News In Brief

Enforcement of bias laws trails off in US agencies

There has been a decline in enforcement of discrimination laws at several government departments because of budget cuts and staff reductions, the US Commission on Civil Rights said in a report released Tuesday.

The report cited serious declines at the Departments of Justice, Housing and Urban Development, Labor, Education, and Health and Human Services. Compliance reviews in housing have declined to the point where ''they have become virtually negligible.'' In the Labor Department, the report said, success in gaining back pay for victims of job discrimination has declined.