by The U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has proposed changes in how the federal government collects and uses race and ethnicity data. The proposals are relevant to private employers in two ways:
- Employers with 100 or more employees may need to change how they submit their annual workforce data reports (i.e., EEO-1 surveys) to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC); and
- Employers with federal contracts may need to change how they assign race and ethnicity codes in their Affirmative Action Plans.
The full proposal was published in the Federal Register on Friday, January 27, 2023. The recommendations include the following:
- Collecting and reporting race and ethnicity in a single question;
- Adding a category for Middle Eastern and North African, separate from the current “White” category;
- Requiring the collection of detailed race and ethnicity categories;
- Updating definitions and terminology used by federal agencies and employers in the collection and reporting of data; and
- Creating a central online location to explain deadlines and methodology for implementing the changes.
The OMB has set up a public website with details on each proposal. See https://spd15revision.gov
The proposal is in its earliest stage of public consideration. Approval and implementation are likely to take many months. The OMB is interested in receiving public input on the proposals and on other related topics that would improve the accuracy and usefulness of federal data collection. Comments are due by April 12, 2023. To submit comments: https://www.regulations.gov/commenton/OMB-2023-0001-0001
