Text of MO HB 1737 (2024)

SECOND REGULAR SESSION HOUSE BILL NO. 1737 102ND GENERAL ASSEMBLY INTRODUCED BY REPRESENTATIVE RICHEY. 3484H.01I DANA RADEMAN MILLER, Chief Clerk AN ACT To amend chapter 173, RSMo, by adding thereto two new sections relating to prohibiting ideological discrimination in postsecondary education. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the state of Missouri, as follows: Section A. Chapter 173, RSMo, is amended by adding thereto two new sections, to be 2 known as sections 173.2176 and 173.2177, to read as follows: 173.2176. 1. As used in this section and section 173.2177, the following terms 2 mean: 3 (1) "Applicant", an individual or entity that applies to an institution for 4 employment, admission, or as a potential contractor; 5 (2) "Contractor", an individual or entity engaged by an institution for the 6 purpose of providing goods or services to such institution but that is not an employee of 7 such institution; 8 (3) "Discriminatory ideology", an ideology that promotes the differential 9 treatment of any individual or group of individuals based on race, color, religion, sex, 10 gender, sexuality, ethnicity, national origin, or ancestry; 11 (4) "Diversity, equity, and inclusion statement", a written or oral 12 communication relating to the applicant's, employee's, student's, or contractor's: 13 (a) Race, color, religion, sex, gender, sexuality, ethnicity, national origin, or 14 ancestry, except when necessary to record required demographic information of such 15 individual; 16 (b) Views on, experience with, or past or planned contributions to efforts 17 involving: EXPLANATION — Matter enclosed in bold-faced brackets [thus] in the above bill is not enacted and is intended to be omitted from the law. Matter in bold-face type in the above bill is proposed language. 18 a. Diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging, which includes any administrative, 19 ideological, or programmatic effort or perspective that: 20 (i) Requires applicants to promote or support the idea that disparities are 21 necessarily tied to oppression; 22 (ii) Involves collective guilt ideologies; or 23 (iii) Emphasizes the importance of activism and structural reforms based upon 24 intersectional, divisive, or political identities; 25 b. Marginalized groups; 26 c. Antiracism; 27 d. Social justice; 28 e. Intersectionality; or 29 f. Related concepts; or 30 (c) Views on or experience with race, color, religion, sex, gender, sexuality, 31 ethnicity, national origin, ancestry, or other immutable characteristics of students and 32 coworkers; 33 (5) "Employee", an individual employed by an institution; 34 (6) "Entity", a corporation, partnership, limited liability company, business 35 trust, trust, association, other organization, other legal entity, or a protected series or 36 registered series of a domestic limited liability company; 37 (7) "Institution", any public institution of postsecondary education in this state 38 that is subject to the coordinating board for higher education under section 173.005; 39 (8) "Preferential consideration", any act that positively impacts an individual's 40 or entity's admission to, employment with, engagement as a contractor by, or promotion 41 within an institution including, but not limited to: 42 (a) Applications for admissions, aid, assistance, and benefits for which the 43 individual or entity is eligible; and 44 (b) Employment terms, benefits, seniority status, promotions, transfers, and 45 appointments for which the individual or entity is eligible; 46 (9) "Student", an individual enrolled as a student at an institution. 47 2. No institution shall: 48 (1) Compel, require, induce, or solicit any applicant, employee, student, or 49 contractor to endorse any discriminatory ideology; 50 (2) Compel, require, induce, or solicit any applicant, employee, student, or 51 contractor to submit a diversity, equity, and inclusion statement; or 52 (3) Provide preferential consideration to any applicant, employee, student, or 53 contractor on the basis of such individual's or entity's submission of an unsolicited 54 statement relating to a discriminatory ideology. HB 1737 2 55 3. No provision of this section shall be construed to: 56 (1) Restrict academic research or coursework; 57 (2) Prevent an institution from requiring an applicant to: 58 (a) Disclose or discuss the content of such applicant's research or artistic 59 creations; 60 (b) Certify compliance with state and federal antidiscrimination law; 61 (c) Discuss pedagogical approaches or experience with students with learning 62 disabilities; or 63 (d) Discuss curriculum or content of a proposed class or an applicant's previous 64 academic experience; or 65 (3) Prevent an applicant or candidate from providing, on such applicant's or 66 candidate's own initiative and under no specific requirement or request from the 67 institution, any information described in subsection 2 or 3 of this section. 68 4. (1) An applicant, employee, student, or contractor who is compelled, 69 required, induced, or solicited to endorse a discriminatory ideology or submit a 70 diversity, equity, and inclusion statement or who is adversely affected by an institution's 71 preferential consideration of another for such individual's or entity's unsolicited 72 statement relating to a discriminatory ideology in violation of subsection 2 or 3 of this 73 section may pursue an action for injunctive or declaratory relief against such institution. 74 (2) An injunction granted under this subsection in favor of an applicant, 75 employee, student, or contractor against an institution because of a violation of 76 subsection 2 or 3 of this section may include an order requiring the institution to: 77 (a) Admit the applicant for enrollment as a student; 78 (b) Reenroll a student who was suspended or expelled; 79 (c) Hire an individual for the position for which such individual's employment 80 application was rejected; 81 (d) Rehire in the same or equal position an employee who was dispossessed of 82 such employee's job; 83 (e) Promote an employee who was denied a promotion; or 84 (f) Provide tenure to an employee who was denied tenure. 85 (3) All claims of sovereign or governmental immunity for an institution relating 86 to claims filed under this subsection against such institution are hereby waived. 87 (4) Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, an individual or 88 entity may commence an action under this subsection and relief may be granted 89 regardless of whether such individual or entity seeks or exhausts other available 90 administrative or legal remedies. HB 1737 3 91 (5) The court may award reasonable attorney's fees and court costs to the 92 prevailing party. 93 5. (1) Any employee, whether tenured, employed at-will, or working under a 94 contract, who violates this subsection shall be disciplined by the employee's employer 95 for the reasons provided under subdivision (2) of this subsection. 96 (2) An employer shall discipline an employee described in subdivision (1) of this 97 subsection if such employee is found to have: 98 (a) Compelled, required, or induced an applicant, employee, student, or 99 contractor to endorse a discriminatory ideology or provide a diversity, equity, and 100 inclusion statement; or 101 (b) Provided preferential consideration to an applicant, employee, student, or 102 contractor on the basis of such individual's or entity's submission of an unsolicited 103 statement relating to a discriminatory ideology. 173.2177. 1. By July 1, 2025, each institution shall develop a policy for 2 compliance with the provisions of section 173.2176. Such policy shall include 3 disciplinary measures for an employee who violates the provisions of such section. 4 2. Beginning July 1, 2026, and each year thereafter, each institution's office of 5 general counsel or substantially equivalent office shall annually submit to the joint 6 committee on higher education a written report on compliance with section 173.2176 7 that includes, at a minimum, the following: 8 (1) The institution's policy described in subsection 1 of this section; 9 (2) A description of all violations of such policy by an employee of the institution; 10 and 11 (3) The disciplinary action taken against the employee. ✔ HB 1737 4