State and local agencies: demographic data.

Assembly Member Harabedian's Middle Eastern and North African Inclusion Act requires California state and local agencies to separately collect and report demographic data for Middle Eastern, North African, and related transnational ethnic groups beginning January 1, 2028. The legislation mandates that agencies gathering ancestry or ethnic origin data must use distinct categories for major Middle Eastern populations (including Afghan, Iranian, Iraqi, and Lebanese), North African groups (such as Egyptian, Moroccan, and Tunisian), and transnational communities (including Amazigh, Armenian, and Kurdish).

Under the new requirements, agencies must incorporate this demographic data in reports published after January 1, 2029, and make aggregated statistics publicly available online. The law includes privacy protections that prohibit the disclosure of personally identifying information, allowing agencies to aggregate data at geographic levels - such as state, county, city, census tract, or ZIP code - to prevent individual identification while enabling analysis of population patterns. The provisions apply to all California cities, including charter cities, though notably exclude the California State University and University of California systems.

The measure builds upon existing demographic data collection practices for Asian and Pacific Islander groups, extending similar categorical reporting requirements to Middle Eastern and North African communities. Local agencies implementing these new data collection and reporting protocols may receive state reimbursement for associated costs if the Commission on State Mandates determines the requirements constitute state-mandated expenses.