If businesses understand value of diversity, why don’t Idaho Republican legislators?

Well, you knew it was bound to happen.

Idaho representatives, such as Bryan Zollinger and Barbara Ehardt, who have spoken against diversity and inclusion efforts at Boise State University, on Monday killed the higher education budget approved by the Senate last week.

The vote to approve the higher education budget failed, 32-37, with “no” votes from House Speaker Scott Bedke and other House leaders such as John Vander Woude, Jason Monks and Mike Moyle, along with the usual suspects: Chad Christensen, Christy Zito, Heather Scott and Julianne Young.

All of the House Democrats were joined by Republican Reps. Lance Clow, chairman of the House Education Committee; and his co-chair Ryan Kerby; as well as Gary Collins, Bill Goesling, Linda Wright Hartgen, Laurie Lickley, Caroline Nilsson Troy, Britt Raybould, Doug Ricks and Rick Youngblood in approving the higher education budget.

On the one hand, this is all about diversity and inclusion efforts.

As you probably recall, 28 Republican legislators, including those who shot down the budget, welcomed newly hired Boise State University President Marlene Tromp to her new job by sending her a letter telling her to quit “wasting” money on efforts to promote diversity and inclusion. They pointed to $1.6 million in “wasted” money that, they argued, should be spent on education.

Defenders of such efforts said positions like provost of diversity and inclusion represent money well spent, and that it is indeed money spent on education. Without such efforts, we might not have as much diversity on campus. Diversity won’t simply happen on its own. Without that diversity, education on the whole will suffer.

This isn’t about “being woke,” as some cynics try to point out. This is a practical matter.

Companies around the world understand the importance of diversity and inclusion efforts. Google, Microsoft, Salesforce, Apple, and Johnson & Johnson, Micron, Chobani, HP see the value in diversity and inclusion. Why don’t Idaho legislators?

At MasterCard, “diversity is what drives better insights, better decisions, and better products. It is the backbone of innovation.” Johnson & Johnson has a Global Diversity and Inclusion division whose aim is “to maximize the global power of diversity and inclusion to drive superior business results and sustainable competitive advantage.”

Are these companies all doing it just to be politically correct? No, they’re doing it because it’s good for business and good for all of us. If these companies get it, why can’t so many Republican legislators?

The presidents from the University of Idaho, Boise State University, Idaho State University and Lewis-Clark State College presented a rare unified front this session in testifying before the Legislature’s budget-setting committee and pledging to work together, freezing tuition for one year and accepting Gov. Brad Little’s budget cuts of 1% this year and 2% next year. And this is the thanks they get for playing nice.

A slap in the face.

The Legislature’s budget-writing committee, the Joint Finance-Appropriations Committee, must now rewrite the higher education budget and send it back for approval.

Although the leaders of four major businesses in Idaho — Chobani, Clif Bar, HP and Micron — were writing about discriminatory legislation regarding transgender residents in a letter to the Senate State Affairs Committee, they weighed in on the importance of diversity and inclusion efforts.

“As businesses, we’re committed to the principles of diversity and inclusion, and we are very proud to call Idaho home,” they wrote. “It’s a privilege and honor to be ambassadors for the state in our daily interactions with customers, communities, and companies across the nation and around the world. We proudly talk about its strong and growing economy, and how it’s one of the best places in the nation to do business and live. Most important, we talk about the welcoming, big-hearted spirit of its people, and why our employees are so grateful to live and raise their families here.

“With respect, we ask you to support all of Idaho’s diverse communities and reject these measures.”

If we want government to act more like a private business, here’s a good place to start.