Human affairs commission asks City Council to oppose House Bill 3927, cites threat to local DEI programs

The Charleston City Human Affairs and Racial Conciliation Commission voted to ask City Council to oppose House Bill 3927, a state proposal that local advocates and the commission say could curtail diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) activities and affect city programs.

The commission took the action after a briefing from the ProTruth South Carolina coalition and the ACLU of South Carolina and after reviewing a March 13 legal memorandum that outlined potential impacts to city offices and programs. The commission’s vote was taken by voice; the motion passed with one abstention (name not specified).

ProTruth co-founder Leticia Vaughn and Josh Veil, advocacy director for the ACLU of South Carolina, told the commission the bill’s language is broad and could reach K-12 schools, institutions of higher education, political subdivisions, state and local agencies and contractors that do DEI work. Veil said the bill as drafted could prevent public celebrations or acknowledgments that reference systemic racial harms. “I think that the codification of colorblindness is really the next Jim Crow, right?” he told commissioners.

Veil briefed commissioners on the bill’s legislative process and timeline, saying a full-committee hearing with public testimony was expected the week the commission met and that the state legislative session ends May 9. He also cited an analysis he said put the bill’s potential fiscal impact at about $68,000,000.

City legal staff had provided a memorandum that lists programs and offices that would be affected if the bill became law in its current form, including the Human Affairs and Racial Conciliation Manager position, the Minority and Women Business Enterprise office and certain advisory committees and training modules. Commissioners said the memo’s examples strengthened their view that the city should actively oppose the bill as drafted while monitoring possible amendments.

Commissioners discussed how to frame a request to City Council. Several urged focusing on the concrete municipal services and programs at risk rather than broader ideological language, to reduce political pushback and underscore the bill’s effects on existing city functions.

Commissioner remarks and the legal memorandum prompted the formal motion asking City Council to draft or pursue a resolution opposing House Bill 3927 in its current form. The motion was seconded and approved by voice vote; one commissioner recorded an abstention (name not specified).

The commission asked staff to circulate the legal memo and to coordinate with council staff so the request could be transmitted to City Council promptly. ProTruth and the ACLU encouraged residents concerned about the bill to contact state senators and to sign up for ProTruth updates.

Next steps include circulating the legal department memo to commissioners and forwarding the commission’s request to City Council so council can decide whether to draft a resolution or take other action.