EEOC Eyes Rollback of EEO Reporting Rules: Employers Should Stay the Course

Key Highlights

• The EEOC has submitted a proposed rule that could eliminate several federal EEO reporting requirements, including the EEO-1 Component 1 Report, but no changes are currently in effect.
• Employers should continue preparing for 2025 EEO-1 reporting obligations because the proposal is still under review and the EEOC must complete additional regulatory steps before any reporting requirements can be rescinded.
• Even if federal EEO reporting requirements change, employers may still have state and local workforce reporting obligations, including California’s annual pay and demographic reporting requirements for covered employers.

On May 14, 2026, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission submitted a proposed rule to the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) titled “Rescission of EEO-1, EEO-2, EEO-3, EEO-4, EEO-5 and Reporting Requirement Under Title VII, the ADA, GINA and the PWFA.” The OIRA entry identifies the proposal as an economically significant proposed rule currently under regulatory review.

Simply put, the EEOC appears to be considering whether to eliminate or substantially reduce several federal equal employment opportunity reporting requirements, including the EEO-1 Component 1 Report. That report currently requires covered private employers with 100 or more employees to submit annual workforce demographic data by job category, race, ethnicity and sex. Current regulations still require covered employers to file the EEO-1 each year and retain a copy of the most recent report.

Employers should not assume the 2025 EEO-1 filing is canceled.

The proposal must still move through additional administrative steps before it can change existing obligations. OIRA review is an initial step in the regulatory process. If the proposal moves forward, the EEOC would likely need to publish proposed regulatory text, allow for public comment and address related information collection requirements before any rescission could take effect.

At this point, the EEOC has not yet issued any instructions or guidance for the 2025 EEO-1. In recent years, this report was due in June. For now, employers should continue preparing as though an EEO-1 filing may be required. Recent EEO-1 reporting periods have generally required employers to use a workforce snapshot from a pay period in October, November or December. Employers should also remember that a change to federal EEO reporting would not necessarily eliminate other workforce reporting obligations. Several states and localities impose their own reporting, pay data or recordkeeping requirements. California, for example, separately requires covered private employers with 100 or more payroll employees and covered private client employers with 100 or more labor contractor employees, to report pay, demographic and other workforce data annually to the California Civil Rights Department.

What Employers Should Do Now

While the proposal is pending, employers should consider taking the following steps:

• Continue collecting and validating EEO-1 data.
• Monitor EEOC, OIRA and Federal Register developments.
• Avoid deleting or changing demographic data practices without legal review.
• Confirm whether state or local workforce reporting requirements apply.
• Preserve existing EEO-1 data consistent with applicable law.

This is a significant development, but not yet a rule change.

Until the EEOC issues formal guidance or completes the required administrative process, employers should continue preparing for current reporting and recordkeeping obligations.

Polsinelli’s Labor and Employment team will continue to monitor developments and provide updates as additional guidance becomes available. Please contact your Polsinelli Labor and Employment attorney with any questions.