House Democrats Look to Bolster the Biden Administration’s Equity Push

A pair of House Democrats are aiming to supplement the Biden administration’s initiative to ensure services are delivered equitably in the federal government with two bills expanding on a 2021 executive order.

On his first day in office last year, President Biden signed an executive order rescinding a Trump-era edict that had barred agencies and contractors from engaging in diversity and inclusion training that involved the use of critical race theory or otherwise highlighted institutional racism in the United States. Biden's order created a “whole-of-government initiative to advance racial equity.” It directed agencies to conduct internal reviews and devise plans to “address unequal barriers to opportunity in agency policies and programs.”

On Friday, Reps. Carolyn Maloney, D-N.Y., and Ayanna Pressley, D-Mass., introduced two bills aimed at bolstering that initiative through a series of working groups and agency goal-setting. The Federal Government Equity Improvement Act would establish a series of intra- and interagency working groups to focus on equity issues and discuss best practices for improving the equity of service delivery to the public.

The bill would create an agency equity advisory team within each federal agency, to be led by the agency’s performance improvement officer and to serve as an “agency hub” on questions of equity. It also would establish an interagency equity subcommittee within the government’s Performance Improvement Council so that agencies can share information and practices that have proven successful at making services more equitable. And an equitable data working group within the Chief Data Officer Council would work similarly for sharing best practices on the collection and use of equity data across federal agencies.

The Equity in Agency Planning Act would require that agencies include at least one goal or 20% of the total number of goals, whichever is greater, tied to improving equitable service delivery as part of their agency strategic plans, performance plans and agency performance goals. Both bills would require agencies and the new working groups to consult with non-governmental organizations and other stakeholders as part of this initiative.

Maloney and Pressley lauded the Biden administration’s efforts thus far on diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility and said they hope their bills can complement officials’ work.

“Centering racial equity and justice in policy and administrative decisions can change and save lives,” Pressley said. “Building on the Biden-Harris administration’s executive order, our bills would provide essential tools to advance equity through data collection and critical stakeholder engagement.”

“The Biden-Harris administration has laid the groundwork to ensure racial equity is central in its decision-making process across the federal government thanks to President Biden’s groundbreaking executive order,” Maloney said. “Today, I am proud to introduce legislation to help fulfill the administration’s mission by giving them the essential tools to make sure that federal policy works for everyone.”