After passing the measure last year, Assembly Democrats are again pushing for enactment of the DREAM Act, which would allow immigrant students to apply for state financial aid.

^[1]The state Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act would also create a fund to would provide private scholarships to immigrant students.

Democrats in Albany have pushed for the measure, but it hasn’t passed the Republican-led Senate. Now a bi-partisan coalition runs the Senate, so Democrats are hopeful the bill stands a better chance.

“Our immigrant families, like many struggling in these trying economic times, need financial help to achieve their educational goals,” Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, D-Manhattan, said in a statement. “As a child of immigrants, I know that investing in these inspiring students represents an investment in our future.”

The bill (A.2597 ^[2]) would make New York one of four states – including Texas, New Mexico, and California – to offer state financial aid to the children of immigrants, Silver said.

Since 2002, New York has offered in-state tuition prices to immigrant youth. The bill would use the same criteria for financial aid for immigrants for its various financial-aid programs.

The DREAM Fund would raise private money for scholarships to college-bound children with at least one immigrant parent. It would be overseen by a 12-person commission.