Ohio AG Dave Yost wants state teachers’ pension fund to sue Target over DEI policies

Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost is urging the teachers’ pension fund to join a lawsuit against Target over its DEI policies and Pride campaign

Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost wants teachers’ public pension fund to sue Target Corporation over its diversity, equity and inclusion policies and LGBTQ pride campaign.

In a letter issued Friday to the State Teachers Retirement System, Yost said investors lost money on Target stock due to the DEI and pro-LGBTQ initiatives. STRS lost about $5 million, Yost said.

A federal securities lawsuit filed in Florida against Target claims that the retailer misled investors by making false statements about its DEI and environmental, social and governance mandates between August 2022 and November 2024. It also alleges that Target’s Pride Month marketing campaign triggered widespread customer boycotts and a subsequent stock price slide.

This marks the second time this year that Yost has demonstrated an appetite for pushing back on retailers that have diversity, equity and inclusion policies. In January, Yost joined 18 other state attorneys general to tell Costco to drop its DEI policies or explain why it hasn’t done so.

Yost, a Republican, is running for governor in 2026.

Yost said the STRS board’s decision not to join the lawsuit violates board members’ fiduciary duty to act in the best interest of the retirement system.

In the letter, Yost said he’s been informed that STRS decided not to join the lawsuit because $5 million in losses are too small to pursue in court and some board members may not agree that Target’s initiatives should be subject of a lawsuit.

Yost said the board can’t pick and choose when to sue, based on the alleged conduct or identity of the defendant.

STRS is Ohio’s second largest public pension fund with $96 billion invested for 500,000 current and retired teachers. It is governed by an 11-member board.

When reached Friday afternoon, STRS did not yet have a comment on Yost’s letter.

Laura Bischoff is a reporter for the USA TODAY Network Ohio Bureau, which serves the Columbus Dispatch, Cincinnati Enquirer, Akron Beacon Journal and 18 other affiliated news organizations across Ohio.