EEOC Transparency and Accountability Act

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. 1. Short title This Act may be cited as the EEOC Transparency and Accountability Act 2. Approval of EEOC litigation commencement, intervention, or participation Section 705 of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 ( 42 U.S.C. 2000e–4 (l) (1) The Commission shall decide by majority vote— (A) whether the Commission will commence or intervene in litigation, for— (i) each case involving an allegation of systemic discrimination or a pattern or practice of discrimination; (ii) each case for which the litigation is expected to involve a major expenditure of agency resources, including staffing and staff time, or expenses associated with extensive discovery or expert witnesses; (iii) each case presenting an issue on which the Commission has taken a position contrary to precedent in the Judicial Circuit of the United States in which the case will be or has been filed; (iv) each case presenting an issue on which the General Counsel proposes to take a position contrary to precedent in the Circuit in which the case will be or has been filed; and (v) each case that the General Counsel reasonably believes to be appropriate for a Commission decision on such commencement or intervention, including— (I) cases that implicate areas of the law that are not settled; and (II) cases that are likely to generate public controversy; (B) for each recommendation regarding whether the Commission will participate as amicus curiae in a case, whether the Commission will so participate; and (C) in considering at least 1 litigation recommendation from each district office of the Commission each fiscal year, including litigation recommendations for cases described in subparagraph (A), whether the Commission will commence or intervene in the litigation for each case. (2) A member of the Commission shall have the power to require the Commission to decide by majority vote whether the Commission shall commence, intervene in, or participate in any litigation as described in paragraph (1). (3) Neither the Commission nor a member of the Commission may delegate the authority provided under paragraph (1) or (2) to any other person. (4) Not later than 30 days after the Commission commences, intervenes in, or participates in litigation pursuant to approval under this subsection, the Commission shall post and maintain the following information on its public website with respect to the litigation: (A) The court in which the case was brought. (B) The name and case number of the case. (C) The nature of the allegation. (D) The causes of action for the case brought. (E) Each Commissioner’s vote on commencing, intervening in, or participating in the litigation. (5) The Commission shall issue, in a manner consistent with section 713, procedural regulations to carry out this subsection. .

Summary: EEOC Transparency and Accountability Act This bill provides statutory authority for the requirement that the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) vote on whether to commence, intervene, or otherwise participate in certain types of litigation, including cases involving issues in which the commission has taken a position that is contrary to the corresponding judicial precedent. (The EEOC adopted a similar resolution in January 2021.) The commission must post information relating to such cases and associated votes on its website.