The "Merit and Equal Opportunity in Higher Education Act of 2026" aims to ensure that admissions, hiring, promotion, and retention decisions in South Carolina's public higher education system are based solely on merit, transparency, and auditability, without the influence of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) structures or race-conscious considerations. The bill mandates that each public institution of higher learning publish evaluation criteria, scoring categories, and eligibility thresholds before each admission and hiring cycle, and prohibits the use of undisclosed criteria in these processes. Additionally, institutions are required to publish demographic data on applicant pools and hiring outcomes annually, and those with persistent disparities must submit corrective action plans.

To uphold constitutional equal protection, the bill requires evaluators to undergo bias-prevention training, document reasons for adverse evaluation decisions, and retain records for review. Applicants and job candidates are granted the right to request anonymized scorecards and challenge procedural errors. The Commission on Higher Education is tasked with auditing institutions for compliance, reviewing decisions for adherence to published criteria, and enforcing corrective measures as necessary. Institutions must certify their compliance with equal protection standards and the consistent application of merit criteria, with penalties imposed for non-compliance.

Statutes affected:
12/17/2025: 59-101-680
Latest Version: 59-101-680