Utah Sen. John Johnson, R-Ogden, has a novel fix for “intellectual diversity” on campus: make universities stage ideological showpieces—and punish them if they don’t. His new bill, SB295, orders public colleges to host and record events on public policy that feature “differing viewpoints,” even as it extends the Legislature’s campaign to gut every other form of diversity.
That mandate isn’t a suggestion. Schools that don’t comply could see their funding cut—letting the GOP‑controlled Legislature that has framed DEI programs as government overreach wield the government’s checkbook to enforce ideological programming.
⏰ Tick Tock
16 days - The final day of the 2026 Utah Legislature (3/6/2026)
19 days - First day congressional candidates can file to run for the 2026 election. (3/9/2026)
27 days - Neighborhood caucus night. (3/17/2026)
52 days - Utah Forward Party nominating convention (4/11/2026)
67 days - Utah State Republican and Democratic State Party nominating conventions (4/25/2026)
126 days - Utah's 2026 primary election (6/23/2026)
259 days - 2026 midterm elections (11/3/2026)
993 days - 2028 presidential election (11/7/2028)
The rest of the bill expands the anti-DEI crackdown lawmakers approved in 2024 that gutted diversity offices across higher ed and state government.
In K-12 schools, the legislation adds new limits on how identity issues like race, sex, and gender can be built into official policies and trainings. Public colleges could not operate offices or programs that promote prohibited discriminatory practices. They would also be barred from requiring job applicants, faculty or students to submit “prohibited” submissions—for example, certain types of diversity statements in hiring or admissions, as defined in the earlier law.
The bill also rewrites Utah’s detailed rules for student clubs. Schools would have to:
Deny or change any club whose core purpose is to promote or degrade people based on identity.
Block clubs that “promote or encourage” a prohibited discriminatory practice.
Treat all noncurricular clubs the same when it comes to access to rooms, schedules and school resources, regardless of the club’s political or policy views.
Parental consent rules are tightened and spelled out. Every student, for every club, would still need a signed permission form from a parent or guardian. But the form would now have to include more detail, such as the club’s name, purpose, typical activities, schedule, costs and the adult sponsor in charge, so parents have a clearer picture before they say yes.
These club rules could affect identity‑focused groups, including gay‑straight alliances and similar student organizations, depending on how local districts apply the “prohibited discriminatory practice” and “personal identity characteristic” definitions.
The bill does include one carve-out worth noting: guest lecturers and individual campus speakers are still allowed to present "controversial ideas." So a professor can invite someone to class to say something provocative, but the university itself can't run a program acknowledging that systemic racism exists.
Beyond campus, state agencies couldn’t force employees or job applicants to sign statements about their personal beliefs on DEI‑related topics as a condition of hiring or promotion. Mandatory trainings that label people as inherently privileged or oppressed because of their race, sex or other traits would be banned.
Agencies would also have to audit programs, offices, and trainings for violations and report to legislative oversight committees. Lawmakers could use those reports to push for changes in staffing, training content and program design.
SB295 is the latest salvo in a long line of fights in Utah over DEI and student clubs.
In 2024, lawmakers passed a sweeping bill that barred many DEI offices and practices across higher education and state government. That law defined the same key terms—“prohibited discriminatory practice” and “prohibited submission”—that SB295 now uses and extends into more detailed K–12 and event‑programming rules.
Utah also has a history of legal battles over student clubs, including high‑profile disputes in the 1990s over gay‑straight alliances at Salt Lake City schools. Those fights led to Utah’s current club framework, which is more detailed than in many other states.