EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY COMMISSION (EEOC)

Statement of Regulatory and Deregulatory Priorities

The mission of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC, Commission, or Agency) is to ensure equality of opportunity in employment by vigorously enforcing and educating the public about the following Federal statutes: Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended (prohibits employment discrimination on the basis of race, color, sex (including pregnancy), religion, or national origin); the Equal Pay Act of 1963, as amended (makes it illegal to pay unequal wages to men and women performing substantially equal work under similar working conditions at the same establishment); the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967, as amended (prohibits employment discrimination based on age of 40 or older); titles I and V of the Americans with Disabilities Act, as amended, and sections 501 and 505 of the Rehabilitation Act, as amended (prohibit employment discrimination based on disability); Title II of the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (prohibits employment discrimination based on genetic information and limits acquisition and disclosure of genetic information); and section 304 of the Government Employee Rights Act of 1991 (protects certain previously exempt State & local government employees from employment discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, or disability).

The first three items in this Regulatory Plan are the three remaining items identified in the EEOC's Plan for Retrospective Analysis of Existing Rules in compliance with Executive Order 13563: (1) "Revisions to Procedures for Complaints or Charges of Employment Discrimination Based on Disability Subject to the Americans With Disabilities Act and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973," (2) "Revisions to Procedures for Complaints/Charges of Employment Discrimination Based on Disability Filed Against Employers Holding Government Contracts or Subcontracts," and (3) "Revisions to Procedures for Complaints of Employment Discrimination Filed Against Recipients of Federal Financial Assistance." These revisions pertain to joint coordination regulations that EEOC has with the Department of Justice and the Department of Labor (DOL) (29 CFR parts 1640, 1641 and 1691) which govern the agencies' internal charge/complaint handling procedures. The EEOC plans to propose to amend and revise these regulations so that they conform to each other and to EEOC's recently revised Memorandum of Understanding with DOL's Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs. The resulting revisions are expected to make the agency's regulatory program more effective and will not impose any regulatory costs on employers or complainants/charging parties. They instead will provide a net benefit to stakeholders and the agencies by creating consistency between these coordination regulations.

The fourth item in this Regulatory Plan is entitled "Revisions to the Federal Sector's Affirmative Employment Obligations of Individuals with Disabilities Under Section 501, as amended." This revision pertains to the Federal Government's affirmative employment obligations pursuant to section 501 of the Rehabilitation Act, as reflected in 29 CFR part 1614. The EEOC plans to develop a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking to seek comment on revisions to the current rule at 29 CFR section 1614.203 which would reflect a more detailed explanation of how Federal Agencies and Departments should give full consideration to the hiring, placement, and advancement of qualified individuals with disabilities. Any revisions would be informed by Management Directive 715, and may include goals consistent with Executive Order 13548. Furthermore, any revisions would result in costs only to the Federal Government; would contribute to increasing the employment of individuals with disabilities; and would not affect risks to public health, safety, or the environment.

Consistent with section 4(c) of Executive Order 12866, this statement was reviewed and approved by the Chair of the Agency. The statement has not been reviewed or approved by the other members of the Commission.

Retrospective Review of Existing Regulations

Pursuant to section 6 of Executive Order 13563, "Improving Regulation and Regulatory Review" (Jan. 18, 2011), the following Regulatory Identifier Numbers (RINs) have been identified as associated with retrospective review and analysis in the EEOC's final retrospective review of regulations plan. Some of the entries on this list may be completed actions, which do not appear in The Regulatory Plan. However, more information can be found about these completed rulemakings in past publications of the Unified Agenda on Reginfo.gov (http://reginfo.gov/) in the Completed Actions section. These rulemakings can also be found on Regulations.gov (http://regulations.gov). The EEOC's final Plan for Retrospective

Analysis of Existing Rules can be found at: http://www.eeoc.gov/laws/regulations/retro_review_plan_final.cfm.