U.S. Office of Management and Budget Releases Initial Proposals on Revising Race and Ethnicity Statistical Standards

Today the U.S. Office of Management and Budget’s (OMB) Office of the Chief Statistician released an initial set of recommended revisions proposed by the Federal Interagency Technical Working Group on Race and Ethnicity Standards (Working Group) to revise OMB’s 1997 Statistical Policy Directive No. 15: Standards for Maintaining, Collecting, and Presenting Federal Data on Race and Ethnicity (SPD 15).

Note: These recommendations are preliminary – not final – and they do not represent the positions of OMB or the agencies participating on the Working Group. 

This work was undertaken to ensure that the standards better reflect the racial and ethnic diversity of the U.S. population. This brings us one step closer to updating SPD 15, and there is still much work to be done. 

The Working Group wants to hear directly from the American people.  We encourage interested stakeholders to visit the Working Group’s new website, read the full Federal Register Notice, and participate in one of the Working Group’s virtual, bi-monthly listening sessions or upcoming public virtual town halls.

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The public’s participation in this process will play a critical role in helping the Working Group improve the way Federal agencies safely and accurately collect and use information on the race and ethnicity of our diverse America. The Working Group’s website contains information on how to submit feedback on the initial proposals.  

The Chief Statistician of the United States, Dr. Karin Orvis, along with the Working Group Chair (Bob Sivinski, OMB) and Co-Chair (Karen Battle, Census Bureau) are committed to a full, transparent revision process. OMB’s goal is to complete these revisions by the Summer of 2024.  

Note: All questions should be directed to Bob Sivinski (OMB, Working Group Chair) at [email protected].  

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