Bias Audit.
6 RCNY § 5-301
in effect§ 5-301 Bias Audit.
(a) An employer or employment agency may not use or continue to use an AEDT if more than one year has passed since the most recent bias audit of the AEDT.
(b) Where an AEDT selects candidates for employment or employees being considered for promotion to move forward in the hiring process or classifies them into groups, a bias audit must, at a minimum:
(1) Calculate the selection rate for each category;
(2) Calculate the impact ratio for each category;
(3) Ensure that the calculations required in paragraphs (1) and (2) of this subdivision separately calculate the impact of the AEDT on:
i. Sex categories (e.g., impact ratio for selection of male candidates vs female candidates),
ii. Race/Ethnicity categories (e.g., impact ratio for selection of Hispanic or Latino candidates vs Black or African American [Not Hispanic or Latino] candidates), and
iii. intersectional categories of sex, ethnicity, and race (e.g., impact ratio for selection of Hispanic or Latino male candidates vs. Not Hispanic or Latino Black or African American female candidates).
(4) Ensure that the calculations in paragraphs (1), (2), and (3) of this subdivision are performed for each group, if an AEDT classifies candidates for employment or employees being considered for promotion into specified groups (e.g., leadership styles); and
(5) Indicate the number of individuals the AEDT assessed that are not included in the required calculations because they fall within an unknown category.
Example: An employer wants to use an AEDT to screen resumes and schedule interviews for a job posting. To do so, the employer must ensure that a bias audit of the AEDT was conducted no more than a year before the planned use of the AEDT. This bias audit is necessary even though the employer is not using the AEDT to make the final hiring decision, but only to screen at an early point in the application process. The employer asks the vendor for a bias audit. The vendor provides historical data regarding applicant selection that the vendor has collected from multiple employers to an independent auditor who will conduct a bias audit as follows:
Sex Categories
# of Applicants # Selected Selection Rate Impact Ratio
Male 1390 667 48% 1.00
Female 1181 555 47% 0.979
Race/Ethnicity Categories
# of Applicants # Selected Selection Rate Impact Ratio
Hispanic or Latino 408 204 50% 0.97
White (Not Hispanic or Latino) 797 412 52% 1.00
Black or African American (Not Hispanic or Latino) 390 170 44% 0.84
Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander (Not Hispanic or Latino) 119 52 44% 0.85
Asian (Not Hispanic or Latino) 616 302 49% 0.95
Native American or Alaska Native (Not Hispanic or Latino) 41 18 44% 0.85
Two or More Races (Not Hispanic or Latino) 213 96 45% 0.87
Intersectional Categories
# of Applicants # Selected Selection Rate Impact Ratio
Hispanic or Latino Male 205 90 43.9% 0.841
Female 190 82 0.827 43.2%
Non/Hispanic or Latino Male White 412 215 52.2% 1.000
Black or African American 226 95 42.0% 0.806
Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander 87 37 42.5% 0.815
Asian 321 167 52.0% 0.997
Native American or Alaska Native 24 11 45.8% 0.878
Two or More Races 115 52 45.2% 0.866
Female White 385 197 51.2% 0.981
Black or African American 164 75 45.7% 0.876
Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander 32 15 46.9% 0.898
Asian 295 135 45.8% 0.877
Native American or Alaska Native 17 7 41.2% 0.789
Two or More Races 98 44 44.9% 0.860
Note: The AEDT was also used to assess 250 individuals with an unknown sex or race/ethnicity category. Data on those individuals was not included in the calculations above.
(c) Where an AEDT scores candidates for employment or employees being considered for promotion, a bias audit must, at a minimum:
(1) Calculate the median score for the full sample of applicants;
(2) Calculate the scoring rate for individuals in each category;
(3) Calculate the impact ratio for each category;
(4) Ensure that the calculations required in paragraphs (1), (2), and (3) of this subdivision separately calculate the impact of the AEDT on:
i. Sex categories (i.e., impact ratio for selection of male candidates vs female candidates),
ii. Race/Ethnicity categories (e.g., impact ratio for selection of Hispanic or Latino candidates vs Black or African American [Not Hispanic or Latino] candidates), and
iii. intersectional categories of sex, ethnicity, and race (e.g., impact ratio for selection of Hispanic or Latino male candidates vs. Not Hispanic or Latino Black or African American female candidates); and
(5) Indicate the number of individuals the AEDT assessed that are not included in the required calculations because they fall within an unknown category.
(d) Notwithstanding the requirements of paragraphs (2) and (3) of subdivision (b) and paragraphs (3) and (4) of subdivision (c), an independent auditor may exclude a category that represents less than 2% of the data being used for the bias audit from the required calculations for impact ratio. Where such a category is excluded, the summary of results must include the independent auditor's justification for the exclusion, as well as the number of applicants and scoring rate or selection rate for the excluded category.
Example: An employer uses an AEDT to score applicants for "culture fit." To do so, the employer must ensure that a bias audit of the AEDT was conducted no more than a year before the use of the AEDT. The employer provides historical data on "culture fit" score of applicants for each category to an independent auditor to conduct a bias audit as follows:
Sex Categories
# of Applicants Scoring Rate Impact Ratio
Male 92 54.3% 1.00
Female 76 44.7% 0.82
Race/Ethnicity Categories
# of Applicants Scoring Rate Impact Ratio
Hispanic or Latino 28 64.2% 1.00
White (Not Hispanic or Latino) 40 37.5% 0.58
Black or African American (Not Hispanic or Latino) 32 50.0% 0.78
Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander (Not Hispanic or Latino) 8 62.5% 0.97
Asian (Not Hispanic or Latino) 24 41.7% 0.65
Native American or Alaska Native (Not Hispanic or Latino) 16 62.5% 0.97
Two or More Races (Not Hispanic or Latino) 20 50.0% 0.78
Intersectional Categories
# of Applicants Scoring Rate Impact Ratio
Hispanic or Latino Male 16 75% 1.00
Female 12 50% 0.67
Non/Hispanic or Latino Male White 20 35% 0.47
Black or African American 20 50% 0.67
Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander 4 75% 1.00
Asian 12 58.3% 0.78
Native American or Alaska Native 8 62.5 0.83
Two or More Races 12 50% 0.67
Female White 20 40% 0.53
Black or African American 12 50% .67
Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander 4 50% 0.67
Asian 12 25% 0.33
Native American or Alaska Native 8 62.5% 0.83
Two or More Races 8 50% 0.67
Note: The AEDT was used to assess 15 individuals with an unknown sex or race/ethnicity category. Data on these individuals was not included in the calculations above.
(Added City Record 4/6/2023, eff. 5/6/2023)
Source: City of New York, Charter, Administrative Code and Rules (American Legal Publishing XML export, codelibrary.amlegal.com)URL: https://codelibrary.amlegal.com/codes/newyorkcity/latest/NYCrules/0-0-0-138530Fetched: 10/24/2026