Federal

EEOC Transparency and Accountability Act

Source: Congress.gov · 770 words in original text

What This Bill Does

This bill changes how the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), a federal agency that handles workplace discrimination complaints, makes decisions about participating in lawsuits. The bill requires the EEOC to get approval from its leadership through a majority vote before starting, joining or participating in certain types of legal cases. The bill also requires the EEOC to publish information about these cases on its public website.

Who It Affects

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and its members, the General Counsel of the EEOC, and the public who access the EEOC's website.

Key Provisions

• The EEOC must vote by majority vote before commencing, intervening in (joining an existing case), or participating in litigation involving allegations of systemic discrimination (widespread discrimination affecting a group of people) or a pattern or practice of discrimination (repeated instances of discrimination). (Sec. 2) • The EEOC must vote by majority vote before commencing, intervening in, or participating in cases that involve major expenditures of agency resources, including staffing, staff time, or costs related to extensive discovery (investigating and exchanging evidence) or expert witnesses. (Sec. 2) • The EEOC must vote by majority vote before commencing, intervening in, or participating in cases where the EEOC or its General Counsel proposes to take a legal position different from previous court decisions in the judicial circuit where the case will be filed. (Sec. 2) • Within 30 days after the EEOC begins participating in litigation, it must post and maintain the case information on its public website, including the court, case name and number, nature of the allegation, causes of action (legal grounds for the lawsuit), and how each commissioner voted. (Sec. 2) • The EEOC must consider at least one litigation recommendation from each district office each fiscal year and vote on whether to commence or intervene in that case. (Sec. 2)

What Changes

Currently, the EEOC can decide independently whether to participate in lawsuits. This bill requires the EEOC's leadership to approve certain litigation decisions through majority vote before the agency can proceed. The bill also requires the EEOC to publicly disclose information about cases it joins, including how individual commissioners voted.

Important Definitions

Amicus curiae is defined in the bill as a party that participates in a case, though the bill does not explain what the term means. Not specified in bill text for other key terms.

I 118TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 1054 To amend title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to require the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission to approve commencing, inter- vening in, or participating in certain litigation, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES FEBRUARY 14, 2023 Mr. WALBERG introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and the Workforce A BILL To amend title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to require the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission to approve commencing, intervening in, or participating in certain litigation, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘EEOC Transparency 4 and Accountability Act’’. 5 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:27 Mar 10, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1054.IH H1054 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 1054 IH SEC. 2. APPROVAL OF EEOC LITIGATION COMMENCEMENT, 1 INTERVENTION, OR PARTICIPATION. 2 Section 705 of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 3 U.S.C. 2000e–4) is amended by adding at the end the fol- 4 lowing: 5 ‘‘(l)(1) The Commission shall decide by majority 6 vote— 7 ‘‘(A) whether the Commission will commence or 8 intervene in litigation, for— 9 ‘‘(i) each case involving an allegation of 10 systemic discrimination or a pattern or practice 11 of discrimination; 12 ‘‘(ii) each case for which the litigation is 13 expected to involve a major expenditure of 14 agency resources, including staffing and staff 15 time, or expenses associated with extensive dis- 16 covery or expert witnesses; 17 ‘‘(iii) each case presenting an issue on 18 which the Commission has taken a position con- 19 trary to precedent in the Judicial Circuit of the 20 United States in which the case will be or has 21 been filed; 22 ‘‘(iv) each case presenting an issue on 23 which the General Counsel proposes to take a 24 position contrary to precedent in the Circuit in 25 which the case will be or has been filed; and 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:27 Mar 10, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1054.IH H1054 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 1054 IH ‘‘(v) each case that the General Counsel 1 reasonably believes to be appropriate for a 2 Commission decision on such commencement or 3 intervention, including— 4 ‘‘(I) cases that implicate areas of the 5 law that are not settled; and 6 ‘‘(II) cases that are likely to generate 7 public controversy; 8 ‘‘(B) for each recommendation regarding 9 whether the Commission will participate as amicus 10 curiae in a case, whether the Commission will so 11 participate; and 12 ‘‘(C) in considering at least 1 litigation rec- 13 ommendation from each district office of the Com- 14 mission each fiscal year, including litigation rec- 15 ommendations for cases described in subparagraph 16 (A), whether the Commission will commence or in- 17 tervene in the litigation for each case. 18 ‘‘(2) A member of the Commission shall have the 19 power to require the Commission to decide by majority 20 vote whether the Commission shall commence, intervene 21 in, or participate in any litigation as described in para- 22 graph (1). 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:27 Mar 10, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1054.IH H1054 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 1054 IH ‘‘(3) Neither the Commission nor a member of the 1 Commission may delegate the authority provided under 2 paragraph (1) or (2) to any other person. 3 ‘‘(4) Not later than 30 days after the Commission 4 commences, intervenes in, or participates in litigation pur- 5 suant to approval under this subsection, the Commission 6 shall post and maintain the following information on its 7 public website with respect to the litigation: 8 ‘‘(A) The court in which the case was brought. 9 ‘‘(B) The name and case number of the case. 10 ‘‘(C) The nature of the allegation. 11 ‘‘(D) The causes of action for the case brought. 12 ‘‘(E) Each Commissioner’s vote on com- 13 mencing, intervening in, or participating in the liti- 14 gation. 15 ‘‘(5) The Commission shall issue, in a manner con- 16 sistent with section 713, procedural regulations to carry 17 out this subsection.’’. 18 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:27 Mar 10, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\H1054.IH H1054 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS

Important: This plain English summary was generated by AI and is provided for informational purposes only. It is not legal advice. Always consult the official bill text on Congress.gov or a qualified attorney for legal matters.