David Taggert
Office of the General Counsel
U.S. Department of Energy
1000 Independence Ave., SW
Washington, DC 20585
RE: RIN 1903-AA20 Rescinding Regulations Related to Nondiscrimination in Federally Assisted Programs or Activities (Title VI)
Dear Mr. Taggert,
New America is an independent, nonprofit policy and research organization, and the B-12 team, as a part of the Education Policy Program, focuses on strengthening and improving education to better ensure all students, from birth to the workforce, have equitable access to high quality learning opportunities.
The following serves as a significant, adverse comment in opposition to the proposed direct final rule “Rescinding New Construction Requirements Related to Nondiscrimination in Federally Assisted Programs or Activities,” published in the Federal Register on May 16, 2025, and we urge the Department of Energy to immediately withdraw it. This direct final rule fundamentally undermines our nation’s civil rights laws and has been issued through a process that is inappropriate.
The nation’s civil rights laws have been carefully crafted and refined over decades as a direct result of the needs of vulnerable marginalized communities. They are a guarantee to all people in this country that they can live their lives free from discrimination and with dignity and respect. The proposed direct final rule is a direct departure from that guarantee and will ultimately subject people to harmful and unlawful discrimination by narrowing the scope of civil rights law and enforcement.
Title VI of the Civil Rights Act, which has been in place since 1964, protects citizens from discrimination based on race, gender, or national origin. Disparate impact is a vital piece of Title VI enforcement because despite some policies, being facially-neutral, still have discriminatory effects on protected communities. The disparate impact test is an important tool for being able to determine when unjust and unnecessary harm is being done. Those effects must be considered and guarded against and the proposed final rule would gut our ability to do so.
The direct final rule process is reserved for rules and regulations that are noncontroversial and inconsequential. Under no circumstances should the Department be destroying the tools for civil rights enforcement, but the proposed direct rule on this matter is both controversial and consequential.
We thank you for your attention to these matters and look forward to working with the Department to ensure nondiscrimination rules and regulations and civil rights enforcement remain strong.
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