The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) has withdrawn Circular 4704.1A, a document outlining requirements and guidelines for recipients of FTA financial assistance. In this compliance alert, Stephen Caldwell, Manager, Consulting Services, explains who the withdrawn guidance applied to and the extent of the impact on recipient EEO obligations.
Summary
On May 20, 2026, the FTA published a notice of withdrawal for Guidance Circular 4704.1A. The former guidance required FTA recipients with 50 or more transit-related employees to maintain an EEO program plan documenting their nondiscrimination efforts. Additionally, recipients with 100 or more employees who also received more than $1 million in Federal funding annually were required to submit comprehensive EEO programs every four years. These programs had already been delayed from their usual deadline earlier this year.
The notice argues that the guidance is now redundant given the established authorities of the EEOC and the DOJ. Furthermore, it claims the revocation “will relieve an administrative burden for recipients by terminating the requirement that recipients submit EEO documentation to FTA.”
Who Is Impacted and What Actions Are Required?
Going forward, transit authority organizations will no longer have to submit their EEO programs to the FTA. However, the notice makes it clear that the underlying requirements are still in place. This includes nondiscrimination requirements under Titles VI and VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Title II of the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act of 2008 (GINA), 49 U.S.C. Chapter 53, and “other Federal civil rights statutes”
With these requirements still in effect, FTA recipients should continue to monitor their workforce alongside their existing EEO policies, records, training, and procedures. Even if the submission piece is no longer required, the enforcement agencies may still review any element of your EEO program, and in this scenario you must be able to demonstrate compliance with federal law. This means maintaining policies, analyses, and documentation to evidence compliance if reviewed by the EEOC, DOJ, or in litigation—a move from reporting to defensibility.
How Affirmity Can Help
With the move away from an FTA-approved program structure for transit organizations to follow, Affirmity’s experts are on hand to help you build a fully defensible compliance program capable of weathering direct EEOC investigations, DOJ actions, and potential litigation. This includes software and services support for:
- Race and sex-based non-discrimination analyses that ensure your organization’s adherence to Title VII and other key equal opportunity laws
- Your other federally mandated reporting requirements, including EEO-4
The Affirmity team is ready to assist you in gathering the data you need to comply—contact us today to get started.
About the Author
Stephen Caldwell is a Manager of Consulting Services at Affirmity. In this role, he leads and manages a team of Affirmity consultants, providing consulting and project management in workforce compliance programs. He has assisted clients in the utility, healthcare, defense, telecommunications, energy, chemical, and other industries.
Mr. Caldwell has been with Affirmity for more than sixteen years and has over 30 years of experience in human resource consulting and diversity planning.