NYC Local Law 144 (AEDT)

• Covers automated employment decision tools (AEDTs): software using machine learning, statistics, data analytics or AI that gives a simplified output (score, rank, classification, recommendation) that substantially assists or replaces human judgement in hiring or promotion.
• Before using an AEDT, the employer must make sure it had an independent bias audit within the last year, and must post a summary of the results and the tool's first-use date on its careers page.
• NYC-resident candidates and employees must get notice at least 10 business days before the tool is used, including what it assesses and how to ask for an alternative process or accommodation.
• Employers must also explain their data retention policy, data types and sources, on the website or within 30 days of a written request.
• The law demands an audit, not a result: it does not say what to do if the audit shows a disparity. Anti-discrimination law still applies.

• Employers and employment agencies that use an AEDT "in the city" to assess candidates for hiring or employees for promotion (Admin. Code 20-871).
• "In the city" means the job is tied to an NYC office at least part time, or is remote but linked to an NYC office, or the employment agency is in NYC (DCWP FAQ I.4).
• Notice duties protect NYC residents only (Admin. Code 20-871(b)).
• Vendors are not directly liable. The employer must ensure an audit exists; a vendor may commission one for its tool (FAQ V).
• Extraterritorial: yes, in practice. An employer or agency based anywhere (including India) is covered if it uses an AEDT to fill an NYC-linked role.
• Out of scope: sourcing or outreach to people who have not applied for a specific role (FAQ I.6), and simple tools such as spam filters, firewalls, calculators and spreadsheets (Admin. Code 20-870).

• Fines (Admin. Code 20-872): up to USD 500 for the first violation and any further violations on the same day; USD 500 to 1,500 for each later violation.
• Stacking: each day an AEDT is used in breach is a separate violation, and each missed notice is a separate violation.
• Forum: penalty cases go to the Office of Administrative Trials and Hearings (OATH). The Corporation Counsel can also go to court to force compliance (20-873).
• Private claims preserved: the law does not limit candidates' own lawsuits or the NYC Commission on Human Rights (20-874).
• Complaints: anyone can report missing audits, summaries or notices to DCWP online without an account.
• Comptroller audit (Dec 2025): the State Comptroller found DCWP's enforcement "ineffective", citing weak complaint routing, inaccurate compliance reviews and heavy reliance on employers to self-disclose. DCWP agreed to most recommendations: better routing of AEDT complaints, staff training, written procedures, and interviews and tool demonstrations during investigations. (The osc.ny.gov report page blocked automated access; findings taken from osc.ny.gov search extracts and law-firm summaries. Specific counts not verified.) Expect more proactive enforcement in 2026.
• Amendments: none to Local Law 144 or the DCWP rule found as of 2026-10-19. One secondary source mentions a 2026 local law ordering a city study of automated hiring tools; not verified.

• Indian HR-tech vendors (resume screeners, assessment engines, video interview scorers, ATS ranking features) selling to US employers: NYC customers will ask for a current independent bias audit before go-live and every year. Commission one on pooled customer data so each customer can rely on it (they must contribute data or be first-time users).
• Do not audit yourself. An auditor who works for the vendor, helped build the tool, or has a financial interest is not independent (6 RCNY 5-300). Use an outside firm.
• Give customers a publishable summary: audit date, data source, number of "unknown" category records, applicant counts, selection or scoring rates and impact ratios by sex, race/ethnicity and their combinations.
• Build notice support into the product: configurable candidate notices, a 10 business day timer before scoring, an "alternative process or accommodation" request link, and a data retention statement.
• Indian IT and GCC employers hiring for New York offices (or recruitment process outsourcing firms acting as employment agencies) are themselves covered if they use AI screening for NYC-linked roles.
• Demographic data cannot be inferred or imputed for the audit (FAQ III.6); you need real self-reported data or test data with an explanation.

References: NYC Administrative Code (Admin. Code) and Rules of the City of New York Title 6 (6 RCNY).

• Inventory of hiring and promotion tools with a documented decision on whether each is an AEDT.
• Current bias audit report, dated within the last 12 months, and the auditor's independence statement.
• Data description used in the audit (historical or test data, time period, why any categories were excluded).
• Screenshot or archived copy of the careers page summary and distribution date, with posting history showing 6 months after last use.
• Candidate notice text and proof of timing (job posting dates, email logs) showing 10 business days before use.
• Alternative process and accommodation request log.
• Data retention statement and log of written data requests answered within 30 days.
• Vendor contract clauses on audit cooperation and data sharing.
• Record of how adverse impact findings were reviewed under anti-discrimination law.

• Assuming the vendor's audit automatically covers you. You may rely on a pooled audit only if you supplied your data or are using the tool for the first time.
• Letting the audit lapse past 12 months while the tool keeps running; each day counts as a new violation.
• Using inferred or imputed race and sex data in the audit.
• Posting notice on the same day the tool starts scoring, instead of 10 business days earlier.
• Taking the audit summary down as soon as the tool is retired; it must stay up 6 months after last use.
• Thinking "the human makes the final decision" takes you out of scope. Screening that substantially assists the decision counts (FAQ I.5).
• Treating low enforcement to date as safety. The Comptroller audit pushed DCWP to investigate more actively.

• AEDT (automated employment decision tool): software that gives a score, rank or recommendation used to substantially assist or replace human decisions on hiring or promotion.
• Bias audit: an impartial evaluation by an independent auditor of how the tool's outcomes differ across sex and race/ethnicity groups.
• Selection rate: the share of people in a group who were selected or moved forward.
• Scoring rate: the share of people in a group who scored above the sample median.
• Impact ratio: one group's selection (or scoring) rate divided by the rate of the most selected (or highest scoring) group; values well below 1 suggest disparity.
• Intersectional category: a combined group, such as Hispanic or Latino women.
• Distribution date: the date the employer started using the AEDT.
• Business day: a working day, excluding weekends and public holidays.
• DCWP: the NYC agency that enforces consumer and worker protection laws, including this one.
• OATH: the NYC tribunal that hears penalty cases.

• In force since 1 Jan 2023, enforced since 5 Jul 2023; no amendments found as of 2026-10-19.
• Four pillars: independent annual bias audit, public summary, 10 business day notice, data retention disclosure.
• The employer carries the duty, but Indian HR-tech vendors effectively must supply the audit and notice tooling to sell into NYC.
• Fines are modest per violation but stack daily; the Dec 2025 Comptroller audit signals tougher enforcement.
• This is the clearest real-world case for SC-AI-038 Independent bias audit.

• DCWP, Automated Employment Decision Tools page, accessed 2026-10-19
• DCWP, AEDT Frequently Asked Questions (PDF, 29 Jun 2023), accessed 2026-10-19
• NYC Council Legistar, Int. 1894-2020 (Local Law 144 of 2021), accessed 2026-10-19
• NYC Rules, Automated Employment Decision Tools (updated) rule page, accessed 2026-10-19
• DCWP Notice of Adoption of Final Rule (PDF), accessed 2026-10-19
• NY State Comptroller, Enforcement of Local Law 144 (Report 2024-N-6, 2 Dec 2025), page blocked automated access on 2026-10-19; content taken from search extracts