EEOC Proposes Removal of Annual Demographic Data Reporting Requirements

John Agbonika, Associate

On July 21, 2026, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC” or the “Commission”) voted 2–1 to issue a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) that would eliminate the longstanding EEO-1 reporting requirement and related demographic reports including data on race and sex. The proposal would substantially reduce employers’ federal reporting obligations, but it is not yet final. Employers should continue preserving employment records and monitoring the rulemaking process for a final rule before changing their current data reporting practices.

Background

             Currently, private employers with at least 100 employees—and certain federal contractors with at least 50 employees—must submit an annual EEO-1 Component 1 report. The report provides aggregate workforce information organized by job category, race or ethnicity, and sex.[1] The information has historically been used by the EEOC to study workforce trends, identify possible patterns of discrimination, and to support investigations and enforcement proceedings.[2]

            On July 21, 2026, the EEOC voted 2–1 to issue a notice of proposed rulemaking that would eliminate the EEO-1 report and several related demographic reporting requirements.[3] The proposal represents a significant departure from the EEOC’s decades long practice of routinely collecting workforce data concerning employees’ race, ethnicity, and sex. The proposed rule would eliminate not only the EEO-1 report but also the EEO-2 through EEO-6 reports and associated recordkeeping requirements, which apply to certain apprenticeship programs, labor unions, state and local governments, public school systems, and institutions of higher education.[4]

Why the EEOC Is Proposing the Change

            Title VII authorizes the EEOC to require employers to make and preserve records and submit reports that the agency determines are “reasonable, necessary, or appropriate” to enforce the statute.[5] However, the Commission’s majority concluded that Title VII authorizes—but does not require—the current demographic reports.[6] This move is also in line with other guidance issued by the EEOC under the Trump Administration.

            The proposed rule takes the position that routine collection of race and sex information from employers, without a specific allegation of discrimination, is not narrowly tailored to the EEOC’s enforcement needs and may raise constitutional concerns.[7] The Commission also expressed concern that requiring employers to classify workers by race and sex could encourage employers to focus improperly on demographic outcomes rather than individual qualifications.[8] Cost and administrative burden also played a substantial role in the proposal. The EEOC estimates that eliminating the reports would produce approximately $278 million in combined annual savings for employers, covered public entities, labor organizations, school systems, and the Commission.[9]

Employer Considerations

            The Commission’s vote did not immediately eliminate the EEO-1 and other EEO reporting requirements. The proposal was published in the Federal Register today, January 23, 2026, and a public-comment period has commenced and will end on August 24, 2026. You may make public comments by using the following link: https://www.regulations.gov/commenton/EEOC-2026-0034-0001. The EEOC has also scheduled a public hearing for August 11, 2026.[10] Therefore, employers should continue monitoring EEOC announcements and remain prepared to comply unless and until the Commission issues a final rule.

            Even if the proposal becomes final, employers should not assume they may discard all demographic or employment records. The rule would eliminate report-specific recordkeeping obligations, but it would not repeal the EEOC’s general employment-record preservation requirements.[11] Employers may still need appropriately maintained workforce information to respond to discrimination charges, evaluate selection procedures, conduct privileged compliance reviews, defend employment decisions, or satisfy other federal, state, local, and contractual requirements.

[1] 29 C.F.R. § 1602.7; U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, EEO Data Collections, https://www.eeoc.gov/data/eeo-data-collections⁠

[2] U.S. Equal Emp. Opportunity Comm’n, Supporting Statement A: Employer Information Report (EEO-1) Component 1, OMB Control No. 3046-0049, at 2-4 (May 2, 2023), https://www.reginfo.gov/public/do/DownloadDocument?objectID=137280001

[3] U.S. Equal Emp. Opportunity Comm’n, EEOC Proposes Rescission of Annual Race and Sex Reporting Requirements (July 21, 2026), https://www.eeoc.gov/newsroom/eeoc-proposes-rescission-annual-race-and-sex-reporting-requirements⁠; See also Removal of Reporting Requirements, 91 Fed. Reg. 46332 (published July 23, 2026) (to be codified at 29 C.F.R. pt. 1602), https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2026/07/23/2026-14937/removal-of-reporting-requirements (hereinafter “Removal of Reporting Requirements”).

[4] Removal of Reporting Requirements, at 30-36, 38-40.

[5] 42 U.S.C. § 2000e-8(c).

[6] Removal of Reporting Requirements, at 31-32.

[7] Id. at 1.

[8] Id. at 25.

[9] Id. at 47.

[10] Id. at 2-3.

[11] See 42 U.S.C. §§ 2000e-8(a), 2000e-9; 29 C.F.R. § 1602.14. The proposal expressly states that the EEOC is not seeking to eliminate general employment-record preservation requirements or its authority to request records relevant to a particular investigation. See Removal of Reporting Requirements, at 12 (“For avoidance of doubt, this proposed rescission concerns only the routine mass collection of demographic information through mandatory EEO Reports to the EEOC, without regard to and unconnected with any underlying charge or allegation of unlawful discrimination; it does not concern requests for records relevant to determining whether unlawful employment practices have been or are being committed by a particular employer during a charge investigation.”).