TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – A new bill that would prevent Florida colleges and universities from spending any state or federal funding on diversity, equity and inclusion programs is headed to the governor’s desk for his signature, but not before lawmakers had a heated debate about the impact of the new legislation.
The Republican-controlled House voted 81-34 along party lines to pass the bill, which the Senate approved 27-12 last week, and Gov. Ron DeSantis is expected to sign the bill into law.
The state’s Legislative session, scheduled to end this week, has been dominated by divisive cultural issues, with Republican allies of DeSantis approving his priority bills on sexual orientation, gender identity, race and education that are expected to aid the governor in his presidential bid, which he is expected to announce in the coming weeks.
Senate Bill 266 also changes the way in which faculty members are hired and gives more power to the presidents of the universities.
Supporters say the bill will lead to more accountability, but critics say it will ultimately hurt Florida’s colleges.
“We don’t see the data that DEI is ruining our schools. We actually see the opposite of it,” Rep. Ashley Gantt, D-Miami, said. “It’s actually encouraging robust conversations and viewpoints, and that’s what college is all about.”
In a fierce debate on the House Floor, lawmakers went back and forth on how the bill will change Florida’s higher education system. DEI initiatives have come under increasing criticism from Republicans who argue the programs are racially divisive.
Republican lawmakers in at least a dozen states have proposed more than 30 bills this year targeting diversity, equity and inclusion efforts in higher education, an Associated Press analysis found using the bill-tracking software Plural.
“They want rote belief in the same thing. They say they want inclusion, but they don’t unless you believe what they believe," said Rep. Randy Fine, a Republican. “These programs are being used all over the country. Imagine how great our universities will be when we are the only ones who are not.”
Fine said the terms Diversity, Equity and Inclusion have been weaponized.
“Diversity, equity and inclusion -- like so many other things terms adopted by the ‘woke’ left, has been used as a club to silence things, to say that if you don’t agree with them you are somehow racist, homophobic or whatever other word that you want to use to criticize people,” Fine said. “The fact of the word is that the word has been hijacked.”
Bill critics said diversity, equity and inclusion efforts are important and that the legislation will drive away top faculty members and students.
“This attack on higher education is hurting Florida’s brand,” House Minority Leader Fentrice Driskell, D-Tampa, said. “We have a very good higher-education system with lower costs than many other states. But these radical changes risk throwing our colleges and universities into chaos.”
In the statehouse, Democrats, who have no power to stop the Republican legislation, have increasingly begun to vent over the rightward shift in policy emanating from the GOP.
“The message that resonates from this chamber over the last few years is one of hate and exclusion and punishment,” said Democratic Sen. Jason Pizzo. “There is very little grace and very little compassion.”
The bill that passed Wednesday includes a series of higher-education changes. For instance, it would require the State Board of Education and state university system’s Board of Governors to appoint faculty committees that would review general-education core courses. Those reviews could lead to the “removal, alignment, realignment, or addition” of courses based on various criteria in the bill.
News4JAX checked with local colleges and universities to find out what they’ll do with their DEI programs once the governor signs the bill.
A spokesperson for Florida State College at Jacksonville said their DEI said a human resources employee who was in charge of all DEI initiatives has been reassigned as the Chief Officer of Organizational Culture and Engagement.
At the University of North Florida, the Office of Diversity and Inclusion has 17 staff members. A spokesperson said the university is reviewing the language of the recently passed legislation to determine the impacts on the campus community.
Flagler College and Jacksonville University are both private and are not affected by this new legislation.
News4JAX also reached out to St. Johns River State College, which operates campuses in Clay, St. Johns, and Putnam counties. We have not yet heard back.
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Associated Press writer Curt Anderson in St. Petersburg, Florida, contributed to this report.