This week, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) voted to issue a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) that would rescind longstanding federal requirements requiring employers and other covered entities to submit annual workforce demographic reports, including the EEO-1, EEO-2, EEO-3, EEO-4, EEO-5, and EEO-6 reports. The proposal would also eliminate related recordkeeping requirements tied to those reports.
Importantly, this is a proposed rule only. The existing reporting requirements remain in effect unless and until the EEOC completes the rulemaking process and adopts a final rule.
What the EEOC Has Proposed
Under current EEOC regulations, covered employers and other covered organizations must annually report aggregate workforce demographic data, including employee race and sex information. According to the EEOC, these reporting requirements affect more than two million employers and covered entities.
The proposed rule would eliminate the annual EEO Data Report filing obligations as well as associated recordkeeping requirements maintained for those reports.
EEOC Questions Continued Need for EEO Reporting
In the NPRM, the EEOC states that the existing EEO reporting requirements:
- May be inconsistent with current interpretations of federal equal employment opportunity laws;
- May raise constitutional concerns;
- Collect information that the Commission believes is not narrowly tailored to enforcement needs; and
- Impose significant burdens on employers and the agency.
The Commission noted that employers currently submit workforce demographic information regardless of whether any discrimination allegation has been made or any EEOC investigation is pending.
EEOC Estimates Significant Employer Compliance Costs
The EEOC indicated that its current reporting program imposes substantial compliance costs.
According to agency estimates:
- Employers collectively incur nearly $275 million annually in compliance costs associated with EEO Data Reports; and
- The EEOC incurs nearly $4 million annually administering the data collection program.
The Commission concluded that any benefits derived from the reports may not outweigh those costs.
Charge Investigations Would Continue
The EEOC emphasized that eliminating annual EEO reports would not eliminate its authority to request workforce information during investigations.
Under the proposal:
- Employers could still be required to provide records and workforce information relevant to specific discrimination charges;
- The EEOC would retain its existing investigative authority under federal anti-discrimination laws; and
- The proposal would primarily affect broad annual demographic reporting requirements rather than case-specific information requests.
Public Comment Period and Hearing Scheduled
The proposal is not yet final. Once published in the Federal Register:
- Members of the public will have 30 days to submit comments through Regulations.gov; and
- The EEOC has scheduled a public hearing for August 11, 2026.
Individuals wishing to testify at the hearing must submit requests by August 7, 2026.
The Commission indicated it will review public comments and other information before determining whether to move forward with a final rule.
Employers Impacted
The proposal would affect organizations currently subject to federal EEO reporting requirements, including:
- Private-sector employers that file EEO-1 reports;
- Government contractors and other covered entities;
- State and local government employers; and
- Educational institutions and labor organizations subject to EEOC reporting requirements.
Employer Takeaway
The EEOC’s proposal signals a significant potential shift in federal equal employment opportunity reporting requirements. However, employers should remember that no reporting obligations have been eliminated at this time. Existing EEO-1 and related reporting requirements remain in effect unless the EEOC adopts a final rule rescinding them.
Employers should continue complying with current EEO reporting and recordkeeping requirements while monitoring developments in the rulemaking process and any future guidance issued by the EEOC.