Local governments in the Sunshine State will be forbidden from devoting dollars to diversity, equity and inclusion.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Gov. Ron DeSantis signed Senate Bill 1134<\/a> Wednesday in Jacksonville. The bill, which prohibits DEI spending by local governments, will go into effect in January 2027.<\/p>\n The law defines diversity, equity and inclusion as any \u201ceffort to manipulate or influence the composition of employees with reference to race, color, sex, ethnicity, gender identity, or sexual orientation,\u201d other than to comply with state and federal anti-discrimination laws.<\/p>\n The law also prohibits cities from employing diversity, equity and inclusion officers.\u00a0<\/p>\n Discarding diversity from public policy<\/p>\n The bill\u2019s sponsor, Sen. Clay Yarborough, R-Jacksonville, argues the law will reduce division in local government.<\/p>\n \u201cDecisions should be based on merit,\u201d Yarborough said at Wednesday\u2019s bill signing at Florida State College at Jacksonville. \u201cAnd if they are not, those making the decisions should be replaced. And further, many DEI promoters are financially incentivized through government contracts to continue peddling the notion that the effort will make people more tolerant of differences. \u2026It\u2019s pitting groups against each other, and it provides a lucrative opportunity for those pushing the narrative while growing the financial burden on taxpayers.\u201d<\/p>\n Proponents of DEI policies, however, argue they lead to healthier workplace culture and ultimately, more customer satisfaction.<\/p>\n That was the finding of a 2024 analysis of diversity, equity and inclusion policies in the public sector, conducted by Los Angeles County Public Works Department procurement specialist Elizabeth Yetaryan as part of her graduate studies at California State University, Northridge.<\/p>\n Yetaryan concluded, \u201cdiversity, equity and inclusion are essential for public organizations to meet the needs of a diverse society and enhance organizational performance.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Achieving that required creating inclusive environments that accommodate various backgrounds and perspectives, she argued.\u00a0<\/p>\n Rep. Dean Black, R-Jacksonville, the DEI ban\u2019s House sponsor, believes finding the best fiscal deal for taxpayers will inherently produce a diverse group of contractors.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cWe are going to focus on getting the very best value for taxpayer dollars when we have contracts,\u201d Black told Jacksonville Today earlier this month. \u201cWe are not going to concern ourselves any longer with trying to effect social change and DEI.\u201d<\/p>\n The bill does allow for the recognition of public holidays, observances and memorials, including the birth of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. on Jan. 15; Martin Luther King Day; Juneteenth; Tuskegee Airmen Commemoration Day each March; Pascua Florida Day in April; and more.<\/p>\n On Wednesday, DeSantis repeated his refrain that Florida is \u201cwhere woke goes to die\u201d during his prepared remarks. He said the phrase often in early 2023.<\/p>\n Later that year, a white supremacist from Clay County traveled to Jacksonville to hunt Black people. He killed three inside a Dollar General in Grand Park. Before and after that massacre, equity advocates and social activists expressed concern the rhetoric around the phrase \u201cwoke<\/a>\u201d in Florida\u2019s public discourse could lead to violence.<\/p>\n Jacksonville Today asked DeSantis to define diversity, equity and inclusion following the bill signing. He says it\u2019s an ideological construct designed to promote a political agenda at the expense of other groups.<\/p>\n \u201cI would think, with DEI, the disfavored groups, No. 1, obviously, would be white males,\u201d DeSantis said. \u201cAnd I think they have been discriminated against. A lot of people say, \u2018Oh, it\u2019s fine. That\u2019s fine.\u2019 No, it\u2019s not fine. It\u2019s wrong.\u201d<\/p>\n The bill passed the Florida Senate on\u00a0 a 25-11 vote. Sens. Clay Yarborough, Jennifer Bradley, R-Fleming Island, and Tom Leek, R- Ormond Beach voted in support. Sen. Tracie Davis, D-Jacksonville, missed the vote.<\/p>\n The bill passed the Florida House 77-37. Only two people from Northeast Florida\u2019s legislative delegation voted against the bill: Rep. Kimberley Daniels, D-Jacksonville, and Rep. Angie Nixon, D-Jacksonville.\u00a0<\/p>\n During discussion on the floor in March, Nixon said the bill was an example of intentional cruelty.<\/p>\n \u201cWe know this bill is designed to have a chilling effect, particularly as it relates to leveling the playing field,\u201d Nixon said on the floor of the Florida House of Representatives on March 10.<\/p>\n \u201cBlack infants are twice as likely to die as white infants. The life expectancy for Black people is 74 years of age. For Native Americans its 70. For White folks it is 78. Black<\/a> and Hispanic<\/a> adults are less likely to receive mental health services<\/a>. In many cases (they are) less likely to receive specific treatments. I think we need to really call these bills out for what they are. They are attempts to return us to the worst chapters of our history. The fact that we are here, and my colleague is standing up as though this won\u2019t harm our communities is a slap in the face for my grandmother, who drank out of Black water fountains, who faced lower life expectancy rates.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAnd, then we sit and act as though that stuff has changed and it has not. I am tired,\u201d Nixon said.<\/p>\n Elected Democrats in all corners of the state had rallied against the bill<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cCensorship, retaliation, intolerance, hate. This bill is a message about who belongs in a community and who belongs in the state of Florida and who doesn\u2019t,\u201d Miami Beach City Commissioner Alex J. Fernandez, a Democrat, told WLRN this month<\/a>.<\/p>\n Democrats are not the only ones irked at the legislation. The Jacksonville NAACP condemned the law.<\/p>\n \u201cThis legislation represents a blatant violation of constitutional rights for marginalized communities and signifies a dangerous regression to a time fraught with division and discrimination,\u201d the Jacksonville NAACP wrote in a statement to Jacksonville Today. \u201cRather than fostering collaboration with local governments to address pressing real-world issues, this governor seems intent on sowing discord among us, undermining our collective efforts for justice and equality. We stand united against this unjust endeavor and will continue to advocate for a more inclusive and equitable Florida.\u201d<\/p>\n Bill\u2019s effect on Duval<\/p>\n Jacksonville City Council Vice President Nick Howland says it\u2019s too early to tell the ramifications SB 1134 will have on the city\u2019s finances for the 2026-27 fiscal year that begins on October 1.<\/p>\n The council will have more clarity once Mayor Donna Deegan proposes her budget in the summer. Howland is expected to be elevated from vice president to president this summer.<\/p>\n Howland applauded Yarborough, Black and DeSantis for championing merit in local government. <\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s more to go,\u201d Howland told Jacksonville Today after the bill signing. \u201cThere are hefty penalties for violating this new law. So, we have to look through the budget with a fine-toothed comb this summer to eliminate anything that\u2019s discriminatory by age, race, sex or otherwise. The law gives us to January 1. But we will make sure anything remaining is carved out of the budget by Oct. 1.\u201d<\/p>\n