602 A legal epidemiology approach to map state-level tuition equity laws across the 50 US States between 2001 to 2024

Abstract EP1.5, e-Poster Terminal 1, September 5, 2025, 13:05 - 13:40 Aims US policies are social determinants of health for immigrants. Once formed into law, their interpretation by institutions, organizations, and individuals further structure how law is implemented and accessed, shaping the social context. The existence or absence of these laws affect US Latino/a immigrant stress and mental health via the access to resources they facilitate or hinder and educational opportunities, all which can impact the life course health and wellbeing of Latino/a youth. This abstract presents the first stage of a multi-stage project mapping in-state tuition (IST) equity and financial aid (FA) laws across 50 US states. Methods Scientific legal mapping procedures were applied to build a state-level policy dataset capturing tuition equity laws in the 50 US states between 2001-2024. Six steps were used to scope; research; develop a coding scheme; collect the law; code; and conduct quality control. We conceptualized three distinct policy contexts: “Silent” states had not enacted laws; “Inclusive” states had laws conferring IST and FA access to undocumented students; and “Prohibitive” states restricted access to education. Results As of December 2024, a total of 11 states were silent; 28 states had inclusive IST laws; 13 states had inclusive IST and FA laws; 10 states had “Prohibitive” IST laws; and 5 states were “Prohibitive” of FA; 4 states prohibited access to both IST and FA to undocumented students. Conclusions The process of quantitatively mapping US state laws and policies across a 23-year period reveal a patchwork of state-laws that enable or impede access to life course opportunities for US undocumented immigrant students. Access to IST and FA, or their restriction, largely depends on state-contexts, including their legislative and political history. Quantifying the landscape of tuition equity laws for undocumented students is critical when educational access serves as a sustainable pathway to life course health and wellbeing.