# DREAM Act *A proposed United States law to grant conditional residency to qualified former minors who entered the country illegally.* The **Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors Act** (DREAM Act) is a proposal before the United States Congress. Under it, people who entered the country illegally as minors and meet set criteria would receive temporary conditional residency, including permission to work. Those who later meet additional conditions would move to permanent residency.[^1] Versions of the bill have been introduced repeatedly since 2001. Some have won majority votes in one or both chambers, but none has drawn enough votes to break filibusters by the [[Republican Party (United States)]].[^1] After Congress failed to pass the bill despite support from both parties, the Obama administration created Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA). DACA offered renewable, temporary protection to people the bill would have covered.[^1] ## Requirements Wikipedia's summary of the proposal lists these conditions for eligibility:[^1] - not be inadmissible to or deportable from the United States, or be in Temporary Protected Status; - have proof of arrival in the United States before age 16, a requirement stated in the Dream Act of 2017 (S.1615 and HR3440, Sec. 3(b)(1)(B)); - have proof of at least five consecutive years of U.S. residence; - for males born in 1960 or later, have registered with the Selective Service; - be between 12 and 35 years old when the bill is enacted; - have graduated from an American high school, obtained a GED, or been admitted to an institution of higher education; - be of good moral character. Qualifying applicants would first hold "conditional" status for six years. During that period they would have to finish a two-year community college degree, complete at least two years toward a four-year degree, or serve two years in the US military. Meeting at least one of these conditions would make them eligible to apply for permanent residence at the end of the six years.[^1] While in conditional status they could not receive federal higher education grants such as Pell grants, but they could apply for student loans and work study. Permanent residency would eventually open the path to U.S. citizenship.[^1] How many eligible people would complete the further requirements is unknown. One organization estimated that only 7,000–13,000 college students nationally could do so.[^1] ## Background The House passed one version of the bill on December 8, 2010, by a vote of 216–198. The Senate debated a version on September 21, 2010. An earlier Senate bill, S. 2205, needed 60 votes for cloture and failed 52–44 in 2007, eight votes short of ending a filibuster by opponents.[^1] Military recruitment also figured in the debate. Enlistment shortfalls were described in 2005 as a "crisis," though the 2007–2010 economic downturn eased many of them. Immigrants without a permanent resident card (green card) cannot enlist. In 2007, several senior Department of Defense officials supported offering resident status to service members as a way to boost recruitment.[^1] The bill would also repeal Section 505 of the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act (IIRIRA) of 1996, codified at 8 U.S. Code § 1623. Repeal would return to states the choice of how to determine residency for higher education benefits. Most states read Section 505 as barring students with undocumented status from some higher education benefits, including in-state tuition.[^1] Some states have passed laws intended to make unauthorized residents eligible for in-state tuition without violating the provision. In those states, some students paying out-of-state tuition have sued, claiming that state education officials violated the federal law.[^1] ## Legislative history Representative Luis Gutiérrez, a Democrat from Illinois, introduced the original version on April 25, 2001, during the 107th Congress. It was titled the *Immigrant Children's Educational Advancement and Dropout Prevention Act of 2001* (H.R. 1918) and gained 34 cosponsors.[^1] On May 21, 2001, Representative Chris Cannon, a Republican from Utah, introduced a narrower replacement, the *Student Adjustment Act of 2001*, also numbered H.R. 1918. It lowered the age limit to 21 and gained 62 cosponsors.[^1] Senator Orrin Hatch, a Republican from Utah, introduced a Senate counterpart, S. 1291, on August 1, 2001. It was the first bill to carry the short title "Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors Act" or "DREAM Act." The same source's opening section gives a different account: it says Senators Dick Durbin (D-Illinois) and Hatch first introduced S. 1291 in April 2001, and that the bill did not pass.[^1] Lawmakers later folded the bill's text into broader immigration bills, including the *Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act of 2006* (S. 2611) and the *Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act of 2007* (S. 1348). After those bills failed, Senator Richard Durbin made the DREAM Act's passage a top priority for 2007. In September 2007 he filed it as an amendment to the 2008 Department of Defense Authorization Bill, S. 2919.[^1] ## Impact ### Economic In December 2010, the Congressional Budget Office and the Joint Committee on Taxation reported on the November 30, 2010, version of the bill. They estimated it would cut federal direct deficits by about $1.4 billion over 2011–2020 and raise federal revenues by $2.3 billion over ten years. The estimate did not consider indirect federal costs, put at about 80% of the federal budget, or state and local tax effects.[^1] The same report found that the act "would increase projected deficits by more than $5 billion in at least one of the four consecutive 10-year periods starting in 2021."[^1] A Center for American Progress study estimated that the bill would create 1.4 million jobs by 2030. It attributed most of the gain to higher educational attainment, earnings and buying power among beneficiaries.[^1] Luis Miranda, the White House director of Hispanic media, supported the 2010 version. He argued that it was not an "amnesty program" because applicants would face a "lengthy and rigorous process," including a criminal background check. He also argued that it would not draw new arrivals, since it covered only students already in the country.[^1] ## DREAMers movement The DREAMers movement, made up mainly of undocumented students and youth, grew up during the push for the bill in Congress. Its activity has covered immigration, education and citizenship.[^1] A 2011 Pew Hispanic Center survey found that 96% of Latinos who were neither U.S. citizens nor legal residents supported the DREAM Act. Recorded actions include a student demonstration on May 1, 2006, and a June 5, 2012, campaign of nonviolent civil disobedience with picket lines, sit-ins and hunger strikes.[^1] On June 15, 2012, then-Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano issued the memorandum *Exercising Prosecutorial Discretion with Respect to Individuals Who Came to the United States as Children*, which created DACA. Congress did not authorize the program. It let certain people who arrived as juveniles and met several criteria, including having no current lawful immigration status, request deferred action for two renewable years, along with eligibility for work authorization.[^1] In December 2017, California Senator Kamala Harris expressed support for the DREAM Act.[^1] ## In the Minnesota record The project's validated master record lists an entry under "FA-6 Tuition" with docket number 0:25-cv-02668. The entry is labeled "Dream Act / Dayton 2013 Walz" and gives a filing date of June 25, 2025.[^2] The entry does not give the court, the parties or the claims. It also does not show whether the matter concerns the federal proposal described above or a state measure with the same name, so it is not described further here. ## Notes [^1]: Wikipedia contributors, *DREAM Act* (revision 1366889093, retrieved 2026-10-26) — the bill's provisions, requirements, votes, legislative history, budget and jobs estimates, DREAMers movement and DACA background. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DREAM_Act [^2]: *How Minnesota Got Here* (merged master, footnoted), validated passage — index entry "FA-6 Tuition 0:25-cv-02668 Dream Act / Dayton 2013 Walz (filed 06/25/25) North Star." No URL is carried in the pack.