The Idaho Human Rights Commission unanimously backed a new partnership between the state's discrimination watchdog and the Department of Labor. Last month, Gov. C.L. ``Butch'' Otter proposed eliminating state funding for the 40-year-old agency over the next four years. An uproar ensued among some who feared that could spell the commission's demise. But that was before Pamela Parks, the commission's head, and Department of Labor Director Roger Madsen worked out a proposal to combine forces and tap Department of Labor-managed funds to cover about $600,000 that Otter wants phased out from the state general fund by 2014.
On Monday, the nine-member commission endorsed the plan, saying it would ensure the agency has enough money to continue investigating discrimination complaints, which last year totaled 512.
Parks called the plan ``a win-win for the state, and the right thing to do.''
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