Anti-DEI Ohio bill passes both houses of legislature, soon to await gov’s signature

An anti-Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) bill is one step closer to becoming a law in Ohio. 

Ohio Senate Bill 1 would ban DEI at the state’s public institutions of higher education, forbidding schools from forcing anyone to take DEI trainings or establishing DEI offices or positions. 

The bill, sponsored by State Sen. Jerry Cirino, was passed in the Senate on Feb. 12 by a 21-11 vote and in the House on Wednesday by a 59-34 vote, and is now awaiting the Senate’s approval of any revisions that were made in the House. After the Senate’s approval, the bill would go to Gov. Mike DeWine for signing. 

[RELATED: Campus Reform’s Anti-DEI Legislation Tracker]

Once the Senate votes to move the bill forward, the governor has ten days to make his decision, per Ohio law. 

Several state universities have already begun reconsidering their DEI policies.

Ohio State University has shuttered two DEI offices and got rid of several DEI positions in response to President Donald Trump’s campaign against the ideology. The University of Cincinnati has also chosen to comply with the presidential directive, with the school president announcing the end of DEI at the school on Feb. 21. 

Ohio State University’s decision came after a December report from Open the Book revealed  that the school “spent over $13 million paying [200 DEI officials] last year,” which is the “equivalent of tuition for 1,000 in-state students for Ohio.”

Ohio University President Lori Stewart Gonzalez, however, said in a March 3 statement that the school would not preemptively dismantle its DEI offices and programs before the bill’s passage. The university released a statement on Thursday saying that it will continue to “closely monitor this bill’s progress.”

Ohio State University students protested the bill on Wednesday, calling on Gov. DeWine to veto it to protect academic freedom.

[RELATED: University of California axes forced diversity statements for new employees]

Contrary to the protesters, the bill’s supporters say passing the measure is necessary to protect education from ideology. 

The National Association of Scholars endorsed the bill in January, saying it will do an “extraordinary amount to depoliticize Ohio’s public higher education system, strengthen intellectual diversity, and restore its accountability to Ohio policymakers and citizens.”

Campus Reform has reached out to Gov. Mike DeWine’s office for comment. This article will be updated accordingly.