Particle.news
Download on the App Store

Florida Subpoenas NFL Over Rooney Rule as Goodell Pledges Cooperation

The inquiry tests the legality of the league’s diversity-focused hiring rules.

Overview

  • Goodell, speaking Tuesday at league meetings in Orlando, said the NFL is cooperating with Florida's attorney general.
  • The subpoena, issued May 13, orders the league to appear in Tallahassee on June 12 and to turn over diversity and hiring records dating back years.
  • Florida is examining the Rooney Rule, which requires interviews of minority candidates for head coach and other top jobs, along with the accelerator program, a now-ended minority offensive assistant mandate, and draft-pick incentives tied to developing minority leaders.
  • The NFL restarted a revamped accelerator event in Orlando this week that now includes non-minority participants, with league materials showing nearly half of this year's group were white men.
  • Analysts warn the probe could set precedents for how employers nationwide design diversity efforts if officials argue policies used race or sex in ways that conflict with civil rights laws.