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While Republican leaders in Colorado have voiced vocal opposition in recent years to providing in-state tuition to illegal immigrants, a handful of leading conservatives are now coming out in support of a legislative effort proposed by Democrats to allow Coloradans in-state tuition at the state's public colleges and universities regardless of immigration status.

"Republican businessmen understand the need for immigration reform," said Sen. Chris Romer, D-Denver, who is sponsoring Senate Bill 170, which would specifically require that a person, "regardless of immigration status, who attends a Colorado high school for at least three years and enrolls in a Colorado institute of higher education within five years after either graduating from a Colorado high school or earning a GED shall be charged the same tuition rate and shall be eligible for tuition assistance under the same criteria as a person who establishes domicile in Colorado.