Biden Signs Bill Nixing Trump-Era EEOC Conciliation Regulation

President Joe Biden signed a resolution rescinding a Trump-era EEOC regulation governing a process the workplace civil rights agency uses to resolve allegations of bias before filing a lawsuit.

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission rule, finalized at the end of the Trump administration, mandated the agency give employers more information about its findings of alleged discrimination after it determines bias occurred. That process, known as conciliation, is used as an alternative resolution method to litigation; the agency can sue if the employer and worker don’t reach a settlement through conciliation.

“With this law, we’re going to move in the direction of greater fairness, accountability, and justice,” Biden said at a signing ceremony Wednesday.

The House approved rolling back the regulation via the Congressional Review Act on June 24, and the Senate did the same in May.

The White House issued a statement of support for the legislation last month, saying it would remove “unnecessary and burdensome standards” established by the rule—which would have encouraged employers to focus in litigation on whether the regulation’s terms were met, rather than on the allegations of bias.

“The resolution will furthermore ensure that justice for workers subject to discrimination is not delayed, or potentially denied, due to costly and time-consuming collateral litigation,” the White House statement said.