President Donald Trump’s Executive Order 14151 directs federal agencies to terminate diversity, equity and inclusion programs. Companion bills to dismantle DEI were introduced in Congress on February 4, 2025. Yet surveys and institutional reports indicate many companies and universities are maintaining — or rebranding — related efforts.
Federal policy and court backdrop
- Trump signed Executive Order 14151 on January 20, 2025, ordering agencies to end DEI/DEIA offices, plans and mandates across the federal government; a related order, 14173, revoked earlier diversity directives and targeted contractor requirements. Portions of the orders were temporarily enjoined by a federal district judge in February, but a Fourth Circuit panel later stayed that injunction, allowing key provisions to proceed pending appeal. (federalregister.gov)
- Agencies began scrubbing DEI guidance and positions early in 2025, while the White House issued additional actions affecting specific workforces (for example, the Foreign Service). Legal challenges remain active. (apnews.com)
Congressional efforts
- On February 4, 2025, lawmakers introduced the Dismantle DEI Act in both chambers (H.R. 925 and S. 382). As of November 9, 2025, Congress.gov shows no hearings, markups or floor votes recorded beyond initial referrals. (congress.gov)
Corporate response and spending
- Multiple surveys suggest most companies are not abandoning DEI outright. A Resume.org poll summarized by ESG Dive found 65% of firms planned to maintain DEI budgets in 2025 and 22% to increase them, while 13% reported cuts or elimination. Separately, a Catalyst/NYU Meltzer Center study in June 2025 reported that more than 80% of senior leaders favored maintaining or expanding DEI to mitigate risk. Meanwhile, many large employers have reduced public use of “DEI” language or rebranded programs as “opportunity,” “belonging,” or similar terms. (esgdive.com)
- Big-company examples vary. JPMorgan Chase maintained a five‑year, $30 billion racial‑equity commitment launched in 2020, while Microsoft announced an added $150 million internal D&I investment in 2020; both efforts predate the current federal orders. In 2025, a tech watchdog reported Google had removed 58 DEI‑related organizations from one public funding list, which the company said reflects only one team’s giving and not all contributions. (jpmorganchase.com)
Higher education: retrenchment and rebranding
- The University of Michigan closed its central DEI offices and ended its DEI 2.0 strategic plan in March 2025, citing federal pressure; the institution had invested nearly $250 million in DEI initiatives since 2016, according to contemporaneous reporting. (reuters.com)
Across campuses, some DEI functions have been relabeled under terms such as “inclusive excellence,” “student success,” or “access and opportunity.” Examples include office or webpage renamings at institutions in Virginia and other states. (virginiamercury.com)
A report by the advocacy group Defending Education tracked at least 281 DEI‑related donor funds at 130 colleges and universities across 44 states plus Washington, D.C., totaling about $373 million, and documented instances where funds or offices were rebranded but continued. (These figures reflect that group’s methodology and are not a federal inventory.) (defendinged.org)
How large is DEI spending?
- Claims that DEI has cost “trillions” over the past 15 years are not supported by neutral market estimates. McKinsey, for example, pegged the global corporate DEI market at roughly $7.5 billion in 2020, with projections to about $15.4 billion by 2026. Separately, a 2025 report from the Functional Government Initiative and Center for Renewing America — advocacy organizations — asserted that more than $1 trillion in federal program budgets under the Biden administration were “infused” with equity priorities across 460 programs at 24 agencies. Their estimate counts programs identified in Equity Action Plans and is not an official OMB total. (mckinsey.com)
Public opinion
- Pew Research Center found views of workplace DEI became slightly more negative between 2023 and late 2024, but a narrow majority of U.S. workers (52%) still said focusing on DEI at work is mainly a good thing; others were split or neutral. An AP‑NORC poll in 2025 likewise showed divided views on campus‑based DEI. (pewresearch.org)
What opponents and supporters say
- A Daily Wire opinion essay characterizes DEI as a “zombie” sustained by cultural inertia. Conservative scholar Victor Davis Hanson has argued that DEI will eventually “implode” because, in his view, it contradicts merit and recent court rulings — a perspective contested by DEI proponents and many corporate leaders. (dailywire.com)
Bottom line
- Federal directives have forced rapid changes inside agencies and influenced public institutions and contractors, but outside Washington many organizations are recalibrating rather than abandoning related work — often reframing DEI under different terminology while awaiting the outcome of litigation and legislation. (federalregister.gov)
