This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2005, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
A House committee advanced a bill on Monday that would transfer the state courts' Commission on Racial and Ethnic Fairness to the Governor's Office.
The commission was formed in 1996 as an entity of the State Judicial Council but funding has since dried up.
The 30-member commission's mission is to study fairness within the criminal and juvenile justice system and monitor those efforts.
House Bill 292, sponsored by Rep. Duane Bourdeaux, D-Salt Lake City, has a price tag of $122,800.
Former Utah Supreme Court Justice Michael Zimmerman said funding for the commission needs to be continued.
"You want to make sure that the system eliminates any potential for intentional, or unintentional, bias," Zimmerman said.
- Thomas Burr
