America First Legal urges AmeriCorps to eliminate chief diversity officer role

America First Legal submitted a rulemaking petition on Tuesday targeting the Corporation for National and Community Service, commonly called AmeriCorps. The filing seeks to overturn a regulation from the Biden administration that created a chief diversity and inclusion officer position within the agency. According to the petition, the role emphasizes staff characteristics such as race, gender and ethnicity, which the organization claims are unrelated to AmeriCorps' core purpose.

The legal group contends that eliminating the position would restore merit-based leadership and better align the agency with its historic goals of strengthening communities, preserving natural resources, and promoting civic participation. Rachael Griffin, counsel for America First Legal, stated that AmeriCorps' mission should transcend identity divisions and serve all Americans. The request represents an effort to reshape the agency's leadership structure in line with the group's view of non-identitarian service.