Kentucky AG pressures Costco to scrap ‘divisive and discriminatory’ DEI efforts
Kentucky Attorney General Russell Coleman is part of a coalition of law enforcement officials pressuring Costco Wholesale to nix its diversity, equity and inclusion policies.
Coleman is one of 19 state attorneys general to sign a letter to Costco, urging the Washington state-based wholesale giant to repeal its DEI policies within 30 days or explain why they hadn’t.
“Costco should not have policies that discriminate in hiring based on race or gender,” the letter states.
The letter from states’ top prosecutors comes as Republicans, led by President Trump, target DEI policies in the federal government and private business sector, arguing the practice is discriminatory.
Several companies, including Meta, Amazon and Walmart, have announced plans in recent months to scrap DEI programs. But in a recent statement to shareholders about DEI, Costco’s board of directors said the company “believes our commitment to an enterprise rooted in respect and inclusion is appropriate and necessary,” Newsweek reported.
And at Costco’s annual shareholders meeting Jan. 23, stockholders voted down a proposal that would have looked at the “risks of maintaining DEI efforts” at the company.
“Our commitment to inclusion ... does not, and has never, included quotas or systematic preferences, nor does it mean compromising merit,” Costco board chairman Tony E. James said at the meeting, according to CBS News. “The demands of our business and our steadfast commitment to serve our members mean that we cannot afford to do anything but hire and promote the most qualified individuals.”
Trump has made dismantling DEI policies a main priority during the first month of his second term. He signed an executive order Jan. 21, his first full day in office, scrapping the policies in federal government and urging private businesses to do the same.
“Illegal DEI and DEIA policies not only violate the text and spirit of our longstanding Federal civil-rights laws, they also undermine our national unity, as they deny, discredit, and undermine the traditional American values of hard work, excellence, and individual achievement in favor of an unlawful, corrosive, and pernicious identity-based spoils system,” Trump’s order stated.
The attorneys general, in their letter urging Costco to remove its DEI policies, cited a 2023 decision in which the Supreme Court found that affirmative action, in the form of Harvard College’s practice of considering race as part of its admission process, was unconstitutional.
“The Supreme Court has repeatedly warned against using race-based preferences and classifications. Most recently, Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard explained that ‘Distinctions between citizens solely because of their ancestry are by their very nature odious to a free people whose institutions are founded upon the doctrine of equality,’” the letter quoted.
The AGs’ letter said, “race-neutral practices, on the other hand, honor the founding ideals of this country.”
“Costco has a motto to ‘Do the right thing,’ but their DEI business practices are all wrong,” Coleman said in a news release Tuesday. “By pushing a DEI agenda, Costco is out-of-step with the Kentuckians who just want affordable prices.”
The attorneys general of Iowa and Kansas were leaders in writing the letter, Coleman’s office said. Other states that participated were Alabama, Alaska, Georgia, Idaho, Louisiana, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas and Virginia.
“Companies including Amazon, Ford, John Deere, McDonald’s, Meta and Walmart have listened to customers and walked back the DEI policies,” Coleman’s news release stated. “Costco’s leadership, meanwhile, has doubled down on their DEI practices. Their position runs contrary to the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent decisions and raises concerns about Costco’s compliance with State and federal laws.”
Costco has four Kentucky locations — two in Louisville, one in Lexington and one in Florence, according to its website.
This story was originally published January 29, 2025 at 8:15 AM.
