For the fourth straight budget, Gov. Jim Doyle has included a provision that would allow illegal immigrants who graduate from Wisconsin high schools to pay in-state tuition at University of Wisconsin institutions.

The state Legislature has stripped the item out of each budget in the past, but with a Democratic majority in both houses, advocates are hopeful it will be successful this time.

But even some Democrats say the measure faces serious problems, including the potential to conflict with a 1996 federal law. That law prohibits states from providing any higher education benefit based on residency to illegal immigrants unless they provide the same benefit to other U.S. citizens, regardless of where they live.

That could mean a student from, for instance, Montana, would pay in-state tuition at UW-Madison, said Rep. Kim Hixson, D-Whitewater, chairman of the committee on colleges and universities.

“We can’t go against what is federal law,” Hixson said. “We certainly could not afford to let anyone in the U.S. outside of Wisconsin ... come to school here (and pay in-state tuition). I think as long as that’s out there, we just have to do what federal law says.”

That issue is pending in a court case in California, one of 10 states that permit certain illegal immigrants to receive in-state tuition, according to the National Immigration Law Center. No state’s law has been overturned.

Linton Joaquin, an NILC attorney, said he thinks language in the legislation should render the problem moot, because students must be graduates of a Wisconsin high school to be eligible.

In addition, the bill requires the student to:

• Live in Wisconsin for three years prior to high school graduation;

• Enroll at a UW System institution and provide an affidavit stating he or she will file an application for permanent residency as soon as he or she is able to do so.

The bill also allows such students to pay resident tuition at technical colleges.

Rep. Mark Gottlieb, R-Port Washington, who sits on the colleges and universities committee, said he thinks it would be better to debate the issue when there is more clarity in the federal law. The federal Dream Act, which would provide a path to citizenship for immigrants who go to college or the military, has stalled in the past but is expected to be reintroduced in Congress.

He added it would be difficult to justify to his constituents subsidizing the tuition of students not legally in this country.

“With the economic stress that the university is under right now, this is one of a number of provisions we probably can’t afford right now,” he said.

The question of whether illegal immigrants should pay in-state tuition in Wisconsin has prompted strong feelings. In 2007, Jesus Salas resigned from the UW Board of Regents over the issue and others relating to the treatment of immigrants.

The difference in tuition is substantial. At UW-Madison, an out-of-state student pays $21,820 in tuition and fees per year, compared to $7,570 for an in-state student.

It is not clear how many people would be affected by the change because there are no estimates of the numbers of undocumented students in Wisconsin schools, said Salvadore Carranza, president of Latinos United for Change and Advancement.

Carranza said if the state wants more Wisconsin residents to graduate from college — which is the mission of the UW System’s Growth Agenda — then it should make a college degree accessible for all Wisconsin youth.

“A lot of these kids have made enormous efforts academically and have been admitted to universities on their own merit,” Carranza said. “Once they get here, they realize they are going to have to pay $20,000 a year. They cannot continue and have to drop out and find other options.”

Carranza has helped four UW-Madison students apply for resident status. While their applications are pending, they can pay in-state tuition, but they don’t get any aid from the state or federal government.

This carries a big risk. If one of the students is denied residency, Carranza said, he or she might not only chance an education, but also deportation.