The Iowa Capitol Building is seen on Jan. 7, 2020 in Des Moines, Iowa. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)

On Tuesday, the Republican-controlled Iowa state legislature approved House File 856, a bill that would ban Diversity Equity and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives in public entities in Iowa.

The Iowa House of Representatives gave final approval of the amended version of HF 856 with a 59-32 vote on party lines. Should Gov. Kim Reynolds (R) sign it into law, the bill will prohibit DEI offices, staff and programs from the budgets of local government bodies and public colleges. The Iowa state Senate amended the bill to exclude private universities from the ban before the upper chamber passed the bill on May 9.

While debating the bill on the House floor in March, Rep. Henry Stone (R-Forest City) argued that DEI divides people.

“DEI creates divisiveness and animosity toward one another,” Stone said. “At the end of the day, we’re all the human race made up of different colors and ethnicities and backgrounds.”

Rep. Rob Johnson (D-Polk) spoke in opposition of the bill and the new amendment on Tuesday, arguing that removing public schools from the ban does not improve the legislation.

“This isn’t about handouts,” Johnson said on the House floor. “This is about access. This is about opening the door and making sure that nobody is holding it shut from the inside, especially within our institutions of higher learning.”

He continued: “DEI makes sure that just because you didn’t grow up in the right zip code or speak with the right accent that you still have a place at the table, so let’s stop acting like this is a charity. Let’s stop acting like DEI is a strategy. This is how we compete going into the future.”

HF 856 now heads to Reynolds’ desk, and she is expected to sign the bill into law. Its contents would be implemented on July 1, 2025, forcing schools and governments to make immediate changes.

Similar legislation was passed in Ohio earlier this year, resulting in the University of Toledo eliminating several undergraduate programs like data analytics, Spanish and women’s and gender studies.

Since starting his second term, President Donald Trump has falsely blamed DEI for a variety of problems in America, including the airline disaster in Washington on January 29 and “workplace corruption.”