Pritzker-backed law requires contract bidders to ‘prioritize their diversity initiatives if they hope to be competitive’
By Andrew Kerr | The Washington Freedom Beacon
A little-known law in Illinois requires private companies to finance the DEI industry if they wish to do business with the state—giving a lifeline to an unpopular industry that currently finds itself on the ropes as major companies across the country ditch their DEI programs and President Donald Trump works to eradicate its influence across the federal government.
Gov. J.B. Pritzker (D.) signed a bill into law in 2021 that essentially requires businesses that seek to do business with the state of Illinois to bankroll the DEI industry. The law, which went into full effect in 2024, established a “commitment to diversity” factor in all state contracts that grades companies in large part on how much money they donate to DEI nonprofits and how much time their leaders personally volunteer to promote DEI in their communities. The higher the score companies receive on Pritzker’s DEI factor, the more likely they are to secure contracts from his administration.
In practice, Pritzker’s “commitment to diversity” factor forces private businesses to provide a financial lifeline to an otherwise dying DEI industry. The Pritzker administration scores out of 100 possible points based on their answers to seven DEI questions. One question requires companies to disclose how much they spend financing the DEI industry. Another question asks how much time a business’s leaders volunteer to promote DEI in their community. Other questions probe companies on what percentage of their staff are women and minorities and whether or not bidders have entered into agreements with any female- or minority-owned businesses.
Since going into full effect last year, Pritzker’s DEI factor has had a major impact on the way Illinois does business. Some 44 percent of state contracts awarded in fiscal year 2024 went to the companies that scored the highest on DEI factor, as opposed to their technical competency or price, according to a report published late last year by the Illinois Chief Procurement Office.
That includes the renewal of a $4 billion contract from the Illinois Department of Corrections in December 2023 to Wexford Health Sources, a company that has faced allegations of neglecting Illinois inmates under its care, including one obese patient who was discovered with cockroaches crawling out of his abdomen, NPR reported.
Wexford Health Sources won the contract over the bid of another health care company that offered the same medical services to the state for $3.5 billion. The Illinois Department of Corrections selected Wexford for the contract in part because of its “commitment to diversity,” WTTW reported.
Pritzker’s office did not return a request for comment.
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