June 8, 1999

Sen. Conrad Burns (R-MT) wants the Senate Agriculture Committee to look into bias cases mostly from Montana women and Native Americans against USDA. The cases allege USDA discrimination and have been pending for years, says Burns.

USDA statistics from March 1998 show Montana with 19 complaints. That puts the state "on par with much larger states and much higher on a per capita basis," says Burns. Seventeen claims, some including several people, have been presented to Burns for assistance.

"Some of these folks have been waiting years to have their cases resolved, and most of them can't afford to wait any longer," Burns said. He met with Rosalind Gray who heads USDA's Office of Civil Rights and invited her to Montana to talk about the cases. "So far, USDA hasn't budged to help these people," he added.

Last year, Congress waived the statute of limitations on certain USDA discrimination cases, giving farmers until Sept. 30, 2000, to file or refile cases that allegedly occurred between 1983 and 1996.