financial burden brought about by an uptick in non-citizen student enrollments. This, he suggests, directly follows from President Biden's border policies, which he blames for essentially turning the Southwest Border into a paper-thin barrier too easily breached. Efforts to reach out and fully resolve to address the financial strain on public schools appear to have been sidestepped, leaving local taxpayers to pick up the slack.

The lawsuit outlines a series of grievances, including the additional costs Oklahoma taxpayers have absorbed and the diversion of educational resources that, as Walters puts it, "should benefit Oklahoma children" but are instead redirected to cope with the fallout from what he labels as federal failures. In the words of Superintendent Walters from the Oklahoma State Department of Education press release, "Their negligence has been a sad and harmful trademark of the Biden administration and has sent shockwaves across our communities, overburdening schools with unfunded mandates and diverting resources from Oklahoma children."

Walters isn't mincing words in his accusation that the Biden Administration failed in its constitutional duty to protect the nation's borders and consequently to maintain national security. The legal challenge goes as far to suggest that this neglect has left states like Oklahoma to fend for themselves amidst a tumultuous immigration situation. “While President Biden has neglected his responsibility to protect our borders for four years, hardworking Oklahomans are forced to cover the costs of his dereliction of duty,” Walters stated emphatically in the release. He vows to continue the fight for Oklahoma students and taxpayers, stressing the importance of accountability and comprehensive education for the children of Oklahoma, as stated by the Oklahoma State Department of Education.

As this legal battle commences, it represents a significant move to defend the interests of Oklahoma public schools and the future well-being of students therein. The superintendent's action underlines a sharp sentiment of dissatisfaction with federal immigration policy management, or as he perceives, the lack thereof. Oklahoma's education system now finds itself at the heart of a broader debate on immigration policy and its multifaceted impacts on local communities.