OHIO — Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost along with 18 other Republican attorneys general sent a letter to Costco this week, calling on them to get rid of their diversity, equity and inclusion policies, saying the store's efforts are "divisive."

What You Need To Know

  • Costco shareholders rejected a proposal to review its DEI policies, standing its ground

  • The letter comes days after Costco said it's maintaining its DEI policies following President Donald Trump's executive order to end DEI policies in the federal government and private sector

  • The letter states Costco has 30 days to rescind DEI policies or provide an explanation as to why they haven't

"Although Costco’s motto is 'do the right thing,' it appears that the company is doing the wrong thing—clinging to DEI policies that courts and businesses have rejected as illegal. Costco should treat every person equally and based on their merit, rather than based on divisive and discriminatory DEI practices," the letter reads. 

The letter comes days after Costco said it's maintaining its DEI policies following President Donald Trump's executive order to end DEI policies in the federal government and private sector.  

Last week, Costco shareholders had rejected a proposal which urged the company to evaluate any risks posed by its DEI practices. 

The board said it believes “our commitment to an enterprise rooted in respect and inclusion is appropriate and necessary. The report requested by this proposal would not provide meaningful additional information.” More than 98% of shares voted against the proposal, maintaining its DEI policies. 

Costco is among the few that doubled-down and didn't get rid of its DEI efforts, unlike other companies like Target, Walmart, Ford, Meta and Amazon. 

The letter goes on to say that Costco has 30 days to drop the policies, or to give an explanation as to why it hasn't yet. 

"The Supreme Court said it best: 'Eliminating racial discrimination means eliminating all of it,'" the letter reads. "For the good of its employees, investors, and customers, Costco should 'do the right thing' by following the law and repealing its DEI policies."

Along with Yost, the letter has been signed by attorneys general from Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Idaho, Kentucky, Louisiana, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia.

The letter has since gotten backlash from Democratic lawmakers, including Sen. Bill DeMora, D-Columbus.

“What business does the government have in forcing a company to abandon its policies that have been shown to work and are widely popular?” said DeMora. “This is all just a ploy from the failed reporter turned MAGA extremist to get on the orange-haired menace’s good side as he runs for governor. He doesn’t actually care about the people that he is hurting with these decisions.”