WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, Congresswoman Young Kim (CA-40) introduced the Stop DEI Act to ensure that institutions of higher education receiving federal funding comply with U.S. civil rights laws and uphold equal treatment for all students.
Over the past several decades, voters and courts have consistently affirmed that identity-based preferences have no place in public education, from California’s Proposition 209 to the Supreme Court’s decision requiring that students be evaluated as individuals under the law. At the same time, emerging state-level efforts, including California’s ACA 7, seek to reintroduce consideration of race, sex, ethnicity, color, and national origin through new statutory frameworks.
The Stop DEI Act reinforces existing federal civil rights protections by ensuring that institutions receiving federal funds do not engage in practices that violate those laws. This legislation ensures taxpayer dollars are not used to support discriminatory practices and reinforces the simple principle that students should be treated as individuals, not sorted by race.
“As one of the first Korean American women to serve in Congress, I can tell you firsthand: no one wants to be reduced to a DEI checkbox. I am so much more than that, and our children are so much more than that,” said Rep. Kim. “That’s why I’m introducing the Stop DEI Act to ensure these far-left policies don’t continue unchecked. Equal opportunity is as American as it gets. I will keep fighting to protect it and ensure taxpayer dollars never discriminate against our students.”
“Students should be evaluated based on merit and true financial need, not immutable characteristics like race, gender, or ethnicity. Discriminatory DEI policies are not just fundamentally unfair and inconsistent with our country’s founding principles, but they also rob future generations of American success. I applaud Representative Kim’s leadership in preventing taxpayer dollars from being used to advance DEI in admission and student aid decisions,” said Rep. Donalds.
“DEI has no place in American colleges and universities,” said Congressman Burchett. “I’m proud to have partnered with Rep. Young Kim on this legislation to ensure no student is selected over another solely based on DEI-related criteria,” said Rep. Burchett.
Read bill text HERE.
