The Missouri Senate announced Tuesday that it is forming three new committees, including one to review state funding for diversity, equity and inclusion programs.
According to a news release, the Select Committee on Equal Protection and DEI will review whether various state-funded DEI programs "align with the principles of equal protection under the law."
The committee is set to compare the DEI programs against Gov. Mike Kehoe's Executive Order 25-18, which he issued in February. The executive order directed all Missouri state agencies to eliminate DEI initiatives and bans the use of state funds for DEI.
Kehoe's order defined DEI as "efforts to manipulate or influence the composition of an organization based solely on race, color, ethnicity, gender identity or sexual orientation."
Senate members appointed to the Committee on Equal Protection and DEI include:
- Sen. Mike Moon, R-Ash Grove
- Sen. Rick Brattin, R-Harrisonville
- Sen. Joe Nicola, R-Grain Valley
- Sen. Karla May, D-St. Louis
- Sen. Barbara Washington, D-Kansas City
The two other Senate committees announced Tuesday include the committee on Government Modernization and Transformation, and the Committee on Property Taxes and the State Tax Commission.
Reports from these three committees will be in "alignment with Missouri’s conservative vision of limited, effective government," according to the news release.
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