DOL Rescission of EO 11246 Regulations and OFCCP Uniform Guidelines

SUMMARY

DOL’s final rescission of EO 11246 implementing regulations took effect October 26, 2026, including removal of 41 CFR part 60-3, OFCCP’s codification of the Uniform Guidelines on Employee Selection Procedures (UGESP). The EEOC’s separate Guidelines at 29 CFR part 1607 and Title VII remain in place.

WHY IT MATTERS

This removes the OFCCP regulatory layer for the EO 11246 federal-contractor regime. Automated screening, ranking, testing, scoring, assessments and other selection methods can still implicate remaining anti-discrimination frameworks depending on employer coverage and how a tool is used. UGESP is a selection-procedure framework, not an AI-specific rule; not every automated hiring system falls within its scope.

COVERAGE

Employers: Federal contractors and subcontractors formerly covered by the EO 11246 regulations. Title VII and other laws have their own coverage rules; Title VII generally covers employers with at least 15 employees.

Workers: Applicants and employees affected by employment-selection procedures, subject to each remaining law’s coverage.

Final rule / rescission: what changed

Published August 21, 2026, the final rule removes and reserves 41 CFR parts 60-1, 60-2, 60-3, 60-4, 60-20, 60-40, 60-50 and 60-999, and revises part 60-30 to remove EO 11246 components. Part 60-3 was rescinded in its entirety: federal contractors no longer have this specific OFCCP UGESP codification operating under EO 11246.

The formal regulatory effective date is October 26, 2026. This follows the January 2025 revocation of EO 11246 and should not be read as saying OFCCP continued EO 11246 enforcement until October 2026.

Primary sources: Rescission of Executive Order 11246 Implementing Regulations — final rule (91 FR 54444) · EO 11246 rescission — Federal Register HTML · 41 CFR Chapter 60 — current eCFR

What did not change

The final rule expressly preserves other agencies’ interpretation and application of UGESP and the Guidelines’ broader existence. EEOC’s separate 29 CFR part 1607 remains; this rule did not rescind the EEOC Guidelines.

Title VII was not amended or repealed by this rule. Applicable anti-discrimination obligations under Title VII and other federal, state and local laws remain. This is neither a repeal of all federal hiring-test guidance nor a general deregulation of AI hiring. Separate disability and veterans programs are not repealed by this EO 11246 rescission.

Primary sources: EO 11246 rescission — Federal Register HTML · 29 CFR Part 1607 — Uniform Guidelines on Employee Selection Procedures (1978) · Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964

Connection to automated hiring

A tool used for screening, ranking, testing, scoring or assessments may function as an employment-selection procedure. Its use, the employment decision and applicable employer coverage determine the relevance of remaining frameworks. Automation alone does not establish UGESP coverage or a violation.

The EEOC explains that discriminatory tests and selection procedures can violate Title VII and other anti-discrimination laws. The rescission therefore removes one contractor-specific regulatory layer without eliminating scrutiny of selection methods or creating blanket permission to use automated hiring tools.

Primary sources: 29 CFR Part 1607 — Uniform Guidelines on Employee Selection Procedures (1978) · Employment Tests and Selection Procedures · Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964

CHANGE HISTORY

1. 2026-10-29
   verification update

   Record re-verified

   Official source links, status, and key dates were checked for this maintenance release.

2. 2026-10-26
   effective

   Rescission became effective

   OFCCP’s part 60-3 removed and reserved; EEOC part 1607 remains.

3. 2026-08-21
   rule adopted

   Final rule published

   DOL published the EO 11246 implementing-regulation rescission with an October 26 effective date.

TOPICS

PRIMARY SOURCES