Education Secretary Betsy DeVos under fire for saying schools can report undocumented students

DeVos said the decision to call immigration authorities lies with communities.

"I think that is — that is a school decision," DeVos said during her testimony before the House Education and Workforce Committee after Rep. Adriano Espaillat, D-N.Y., pressed her on the issue of undocumented students. "It's a local community decision and again I refer to the fact that we have laws and we also are compassionate and I urge this body to do its job and address and clarify where there is confusion around this."

Espaillat immediately rebuked the secretary's statement, stressing that immigration policies are defined and executed by the federal government, not by communities.

"Let me just remind Madam Chair that immigration law is federal law," he said. "It's not a local law. It's not governed by a municipality."

"You cannot have immigration law for one state be different for another state and it applies to everybody across the country," he added.

This is not the first time the secretary has faced controversy.

During her tenure at the Department of Education, she has faced criticism for comments she's made on school safety, black history, and other matters.

In March, she said arming teachers "should be an option for states and communities to consider" during an interview after a visit to Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla.

In her highly contentious confirmation hearing, DeVos stirred up vehement objections to her nomination after hedging on an answer about guns and ultimately conceding that guns might be needed in schools in states like Wyoming to defend against "potential grizzlies."

During the heated exchange with Espaillat, DeVos referenced a Supreme Court decision that ruled that all children — regardless of their immigration status — are entitled to a free public education.

"This was a Supreme Court decision rendered many years ago and so there are undocumented children in K-12 education today that we support and we give education to on a daily basis."

Critics pointed to that same 1982 decision, Plyler v. Doe, as they sought to poke holes in her testimony.