By refusing to hear a challenge to the California law that allows local high school graduates–regardless of their immigration status–to pay in-state tuition at local public universities, the U.S. Supreme Court avoided wading into the fires of the immigration debate in a way that riled up anti-immigration activists. A Los Angeles Times editorial, which praised the decision, outlined how getting rid of these kinds of laws could hurt state economies.

It wouldn’t just be bad for the students themselves, who bear no responsibility for their illegal status, the public also loses when it pays for a bright student’s education through high school but then does not allow that student to become a college-educated adult capable of contributing more fully to the economy and society. [Los Angeles Times]