# Office on the Economic Status of Women *Minnesota legislative-branch office, established in 1976 as the Council on the Economic Status of Women* The Office on the Economic Status of Women (OESW) is a legislative-branch office of [[Minnesota]]. Its statutory authority is Minn. Stat. §3.303.[^1] The body was created in 1976 as a council. It became a commission in 1983 and took its present name in 2005. The Legislative Reference Library's archive covers the council phase of 1976–1983.[^2][^3] The project's validated claim record identifies OESW as the legislative-branch office that drafted [[Minn. Stat. § 43A.191]] and its predecessors.[^1] That statute is at the center of a federal lawsuit against the State. On January 14, 2026, the [[United States Department of Justice]] filed *United States v. State of Minnesota*, No. 0:26-cv-00273 (D. Minn.), under [[Title VII]] of the [[Civil Rights Act of 1964]]. The complaint cites §43A.191 eight times. One of those citations is to subdivision 3(c), which requires an agency to explain the reason for hiring a non-affirmative candidate.[^4] According to the project's documentation, the office was defunded in 2017 and revived in 2023.[^3] The record in hand does not identify the enacting instruments, the governors, or the legislative majorities for the defunding or the revival, so this article does not attribute either step to a party. ## History The body has operated under three names over half a century. It was the Council on the Economic Status of Women from 1976, a Commission from 1983, and the Office on the Economic Status of Women from 2005, when it was placed under Minn. Stat. §3.303.[^3][^1] The Legislative Reference Library holds an archive for the council phase, 1976–1983.[^2] The project's documentation gives the body two roles. It monitored and credentialed the program that the documentation traces. It also originated three doctrines that were piloted in Minnesota before being adopted nationally: [[Comparable worth]], the [[Duluth model]], and sexual-harassment law.[^3] The same account records that the body "survived its own defundings." The only defunding with a year in the record is the one in 2017, which was followed by revival in 2023.[^3] ## Federal action The Department of Justice announced the suit in release No. 26-21 (January 14, 2026), titled *United States Department of Justice Files Lawsuit Against Minnesota's 'Affirmative Action' Regime*.[^5] The release describes "Minnesota's 'Affirmative Action' Regime" in its title. It also states that Attorney General Pamela Bondi certified the case as a matter of general public importance.[^5] The case is captioned [[United States v. State of Minnesota (0:26-cv-00273)]]. The complaint alleges violations of Title VII. Its documentary predicate is the text of §43A.191, which it cites eight times, including the subdivision 3(c) explanation requirement.[^4] The record in hand does not state the case's current procedural status. The U.S. government has used "regime" for governments it opposes. For example, the [[Iraq Liberation Act]] of 1998 (Pub. L. 105-338) states a policy of supporting efforts to remove "the regime headed by Saddam Hussein."[^6] The project's catalogue of U.S.-government "regime" usages ([[How Minnesota Got Here]], note 40) finds Minnesota the only U.S. state so described. This is the project's catalogue finding, not an independently established fact.[^6] In 2025 the Supreme Court decided [[Ames v. Ohio Department of Youth Services]], 605 U.S. 303. The Court held that Title VII's disparate-treatment provision "draws no distinctions between majority-group plaintiffs and minority-group plaintiffs." It also rejected the Sixth Circuit's heightened "background circumstances" rule for majority-group plaintiffs.[^7] ## In the Minnesota record ### Who - OESW is a legislative-branch office operating under Minn. Stat. §3.303.[^1] - The project's claim record identifies it as the office that drafted §43A.191 and its predecessors.[^1] ### What - According to the project's documentation, the body monitored and credentialed the program it traces.[^3] - The same documentation credits it with originating comparable worth, the Duluth Model, and sexual-harassment law.[^3] ### When - 1976: established as the Council on the Economic Status of Women.[^2][^3] - 1983: became the Commission.[^2][^3] - 2005: renamed the Office on the Economic Status of Women and placed under Minn. Stat. §3.303.[^1][^3] - 2017: defunded.[^3] - 2023: revived.[^3] - January 14, 2026: the United States filed No. 0:26-cv-00273, citing §43A.191.[^4][^5] ## Notes [^1]: Minnesota Revisor of Statutes, *Minn. Stat. §3.303* (current text) — statutory authority for the Office on the Economic Status of Women. The project's validated claim row 7 pairs this page with OESW's role as the legislative-branch office that drafted §43A.191 and its predecessors. https://www.revisor.mn.gov/statutes/cite/3.303 [^2]: Minnesota Legislative Reference Library, *Office on the Economic Status of Women* (archive) — documents the council phase, 1976–1983. https://www.lrl.mn.gov/history/women [^3]: Minnesota Office on the Economic Status of Women, *Homepage* (undated). The project's documentation (*The Instrument No One Will Name*, 2026-06-18, note 26, marked primary-confirmed) cites this page for the Council (1976), Commission (1983), and Office (2005) sequence; the 2017 defunding and 2023 revival; and the body's role in comparable worth, the Duluth Model, and sexual-harassment law. https://www.oesw.mn.gov/ [^4]: U.S. Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division, *Complaint, United States v. State of Minnesota*, No. 0:26-cv-00273 (D. Minn. filed Jan. 14, 2026) — Title VII claims; cites Minn. Stat. § 43A.191 eight times, including subd. 3(c). https://www.justice.gov/crt/media/1423361/dl [^5]: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Public Affairs, *United States Department of Justice Files Lawsuit Against Minnesota's 'Affirmative Action' Regime*, release No. 26-21 (Jan. 14, 2026) — announcement of the suit; Attorney General Bondi's certification of general public importance. https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/united-states-department-justice-files-lawsuit-against-minnesotas-affirmative-action-regime [^6]: U.S. Congress, *Iraq Liberation Act of 1998*, Pub. L. 105-338 — policy of supporting efforts to remove "the regime headed by Saddam Hussein." Cited with the project's catalogue finding (How Minnesota Got Here, note 40). https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/PLAW-105publ338/pdf/PLAW-105publ338.pdf [^7]: Supreme Court of the United States, *Ames v. Ohio Department of Youth Services*, 605 U.S. 303 (2025) — Title VII disparate-treatment holding; rejection of the "background circumstances" rule. https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/24pdf/23-1039_c0n2.pdf