CEO group defends DEI at busiest US airport despite Trump cuts
Atlanta business leaders are backing Mayor Andre Dickens’ decision to give up tens of millions of dollars in federal airport funding rather than dismantle diversity programs, deepening a clash with the Trump administration that is spreading to cities nationwide.
Katie Kirkpatrick, president of the Metro Atlanta Chamber, said in an interview that the city shouldn’t compromise on long-standing efforts to expand opportunities for minority-owned businesses at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, the busiest air hub in the world by passenger traffic - even if it means losing federal support.
“It’s the DNA of who we are,” said Kirkpatrick during an interview on Wednesday in Bloomberg’s New York headquarters. “It doesn’t change based on the policies or the perspectives at the federal level. Changing that, I think, would be inauthentic for our city.”
The Federal Aviation Administration recently withheld $57 million for projects at Hartsfield-Jackson after City Hall refused to drop requirements tied to diversity, equity and inclusion, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported last week. About $19 million of that amount could be restored next year if the city accepts new contract language. The funds had been earmarked for taxiway and restroom upgrades, according to local reports.
City officials confirmed the loss of funding, though they haven’t specified how much was already forfeited.
Hartsfield-Jackson, a primary hub for Delta Air Lines Inc. which is owned by the city of Atlanta, has long been at the center of Atlanta’s identity as a hub for minority-owned contractors, workers and concession owners. In the 1970s, the city’s first Black mayor, Maynard Jackson, required that minority firms share in the airport’s expansion. That policy helped create a generation of Black entrepreneurs and cemented the airport’s reputation as an economic engine in the predominantly Black city.
Dickens, a Black Democrat who is up for re-election this year, said Atlanta would not alter those programs. “No city has done more to nurture Black entrepreneurship,” he said Tuesday while announcing new economic development plans in underserved neighborhoods.
In a separate statement, Dickens said that instead of changing any of its diversity programs or initiatives, the city would replace the lost money through other funding sources, without saying which ones. Dickens said that federal support represents about $1 billion of the airport’s current capital improvement plans, or less than 10%.
“We are confident that the airport will be able to pursue alternative funding to advance these projects without impacting customers or airport service providers,” Dickens said. “The city is currently evaluating all options to ensure alignment with our long-held values, local policy and federal law and we are confident that the airport will be well positioned to receive federal funds in the future.”
Kirkpatrick, who was joined by other economic development and business leaders from the city, said she supported Dickens’ refusal to bend over backward for the administration’s demands. Kirkpatrick said she believes the mayor is seeking to balance Atlanta’s values and historic background, while also dealing with the new priorities of the federal government.
The fight reflects a broader campaign by the Trump administration to block funding tied to diversity and climate programs, often hitting Democratic strongholds. On Wednesday, the administration halted $18 billion in infrastructure funding for New York, including the Second Avenue Subway extension and the Hudson Tunnel Project. Officials cited diversity and equity practices as the reason.
The cuts directly affect constituents of Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer and House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries, who have both been involved in talks around the government shutdown. Trump earlier this week warned he would use the funding lapse to target “Democrat things.”
At the same time, the White House said it would slash $8 billion from renewable energy projects across more than a dozen states that voted for then-Vice President Kamala Harris in the 2024 presidential election. In California and the Pacific Northwest, billions of dollars earmarked for hydrogen projects will likely to be terminated.
Similar tensions have surfaced elsewhere. Last month, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy cautioned Maryland officials against awarding contracts for rebuilding the Francis Scott Key Bridge on the basis of race or sex. Trump also suggested rethinking federal support for that project, even though Congress has approved plans to fully fund the rebuild.
Local governments are already bracing for shortfalls as pandemic relief dollars expire, borrowing costs climb and federal infrastructure policy shifts.
Atlanta had to plug a projected $20 million budget deficit this year by making across-the-board departmental cuts, a reminder of how local budgets could be further squeezed if Washington follows through on threats to pull back more aid.
“That is going to be a challenge to every local government going forward. Whether or not it’s a municipal, county, city or state, there are going to be some challenges,” Kirkpatrick said.