Kentucky became the latest state to defund its diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives at state-funded universities.
In a 68-18 vote, the Kentucky House passed House Bill 6 on Friday, which would, if it passes in the Senate, prohibit race-based and sex-based scholarships, DEI offices, and DEI training as a program requirement at the state’s public colleges.
The bill, introduced by Rep. Jennifer Decker (R-Waddy), is an overhauled version of Senate Bill 6. The revised legislation would put an end to the “failed, expensive, and discriminatory DEI initiatives” at public, post-secondary schools in the state, according to the congresswoman.
“This bill would ensure that the post-public secondary system in Kentucky is held accountable to dismantle the misguided DEI bureaucracies that have cost Kentucky taxpayers an unknown amount, but at least, tens, if not thousands, hundreds of thousands, millions of dollars over the past 13 years, a time period in which our campuses have experienced a dramatic drop of overall enrollment of students,” Ms. Decker said.
In a statement to NTD News, Michael Frazier, Executive Director of the Kentucky Student Rights Coalition, applauded the updated bill.
“In working with Rep. Decker, the Kentucky Student Rights Coalition spoke in favor of the revised legislation due to the input of Kentucky’s most diverse students,” Mr. Frazier wrote.
“Resource rooms and student centers provide essential community space to diverse groups, which are exempt from the bill due to the input from students. However, DEI offices can act as a veneer, sterilizing the concerns of students for the benefit of their institutions.”
At the request of Ms. Decker, the state’s Attorney General Russell Coleman handed down an opinion on DEI. In the opinion published last week, he said the Council on Postsecondary Education must no longer define “underrepresented minority” in race-exclusive terms.
“Equality will not arise out of inequality. Kentucky public postsecondary institutions will not achieve equality by being forced to treat students of different races differently,” the attorney general wrote.
According to data published by Plural Policy, legislators in 36 states considered 146 bills that proposed changes to DEI policy in 2023 alone. Eighty of the bills sought to expand the use of DEI policies. On the other hand, 66 bills proposed to limit or entirely scrap DEI in certain settings.
Similar Move in Florida
Efforts to limit DEI in Kentucky followed a similar move in Florida. The University of Florida just announced it is eliminating its chief diversity officer position and the program’s staff jobs in response to a new state law that blocks public colleges from applying federal or state funding to diversity programs.
When signing that bill into law last year, Gov. Ron Desantis, a Republican, said DEI should instead stand for “discrimination, exclusion, and indoctrination” and has no place in public institutions.
NAACP President and CEO Derrick Johnson called for black student-athletes to reconsider their decisions to attend public colleges and universities in Florida.
Mr. Johnson said in a statement that Florida’s “anti-black” policies are a direct threat to the advancement of young people and their ability to compete in a global economy. He also urged athletes to “take their talents elsewhere,” if institutions are unable to invest in them.
Kentucky’s House Bill 6 now goes back to the Senate for consideration. In the next few weeks, the Senate will decide whether to accept the House’s new version of the bill. If it passes in the Senate, state-funded universities will have until June 30 to comply.
