Oregon law enforcement agencies would have to track the race and sex of everyone they initiate contact with under a measure being considered at the state Capitol.
Related: Oregon DOJ Proposal Aims To Reduce Law Enforcement Profiling
The proposal stems from a 2015 law that banned racial profiling by police in Oregon.
Advocates say it's difficult to tell whether the law is having the intended effect, since most law enforcement agencies in the state don't track who they stop or why.
Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum testified in favor of the measure. She said it would provide a missing link.
"In this data-poor environment, identifying the true causes of profiling — much less putting a stop to them — can end up being a guessing game," said Rosenblum.
Rosenblum's own office was accused of profiling in 2015 when an employee conducted a social media search of #BlackLivesMatter and issued warnings about the state Department of Justice's only civil rights attorney, Erious Johnson Jr.
The bill would require the information law enforcement gather to only be used for statistical purposes.
Smaller police departments would have up to four years to begin collecting the data.
