Courtesy of Kentucky Lantern
March 15, 2024

FRANKFORT — Despite hours of impassioned pleas by Democrats, the Republican-dominated House approved a bill that aims to end diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives at public universities and colleges in Kentucky. 

The House ultimately voted 68-18 to approve an overhauled Senate Bill 6.

Republican Rep. Killian Timoney, of Lexington, voted against the measure. The only Democrat to vote for the bill was Rep. Ashley Tackett Laferty, of Martin. 

The new version of the legislation, carried by Republican Rep. Jennifer Decker, has several provisions from her House Bill 9 which has not moved.

The version approved by the House bars universities and colleges from expending resources to support diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs or officers as well as increasing annual reporting requirements. It also bars higher education institutions from providing “differential treatment or benefits” to a student, employee or job candidate on the basis of “the individual’s religion, race, sex, color, or national origin.”

The legislation allows students and employees who allege an institution has violated the bill’s provisions to bring civil actions against the institution. The state attorney general could also bring civil actions for alleged violations of the proposed law.

“This bill would ensure the public postsecondary 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 also experienced a dramatic drop in overall enrollment of students,” Decker, of Waddy, said while introducing her bill. 

Many Democrats spoke in opposition, saying the bill would hurt marginalized communities, threaten scholarships, lead to students leaving Kentucky and prevent potential out-of-state students from choosing Kentucky universities. 

Rep. Sarah Stalker, D-Louisville, said legislation like Decker’s is being pushed across the nation by those who view DEI as “hurting white people,” though the goal really is “leveling the playing field.” 

“We have a lot of really uncomfortable truths that we have to sit with, and it’s not easy for people to feel uncomfortable,” Stalker said. “People tend to avoid it at all cost.”

She also challenged Decker’s insistence on “viewpoint neutrality” and “viewpoint diversity” in educational discussions. Engaging earnestly in debate is valuable, Stalker said, but “at the end of the day, there are just some things that are factual.” 

Rep. Keturah Herron, D-Louisville, spoke about her experiences growing up as a Black queer kid in rural Kentucky. She was called racial slurs as she played on a soccer field. She wasn’t allowed to go to one of her friend’s sleepovers because the father “did not like Black people.” 

“If we don’t learn and understand (where) people come from, there is no way that we are going to be able to lead and make our commonwealth a better place,” she said.

The revised bill now goes back to the Senate for consideration. If the Senate rejects the House’s revisions, the bill would go into a conference committee.

In a Thursday evening meeting of the House Education Committee, Decker said her version directs public institutions to give students “high quality academic instruction in an environment that is inclusive and welcoming to all.” As it stands, it would end DEI offices and programs at public universities in Kentucky.

SB 6’s primary sponsor, Senate Republican Whip Mike Wilson, of Bowling Green, did not attend that meeting. A House GOP press release about the Senate bill passing out of the committee only quoted Decker. 

Kentucky’s anti-DEI legislation follows a nationwide trend as conservatives lead rolling back such measures, particularly in higher education. Earlier this month, the University of Florida closed its DEI offices, eliminated DEI positions and administrative positions and stopped DEI contracts with outside vendors following a state board of education vote to prohibit universities from spending money on DEI programs. 

In fact, Wilson had modeled his original bill after a law passed in Tennessee that would allow students and employees to file reports against schools for allowing “divisive concepts” to be taught. After filing the bill, he said he felt like that model did not “infringe on the academic freedom of our universities or our professors.” 

Kentucky Lantern is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Kentucky Lantern maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Jamie Lucke for questions: info@kentuckylantern.com. Follow Kentucky Lantern on Facebook and Twitter.