Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed SB 1134 into law on April 22 in Jacksonville, extending Florida’s existing prohibition on DEI in state agencies and public universities to every county and municipality in the state — closing the last remaining avenue through which local governments could spend taxpayer money on identity-based programming.
The law defines DEI as any effort to “manipulate or otherwise influence the composition of employees with reference to race, color, sex, ethnicity, gender identity, or sexual orientation,” as well as efforts to “promote or provide preferential treatment or special benefits” based on those characteristics, or to adopt “training, programming, or activities designed or implemented with reference” to them.
The law prohibits local governments from establishing or maintaining DEI offices, officers, or programs, bars taxpayer funding for DEI-related initiatives or third-party contractors promoting such efforts, and requires grant recipients to certify that public funds will not be used to advance DEI. It also gives the governor the power to remove local officials who violate the law.
Bill sponsors Jacksonville Republicans Sen. Clay Yarborough and Rep. Dean Black stated they saw “a need to preserve the American ideals of merit, individualism, and character in Florida’s institutions.” Yarborough specifically cited Broward County, which had spent nearly $900,000 on DEI training that included promoting gender ideology materials to county employees.
DeSantis called DEI “an ideological construct that is designed to promote a particular political agenda, particularly to the detriment of disfavored groups,” adding that decisions about individuals “should be based on merit.” The law takes effect January 2027.
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