Utah Enacts Controversial Legislation Targeting DEI and Transgender Rights

Utah's governor, Spencer Cox, signed a bill into law prohibiting diversity training, hiring, and inclusion programs at universities and in state government, marking the state as the latest to do so. The law also requires people to use bathrooms and locker rooms in public schools and government-owned buildings that match the sex they were assigned at birth. This move aligns with a trend seen in at least 17 states where Republican lawmakers have proposed bills to restrict or require public disclosure of DEI initiatives, while Democrats in nine states have filed bills to require or promote DEI initiatives.