Executive Order 13950: Combating Race and Sex Stereotyping
President: Donald J. Trump
Restricted specified race- and sex-related training in the armed forces, federal agencies, contracts and grants using the order's defined list of concepts.
Status: Revoked. Is Executive Order 13950 still in effect? No. Executive Order 13985 revoked Executive Order 13950 on January 20, 2021.
What does Executive Order 13950 do?
EO 13950 restricted training that promoted its defined race- or sex-related concepts in federal agencies, the uniformed services, covered government contracts and selected grant programs. The definitions included claims of inherent racial or sexual superiority and collective responsibility for actions by others sharing a race or sex. The order’s policy statements criticized particular forms of diversity instruction; they did not establish that every diversity program taught the prohibited concepts. Official source.
The mechanism varied by setting. Federal contracting agencies were to insert a specified clause in covered future contracts, Labor’s OFCCP would receive complaints and seek training information, and agencies would identify grants on which funding conditions could lawfully be imposed. Federal employee training required review and spending reports. Uniformed services received a separate instruction not to teach members to believe the listed concepts. Official source.
For people outside government, the order reached workplace training through federal contracts and potential grant conditions, rather than imposing a general criminal prohibition on speech. It expressly allowed objective discussion of the concepts without endorsement as part of a larger academic course. Contractors faced potential cancellation, suspension, termination or exclusion under applicable procedures, making the contract language consequential despite its short-lived operation. Official source.
Before and after
Before the order
Agencies and contractors were already bound by nondiscrimination statutes and existing employment rules. Before EO 13950 there was no contract clause from this order restricting the defined training concepts. Federal departments retained authority over their own training and grant programs subject to established law. Official source.
After the order
The order added reviews, clauses and reporting, with contract requirements applicable 60 days after signing. On December 22, 2020, the district court in Santa Cruz barred enforcement of sections 4 and 5 against recipients of federal contract or grant funding. That preliminary injunction was limited to specified provisions and was not a final ruling striking down the entire order. Biden then expressly revoked it January 20, 2021. Official source.
Who had to do what
| Agency / office | Action | Timing / position |
|---|---|---|
| Uniformed Services / military departments | Do not teach members to believe the defined concepts; do not penalize refusal to endorse them. | Immediately. |
| Government contracting agencies / contracting officers | Insert the specified training clause and provide contractor notices, subject to exemptions. | Contracts entered 60 days after signing. |
| Labor Secretary / OFCCP Director | Establish complaint hotline, investigate covered contractor complaints, enforce requirements and request training information. | Information request within 30 days; other implementation ongoing. |
| Agency heads | Review grant programs for lawful conditions; incorporate requirements, review training and report diversity-training spending. | Grant list to OMB within 60 days; fiscal 2020 spending report within 90 days. |
| OPM Director | Review federal training for consistency; propose regulations addressing supervisory approval of prohibited training. | Review before training use; no fixed regulatory deadline. |
| Agency inspectors general | Review compliance and report findings as directed in section 6. | By the end of calendar year 2020 and at least annually thereafter, on agency-head request. |
| Attorney General / EEOC | Assess whether workplace training may implicate Title VII and issue guidance if appropriate. | No fixed deadline. |
| OMB Director | Receive grant-program and training-spending reports. | 60-day and 90-day agency reports. |
| Interagency Suspension and Debarment Committee | Consult with agencies evaluating debarment for training-contract violations. | When relevant agency evaluates a violation. |
| Senior political appointee designated by each agency head | Ensure agency compliance with EO 13950. | During implementation; no separate designation deadline. |
What happened next
EO 13950 establishes the training restrictions. Official source
Santa Cruz preliminary injunction blocks enforcement of sections 4 and 5 against federal funding recipients. Official source
EO 13985 revokes EO 13950 and directs review of related agency actions. Official source
Legal and source detail
Sources by type
The order cited presidential authority and federal employee-training powers including 5 U.S.C. 301 and 4115–4118; its contractor framework also referenced EO 11246. It did not amend Title VII. Statutory limits, appropriations and constitutional protections continued to apply to conditions on contracts and grants. The Santa Cruz injunction illustrates a legal limit on enforcement rather than completion of the underlying policy. Later revocation of EO 13985 in 2025 did not contain an express reinstatement of EO 13950. Official source.
Primary and official sources
How we checked this
Last checked against the sources above on September 24, 2026. How we research →
Later primary evidence reviewed September 24, 2026: EO 13985 expressly revoked this order. Official source. The cited steps do not establish every downstream effect.
The order directed training reviews and contractor clauses; EO 13985 revoked it in January 2021. Individual contract outcomes are not established.