Civil Rights Agency Closings, Cuts Decried

Mired in a deep budget crisis, the commission will shutter the Denver office and another in Kansas City, Kan., in October, laying off six people.
The move will force anyone with a federal civil rights complaint in those districts to seek help in the commission's Chicago office. The Denver office covers Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wyoming, Utah and Colorado, while the Kansas City office oversees complaints in Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, Iowa, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Arkansas and Missouri.
There are few state and local civil rights commissions with adequate staff, and lawsuits are expensive, civil rights advocates say.