For the first time in more than a quarter century, the Office of Management and Budget has updated the way it categorizes people’s race and ethnicity including giving people the ability to choose more than one option, the Washington Post reports.
Federal forms will also include an option for “Middle Eastern or North African” heritage, the first addition to the listed races since 1997. The changes will be used on all federal forms including US Census forms and the more-regularly-conducted American Community Survey, which is used to track employment statistics and other data.