NY Governor Passes Bill to Change How Data is Collected on AAPIs

Apicha Community Health Center applauds Governor Kathy Hochul for signing NYS Bill A6896 on Asian American and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander (AA and NH/PI) data disaggregation into law.

What Is Data Disaggregation?

Data Disaggregation is defined as the process by which a larger group is broken down into subcategories. Under this new legislation, New York’s state agencies must now individually break down data on communities that have usually been lumped together as "Asian Americans & Pacific Islanders."

Data must be broken down into these 10 most populous Asian American groups:

1. Chinese
2. Japanese
3. Filipino
4. Korean
5. Vietnamese
6. Indian
7. Laotian
8. Cambodian
9. Bangladeshi
10. Hmong

Data must also be broken down into these 4 most populous Pacific Islander groups:

1. Native Hawaiian
2. Guamanian
3. Chamorro
4. Samoan

State agencies will also be required to annually publish the data collected.

Why Does Data Disaggregation Matter?

The Coalition for Asian American Children and Families (CACF) sums up the importance of Data Disaggregation "Better data means more equitable resources, services, and policies for our communities, and especially for those who struggle the most."

For decades, Asian Americans & Pacific Islanders have been painted as a monolith, despite the stark differences in income, education, etc. across their various ethnic groups. The reality is that there are hundreds of ethnicities, languages, religions, and cultures across the Asian & Pacific Islander diasporas. By breaking down data into more specific ethnic groups, we will be able to better understand the social and economic needs of individual ethnic communities, to more effectively provide equity to communities in need. This can be particularly useful when it comes to addressing social issues such as language access, food insecurity, access to housing, and other essential needs.

Apicha CHC Moving Forward

Apicha CHC has been a part of a coalition of community organizations that have been advocating for this change for over a decade, through the CACF's Invisible No More Campaign. We are elated to celebrate this win and use this data to better serve our communities in need.