A federal judge on Wednesday extended an earlier order that temporarily blocked New Hampshire from enforcing a statewide ban on diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives in most school districts.
A more lasting decision on the challenge to the controversial law had been expected this week, but it appeared Judge Landya McCafferty needed more time to craft it. The extension lasts until Oct. 2.
The state law prohibits public K-12 schools and higher education institutions in the state from engaging in activities that classify individuals on the basis of a protected characteristic for the purpose of “achieving demographic outcomes.” It states, for example, that schools may not conduct implicit bias training, DEI assessments, or teach critical race theory.
Critics of the law have argued it is unconstitutionally vague and could conflict with federal anti-discrimination laws, particularly with respect to required services for students with disabilities.
The state is being sued by its largest teachers’ union, the National Education Association, as well as four school districts, two individuals, and one advocacy organization.
The order blocking enforcement of the law, which was issued on Sept. 4, applies only to the named school districts, to schools that employ a member of the teachers’ union, or to those that provide disability services to a member district. The union represents educators in 133 of the 180 districts in the state, according to its website, including Concord, Merrimack Valley, Hopkinton, and Bow.
The extension means that the Department of Education could struggle to comply with its own Oct. 1 deadline to submit a report to lawmakers “identifying all existing contracts containing DEI-related provisions in public schools.”
The department had ordered school districts to provide lists of any relevant contracts by Sept. 5 and had threatened to immediately strip federal funding from those that refused to comply. The court order, however, prohibits the department from punishing school districts.
A webpage set up by the department to track which school districts had submitted required certification forms was offline Thursday morning. Forty-nine of 180 school districts had submitted the form as of two weeks ago.
A department spokesperson didn’t immediately respond to a question about why it had been removed.
The lawsuit closely mirrors one that challenged the federal DEI ban in the spring. That lawsuit, which was also filed by the National Education Association and presided over by McCafferty, led to the judge issuing a preliminary injunction partially blocking the law.
Her decision has been challenged in the Court of Appeals.