President Biden Issues New Executive Order on Racial Equity

The White House.Photo byTabrez SyedonUnsplash

The White House has reported that President Biden has signed a new executive order, this time on racial equity. In a press release dated February 16th, the White House laid out the new requirements, guidelines, and objectives of this latest action.

The latest order is primarily an instructional one issued to give guidance to various federal agencies in their day-to-day operations. Among the instructions issued as part of the order are items such as:

• Asking agencies to focus their resources on boosting civil rights officers and their capacity
• Instructing agencies to focus on what the administration defines as "emerging risks" such as algorithmic discrimination in AI technology
• Directs the creation of "Agency Equity Teams" which will be tasked with designating an individual who will carry out the administration's equity mandate
• Tasks each agency with continuing to develop an "Equity Action Plan" involving the review of budget items and allocating resources to increasing equity in their respective areas
• Directs the Office of Management & Budget (OMB) to support the implementation of Equity Action Plans through budget proposals to Congress

Beyond the above, the order doesn't offer much in terms of firm changes, but rather focuses on broader goals and language. Executive Order 13985 builds upon several similar orders signed by President Biden on the subject of equity. The original orders dictating the creation of "Equity Action Plans" and other items began on the day of the President's inauguration on January 20th, 2021.

In the early portion of the press release, when addressing the need for an additional Executive Order, the administration offered the following:

Despite the meaningful progress that the Biden-Harris Administration has made, the reality is that underserved communities—many of whom have endured generations of discrimination and disinvestment—still confront unacceptable barriers to equal opportunity and the American Dream.

The objectives subsequently laid out are largely in line with or a modest expansion of those in Executive Order 13985 signed on inauguration day. That order is referred to by the administration as "Advancing Racial Equity and Support for Underserved Communities Through the Federal Government."

The press release goes on to describe the initiatives already untaken by various agencies, including $2.8 billion for homeless initiatives, $2.2 billion for farmers who faced discrimination under USDA lending programs, and NASA's new partnerships with Historically Black Colleges and Universities.

Lastly, the order also rescinds/revokes a previous order 13950 issued by the Trump Administration, which dealt with stereotyping based on race and sex.

Those interested in reading the full press release or order can locate it by clicking the link provided at the top of this article.