Clearinghouse coding complete
On August 27, 2025, the Department of Justice (DOJ) Civil Rights Division announced an investigation into whether the California Environmental Protection Agency (CalEPA) discriminated against men and white people in its hiring and employment practices in violation of Title VII.
The DOJ investigation is based on CalEPA’s “Practices to Advance Racial Equity in Workforce Planning” document. The document states that its purpose “is to lift up promising practices that may be applied in support of increasing equity in our hiring, promotion, and retention practices and policies.” According to the DOJ’s notice letter, this CalEPA document indicated that CalEPA may be using characteristics such as race, color, sex, or national origin to inform hiring, promotion, and retention policies. The DOJ’s investigation appears to be an effort to determine if men and/or white people are being discriminated against due to CalEPA’s policies.
This investigation is still ongoing as of June 2026.
Summary Authors
Sadie Henderson (6/30/2026)
State / Territory:
Case Type(s):
Special Collection(s):
Trump Administration 2.0: Litigation and Investigations By the Government
Key Dates
Case Ongoing: Yes
Plaintiffs
Plaintiff Description:
United States Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division
Plaintiff Type(s):
U.S. Dept of Justice plaintiff
Public Interest Lawyer: No
Filed Pro Se: No
Class Action Sought: No
Class Action Outcome: Not sought
Defendants
State
California Environmental Protection Agency
Case Details
Causes of Action:
Title VII (including PDA), 42 U.S.C. § 2000e
Other Dockets:
Special Case Type(s):
Available Documents:
Outcome
Prevailing Party: None Yet / None
Relief Granted:
Source of Relief:
Issues
Discrimination Area:
Discharge / Constructive Discharge / Layoff
Discrimination Basis:
Affected Race(s):
Affected Sex/Gender(s):
Case Summary of DOJ Investigation of the California Environmental Protection Agency, Civil Rights Litig. Clearinghouse, https://clearinghouse.net/case/48025/ (last updated 6/30/2026).