The America First Policy Institute (AFPI) sent a notice of legal action to Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz concerning his state’s allegedly discriminatory hiring policies on Monday.
AFPI claimed the Minnesota Department of Human Services’ (“Minnesota DHS”) plan, which it called “affirmative action,” requires “higher standards for hiring white men than other racial groups,” according to the notice letter. The AFPI is promising legal action if the hiring policy is not revoked.
“This blatant racial discrimination by a state is grievously illegal and must be rescinded,” AFPI wrote in the notice. “If not, the AFPI stands ready to support the claims of any plaintiff wrongfully denied employment because of Minnesota’s unconstitutional policies.”
WASHINGTON, DC – JUNE 12: Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz listens during a hearing with the House Oversight and Accountability Committee at the U.S. Capitol on June 12, 2025 in Washington, DC. The committee held the hearing titled “A Hearing with Sanctuary State Governors” and questioned governors about their state immigration policies. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
This AFPI notice comes after the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced an investigation into Minnesota DHS’ hiring policy, set to take effect next month. The new policies would force hiring supervisors to justify hiring a non-underrepresented hire, and defines “protected group(s)” as “females, persons with disabilities, and members of the following minorities: Black, Hispanic, Asian or Pacific Islander, and American Indian or Alaskan native.”
“Minnesota’s Department of Human Services is not above the law,” AFPI Executive General Counsel Jessica Hart Steinmann told the Daily Caller News Foundation. “Its affirmative action policies blatantly discriminate based on race and sex, in direct violation of the Constitution and Supreme Court precedent. Requiring higher hiring standards for white men, imposing racial quotas, and prioritizing recruitment dollars based on skin color are not morally offensive — they’re flatly illegal. The America First Policy Institute will not hesitate to support legal action against this unconstitutional program. Equal protections means equal treatment for all, without exception.”
AFPI also cited a July 1, 2024, Minnesota DHS Affirmative Action Plan, which allocated “approximately $8,000 to prepare an affirmative action policy, which is still in effect today,” according to the notice.
“Through these policies, the DHS has opened itself up to potential lawsuits from any member of a non-minority group who is rejected from one of these ‘underrepresented’ job categories, not to mention those who will not bother to apply, given the extra hurdles that must be cleared form them to be hired,” AFPI wrote in the notice.
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