Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey signed legislation Friday that prohibits the teaching of critical race theory (CRT) in local and state government institutions. The bill had previously passed both chambers of the state legislature with a 31-25 vote in the House and 16-12 in the Senate, respectively.
“When I took office, I vowed to use taxpayer dollars responsibly, and funding training on political commentary is not responsible spending,” Ducey said in a statement. “I am not going to waste public dollars on lessons that imply the superiority of any race and hinder free speech. House Bill 2906 goes a long way towards protecting Arizonans against divisive and regressive lessons.”
“Here in Arizona, we’re going to continue to be leaders on civics education and teach important lessons about our nation’s history,” he added.
Today I am proud to sign HB 2906, prohibiting the concerning practice of critical race theory, the latest action in just the past week to prevent the teaching of critical race theory in Arizona public schools and other government entities 1/ https://t.co/S4MHzao3XR
— Doug Ducey (@dougducey) July 9, 2021
Under the newly signed law, state and local government institutions “may not require an employee to engage in training, orientation or therapy that presents any form of blame or judgement on the basis of race, ethnicity or sex.” Moreover, the measure requires the Arizona Department of Administration to submit a report that includes “state agencies in compliance” with the guidelines to the governor, president of the Senate, House Speaker, and the secretary of state.
The bill does not pertain to sexual harassment training, however.
The move to ban CRT in government agencies comes a week after Ducey signed House Bill 2898, which outlaws the teaching of critical race theory in Arizona schools. Any teacher caught violating the new law will be subject to disciplinary action, “including the suspension or revocation of the teacher’s certificate, as the state board deems appropriate.” Moreover, school districts that fail to comply with the measure could face up to $5,000 in legal fines.
Similar measures targeting doctrines aligned with critical race theory in government institutions have been passed in several other states, including Florida, Idaho, and Oklahoma.
