ATTORNEY GENERAL RAOUL LEADS COALITION OPPOSING TRUMP ADMINISTRATION’S PROPOSAL TO ELIMINATE COLLECTION OF NATIONAL WORKFORCE DEMOGRAPHIC DATA

ATTORNEY GENERAL RAOUL LEADS COALITION OPPOSING TRUMP ADMINISTRATION'S PROPOSAL TO ELIMINATE COLLECTION OF NATIONAL WORKFORCE DEMOGRAPHIC DATA

August 26, 2026

Chicago - Attorney General Kwame Raoul co-led a coalition of 22 attorneys general opposing an Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) proposal to eliminate the longstanding requirement that large employers, labor unions, schools, state and local governments, and others report the demographic composition of their workforces to the commission. In their comment letter, Raoul and the coalition make clear that eliminating this reporting would likely lead to increased employment discrimination.

"This data is a critical tool for combatting workplace discrimination," Raoul said. "This proposal is yet another action in the Trump administration's broader, ongoing effort to weaken the protections our country has put in place to combat discrimination and to tear down the hard-fought progress we have made for civil rights."

The EEOC has collected workforce demographic data for more than 60 years, and the information collected by the EEOC is the most comprehensive, detailed and current data on the demographics of the American workforce.

The federal government and State Fair Employment Practice Agencies, like the Illinois Department of Human Rights (IDHR), rely on EEOC data to investigate claims of employment discrimination and resolve individual complaints.

The data also supports efforts to reduce discrimination. The EEOC uses it to identify potentially discriminatory practices and to bring employers into compliance with the law before enforcement is necessary. Employers use the data to self-evaluate and identify and address unlawful barriers to equal opportunity. The data is also used by the EEOC, the U.S. Department of Labor, researchers, journalists and others to identify employment trends across industries and across the nation.

In their letter, Raoul and the coalition assert that the proposed rule violates the Administrative Procedure Act. They note that if the EEOC had legitimate concerns about the data reporting requirements, the commission could have worked with the public and stakeholders to find alternatives to its drastic proposal to eliminate regulations that have been in place for more than half a century. Instead, the commission unduly limited the time for public comment on its proposal to just 30 days without any justification.

Joining Raoul in filing the comments are the attorneys general of Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Hawaii, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia and Washington.