Senate panel advances Clay Yarborough’s swat at local DEI laws

Going dark: Clay Yarborough is proposing to add some sensitive issues to student curricula. Image via Florida House.

Could DEI die on the local level?

Municipal diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives are one step closer to elimination after the Senate Community Affairs committee moved Sen. Clay Yarborough’s legislation (SB 420) forward along party lines.

The Jacksonville Republican’s bill would block local governments from passing DEI initiatives and make ones already in law illegal. It would also create a cause of action for citizens to file civil suits against local governments in the event they feel discriminated against by DEI laws. It also holds that legislators who vote for DEI legislation are guilty of misfeasance or malfeasance.

An amendment removed the retroactivity provision of the bill, and Yarborough clarified that the potential local lawmaker violations enumerated in the bill were in official and not personal capacities.

Senate Democratic Leader Jason Pizzo and Democratic Sen. Shevrin Jones pressed Yarborough on semantic and policy issues raised by the bill.

Pizzo noted that the bill could preclude minority set asides in employment and argued that it was incredibly far reaching.

Jones said the bill could lead to the removal of local leaders who wanted to ensure “everyone had a seat at the table” and argued that the right to civil action allows people to sue governments without worrying about the cost of legal fees.

“This is just nasty,” Jones said. “How we are doing our counties and cities.”

Jones also argued that the definition of “DEI” is exceptionally broad, going on to say this kind of “food fight” legislation is what constituents “complain about” because it won’t put “food on their tables,” but will “confuse” local governments.

“It’s not democracy. It’s authoritarianism,” the Miami Gardens Democrat said.

Former Senate President Kathleen Passidomo, though up on the bill, questioned the language in parts. She took issue with verbiage targeting “preferential treatment” in the context of a women’s shelter and its clients.

“I’ll help you with it if you’d like,” she offered. Yarborough said he was eager to make the bill better.

The bill drove intense public interest, with 30 public commenters mostly opposed to the bill. They each got just 30 seconds to speak.

The bill has two committee stops ahead. The House companion is sponsored by Rep. Dean Black, but his bid to destroy DEI has yet to be heard in its first of three committee stops.