Washington, DC - The U.S. Commission on Civil Rights took action on four reports at its July 16, and September 17, 2004, meetings. The reports continue the Commission's mission of promoting and defending civil rights. The independent, bipartisan body approved:
Ten-Year Check-Up: Have Federal Agencies Responded to Civil Rights Recommendations? Volume IV, the last in a series on the extent to which government agencies have implemented Commission recommendations. The series found a moderate rate of implementation and offered recommendations for overcoming lingering enforcement hurdles. The final volume examined the Departments of Education, Health and Human Services, Housing and Urban Development, and Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
Funding Federal Civil Rights Enforcement: 2005, the Commission's annual analysis of government funding, staffing, and workload levels for civil rights enforcement programs at federal agencies. The edition examines data representing fiscal years 1994 to 2005 for the Departments of Education, Justice, Health and Human Services, Labor, Housing and Urban Development, and Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
Broken Promises: Evaluating the Native American Health Care System, examines the government's obligation to provide Native Americans with adequate health care and finds structural and financial barriers (such as wait times at medical facilities and for treatment; retention and recruitment of qualified health providers) that cause and contribute to health disparities between Native Americans and the general population.
In approving the reports, Commission Chair Mary Frances Berry said "These studies document that an array of problems continue to hinder relief to victims of discrimination."
The Commission declined to pass Toward Equal Access: Eliminating Language Barriers from Federal Programs, which addressed government efforts to reduce language obstacles to programs and services.
Copies of Ten-Year Check-Up, Funding, and Broken Promises can be ordered by contacting the Commission's publications office at (202) 376-8128. All reports can be viewed at www.usccr.gov.
10/05/04