Republican Vice Presidential candidate Sen. J.D. Vance (R-Ohio) has introduced legislation—the “Dismantle DEI Act” (S. 4516)—that would affect corporate Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) practices.
S. 4516 would amend the 1964 Civil Rights Act by adding a definition of “prohibited diversity, equity, or inclusion practice.” The bill would add “ethnicity” to the Civil Rights Act’s list of protected bases and would add “biological” as a modifier of “sex” to ban discrimination based on “biological sex.”
S. 4516 also would rescind numerous Biden Administration pro-DEI initiatives. Furthermore, it would prohibit mandatory employee training asserting that a particular race or ethnicity is superior or inferior, oppressive or oppressed, or privileged or unprivileged. Significantly, the bill would allow any person alleging a violation of the Dismantle DEI Act to sue in federal district court.
The Dismantle DEI Act has zero chance of being enacted this year. However, based on its sponsor’s prominence, it could get serious consideration in the next Congress, depending on the results of this fall’s elections.
Members of the Center for Workplace Compliance (CWC), our affiliated nonprofit membership association, can read more here.