While working as a state legislator, Texas Democrat Senate candidate James Talarico put forth a bill that could have proved a boon to a pro-DEI company he consulted for at the time.
Talarico introduced a bill in the Texas House in March 2021 that would have mandated large Texas school districts to hire diversity, equity, and inclusion officers. That bill came during the time period when Talarico worked as a consultant for a group called MAYA Consulting which described its work as “rooted” in a “diversity, equity, and inclusion philosophy.”
The bill, which failed to advance, would have forced school districts with student enrollment over 5,000 to “employ a diversity, equity, and inclusion officer.” The role of the officer would be “addressing systemic inequities that lead to differences in student achievement” and support DEI training and education.
If passed, 193 school districts would have had to hire DEI officers, according to enrollment data from the time. Had the bill been passed, it could have increased demand for MAYA’s DEI services.
Talarico worked for MAYA Consulting, now known as VIDA, from 2019 to 2025. The company previously described his role as an “independent contractor consultant.” A spokeswoman for the company said Talarico’s role “was structured, specifically to remain separate from his role as a Texas state legislator.”
The Daily Wire reached out to VIDA for more clarification on how Talarico’s work was kept “separate” from his position as a lawmaker.
MAYA has contracted with school districts across the country, including for explicitly DEI-related work. In one arrangement with an Arizona school, that included the facilitation of three DEI seminars and paying one consultant $175 per hour for “strategic guidance and feedback.”
“Much of our work is rooted in our diversity, equity, and inclusion philosophy. As part of this work, we often discuss how to tear down systems of oppression and white supremacy culture,” MAYA Consulting posted on its blog back in 2021. “We work to recognize our own privilege and how to commit to being antiracist. We believe Black Lives Matter. And we have no tolerance for hate in our company.”
Talarico’s role with the organization was first flagged by the watchdog Defending Education years before he launched his Senate campaign.
In social media posts describing his role, Talarico said back in 2019 that he would be working with MAYA “to build educational opportunities for all our students” and that he would be working with the goal of offering “equitable educational opportunities.”
As the Washington Free Beacon reported earlier this year, Talarico was paid $83,333 from MAYA Consulting in 2025, according to his financial disclosure.
Talarico’s campaign did not respond to requests for comment from The Daily Wire to provide further information on his role with MAYA.
A spokesman for his campaign previously told Fox News that Talarico’s “relationship to MAYA was fully disclosed in compliance with Texas House rules” and that he had “no involvement in MAYA Consulting securing any public contracts and his contract with MAYA barred him from representing MAYA before the Texas Legislature or education agencies.”
Talarico voted against multiple proposals passed by the Texas legislature to root out support for DEI in educational and public institutions.
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