Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier said he issued an investigative subpoena to the NFL less than two months after threatening potential action over the league\u2019s Rooney Rule.<\/p>\n
In a letter<\/a> sent to NFL executive vice president and general counsel Ted Ullyot on Wednesday, Uthmeier said he commended the league for removing references to \u201cinclusive hiring\u201d practices on its website, but added that \u201cthese updates raise new concerns under the Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThe NFL for years has repeatedly represented its commitments to, among other things, (i) \u2018diverse candidates,\u2019 (ii) mandating teams \u2018employ a female or minority coach as an offensive assistant,\u2019 (iii) providing \u2018female and minority prospects with leadership development sessions,\u2019 and other apprenticeship and training and (iv) \u2018increas(ing) the number of minorities hired\u2019 through \u2018hiring best practices,\u2019\u201d Uthmeier wrote. \u201cNow you say the NFL has scrubbed those representations from its website because they do not \u2018accurately reflect the NFL\u2019s current programs and policies.\u2019 Why, then, were they there to begin with?\u201d<\/p>\n The NFL did not immediately respond to requests for comment.<\/p>\n Uthmeier first sent a letter<\/a> to NFL commissioner Roger Goodell in late March threatening possible enforcement if the league didn\u2019t suspend the Rooney Rule, which Uthmeier claimed violated Florida law \u201cby requiring race-based considerations in hiring.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cFlorida law is clear: Hiring decisions cannot be based on race,\u201d Uthmeier said in a video<\/a> posted on social media. \u201cAnd the Rooney Rule mandates race-based interviews and incentivizes race-based decisions. That\u2019s discrimination. \u2026 NFL teams and their fans don\u2019t care about the race of the coaching staff. They want a merit-based system that gives their team the best chance to win.\u201d<\/p>\n NFL executive vice president Jeff Miller said in a statement then that \u201cwe believe our policies are consistent with the law and reflect our commitment to fairness, opportunity, and building the strongest possible teams.\u201d<\/p>\n Goodell doubled down when asked about Uthmeier\u2019s letter during the NFL\u2019s annual league meetings in Arizona.<\/p>\n \u201cOne thing that doesn\u2019t change is our values, and we believe that diversity has been a benefit to the National Football League,\u201d Goodell said on March 31<\/a>. \u201cWe are well aware of the laws and that laws are changing or evolving. We think the Rooney Rule is consistent with those, and we certainly will engage with the Florida AG, or anybody else, as we have in the past, to talk about our policies and what they are.\u201d<\/p>\n