The FCC is ending DEI programs, following President Donald Trump’s order to dismantle federal diversity initiatives deemed discriminatory and wasteful.
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has officially terminated its promotion of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI), following a sweeping
directive from President Donald Trump to end all “illegal and immoral discrimination programs” at federal agencies.
The decision to end DEI at the FCC was
announced on Jan. 21 by newly appointed FCC Chairman Brendan Carr, who said the move aligns with both Trump’s order and the existing legal framework that underpins the agency’s existence and guides its work.
“In the very first section of the Communications Act, Congress stated that it created the FCC for the purpose of regulating interstate and foreign commerce in communication ‘without discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, or sex,’” Carr said in a statement. “Nonetheless, the FCC joined other private and public sector institutions in promoting discriminatory DEI policies during the Biden Administration.”
Carr, a former FCC commissioner, said the agency advanced DEI by incorporating it into its strategic goals, funding proposals, advisory committees, regulatory processes, and numerous other aspects of its operations.
“Promoting invidious forms of discrimination runs contrary to the Communications Act and deprives Americans of their rights to fair and equal treatment under the law,” he said. “It also represents a wasteful expenditure of taxpayer resources.”
Carr outlined specific actions the FCC will take to implement Trump’s new directive and to align the agency’s work with its mission as outlined in the Communications Act. These include removing DEI-related language from the FCC’s strategic plans, halting funding for DEI programs, and disbanding advisory groups that were formed to advance these initiatives. He stressed that the agency’s work will now focus solely on executing its statutory responsibilities without allowing external pressures to shape its priorities.
The decision to end DEI at the agency was met with a dissenting
opinion from FCC commissioner Anna Gomez, who called the move “a shame.” Gomez said that ending DEI initiatives runs counter to the Communication Act’s prescription for the agency to regulate interstate and international communication services in a way that makes them available to all Americans without discrimination.
“It is our foundational mission to serve all—without discrimination,” she said in a statement. “Let’s be clear, diversity, equity, and inclusion does not equal discrimination. It is precisely our efforts to be equitable and inclusive that strengthen our ability to fulfill our mission.”
Gomez called on the FCC to avoid being sidetracked by “culture wars” and focus on its mission, which she said includes developing communications-related regulations that ensure communities “historically left behind” are connected.
Carr’s announcement comes as part of a broader shift under the Trump administration to eliminate initiatives and policies deemed inconsistent with a race-neutral approach to governance. Trump’s
executive order, titled “Ending Radical and Wasteful Government DEI Programs and Preferencing,” directs all federal agencies to review and dismantle programs that prioritize considerations of race, ethnicity, or gender in decision-making.
Trump’s directive instructs the director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), the U.S. Attorney General, and the director of the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) to terminate “all discriminatory programs“ across the federal government, including various DEI initiatives ”under whatever name they appear.” This action will apply to all federal employees, contractors, and grantees, with the OPM—the federal government’s human resources office—issuing a
memo on Jan. 21 ordering all agencies to put DEI staff on administrative leave.
Among the executive orders Trump signed on Jan. 20 was a
recision of 78 of President Joe Biden’s executive orders, many of which set out the Biden administration’s DEI agenda. During his time at the White House, Biden issued numerous executive orders to implement DEI across the federal government, including the military.
