Fact Sheets

Fact Sheet: President Donald J. Trump Addresses DEI Discrimination by Federal Contractors

The White House

March 26, 2026

ADDRESSING DEI DISCRIMINATION BY FEDERAL CONTRACTORS: Today, President Donald J. Trump signed an Executive Order eliminating racially discriminatory “diversity, equity, and inclusion” (DEI) practices by Federal contractors and their subcontractors, ensuring merit-based and efficient contracting and employment.

• The Order requires that all Federal contracts that are subject to the Federal Property and Administrative Services Act include a clause prohibiting contractors and their subcontractors from engaging in racially discriminatory DEI activities.
• The Order directs the Office of Management and Budget to issue guidance to contracting agencies to ensure compliance and identify economic sectors that pose a particular risk of engaging in racially discriminatory DEI activities.
• The Order authorizes contracting agencies to cancel, terminate, or suspend contracts — and to suspend or debar contractors — for failure to comply.
• The Order directs the Attorney General to prioritize potential claims under the False Claims Act against contractors or subcontractors that are in violation of the contractual terms prohibiting racially discriminatory DEI activities, and ensure the prompt review of related civil actions brought by private persons.

• The Order directs the Federal Acquisition Regulatory Council to amend Federal Acquisition Regulations to include this clause and remove any conflicting provisions.
  PROMOTING MERIT AND EFFICIENCY IN FEDERAL CONTRACTING: President Trump has been clear: the Federal Government will promote equal treatment under the law for every American, regardless of race or ethnicity — and will hold its contractors to the same standard.

• DEI activities impose real costs on the American people — artificially restricting the labor pool, driving up hiring and operational costs, and creating workforce inefficiencies that are ultimately passed on to Federal agencies and American taxpayers.

• DEI programs increase workforce turnover by elevating immutable characteristics over job performance and jeopardize employee collaboration and problem-solving essential to fostering efficient and high-quality work.

• Some entities, including government contractors, have attempted to conceal ongoing DEI activities even as the Administration has worked to end them.

• This Order establishes strong accountability mechanisms to ensure compliance is genuine and verifiable.

• Preventing these practices ensures taxpayer dollars are spent efficiently.
  SERVING AMERICA, NOT IDEOLOGICAL AGENDAS: President Trump is continuing to deliver on his promise to end DEI across the Federal Government.

• In his first week in office, President Trump signed Executive actions that restored merit-based hiring and promotions across the Federal Government, ended radical and wasteful DEI programs and preferencing, and terminated the Federal Aviation Administration’s hiring policy that prioritized DEI over safety and efficiency.

• In January 2025, President Trump signed an Executive Order to ban the use of discriminatory race- or sex-based preferences by any element of the Armed Forces, the Department of War, or the Department of Homeland Security and abolish any remnant of DEI within these departments.

• In March 2025, President Trump signed a memorandum removing radical DEI from the Foreign Service.

• In April 2025, President Trump signed an Executive Order eliminating the use of disparate-impact liability in various contexts to ensure equal treatment under the law.

• In April 2025, President Trump signed an Executive Order to restore safety and order in American classrooms by ensuring school discipline policies are based on objective behavior, not DEI.

• In July 2025, President Trump signed an Executive Order to ensure that AI models procured by the Federal Government prioritize truthfulness and ideological neutrality, not DEI.

• In December 2025, President Trump signed an Executive Order to end the outsized influence of proxy advisors that prioritize radical political agendas like DEI and ESG over investor returns.

• President Trump: “We will terminate every diversity, equity, and inclusion program across the entire Federal Government.”