Sponsor
Julia Letlow
Representative · R-LA
Representative · R-LA
The bill protects federal employees from being compelled to take or pay for certain DEI trainings and restricts federal spending on trainings it defines as asserting systemic oppression, but at the cost of limiting agencies' ability to address systemic discrimination, maintain workforce diversity, and provide equity-focused training — which could chill workplace discussion and increase long‑term legal or management costs.
Federal employees and job applicants will not be required to take, pay for, or sign DEI training/statements as a condition of hiring or continued employment, protecting employees from compelled ideology.
Taxpayers will not have federal funds spent on DEI trainings that the bill defines as asserting inherent/systemic superiority or oppression, potentially reducing government spending on those specific programs.
Federal employees will retain existing sexual-harassment prevention practices, preserving employer obligations to prevent harassment and related workplace safety protections.
Racial and ethnic minority federal employees and other employees of color may receive fewer anti-bias and inclusion trainings that address systemic racism or structural discrimination, reducing workplace efforts to identify and remedy discriminatory practices.
Federal agencies may lose tools to recruit, retain, and support underrepresented groups in the civil service, potentially harming workplace diversity and representation over time.
Federal employees may face a chilling effect on permissible discussions and professional development about workplace equity because the bill's broad DEI definition could be read to bar many equity-related topics.
Based on analysis of 2 sections of legislative text.
Bars use of Federal funds to require or fund DEI hiring practices or DEI-related training in the federal civil service, with a narrow exemption for sexual-harassment prevention.
Official title: To prohibit diversity, equity, and inclusion in Federal hiring and employment, and for other purposes.
Introduced April 20, 2026 by Julia Letlow · Last progress April 20, 2026
Prohibits the use of federal funds to require or pay for diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) hiring mandates or DEI-related training for federal civil service employees. The bill bans conditioning appointment or continued employment on endorsing DEI statements and forbids developing, purchasing, or delivering training that advances specified ideas about systemic racism, inherent group superiority/inferiority, intersectionality, or related critical theories, while preserving routine sexual-harassment prevention practices.