North Dakota's Labor Department, which faces a lawsuit over its handling of discrimination complaints, is drafting rules that outline how to file grievances, although activists believe the proposals do not go far enough.

"They're a good start," said Cheryl Bergian, director of the North Dakota Human Rights Coalition, a nonprofit group based in Fargo. "But there are some areas that need to be more fully developed."

The Labor Department has jurisdiction to investigate instances of possible housing or job discrimination. North Dakota lawmakers gave the agency its new anti-discrimination portfolio three years ago, in response to a legislative push to establish a new state Human Rights Commission.

The proposed rules, which were the focus of a public hearing Tuesday, are intended to flesh out the law and give North Dakotans a clearer view of how the complaint process works, Labor Commissioner Mark Bachmeier said.

"There's been some ongoing dialogue suggesting certain things that needed clarification," Bachmeier said. The agency is taking comments on its proposed rules until June 4.

Bergian and Fargo attorney Mark Schneider, who is representing the coalition in a lawsuit against Bachmeier, believe the agency should investigate each discrimination complaint and make formal findings - called a determination of probable cause - on each one.

Meritless claims could be dismissed, and those with enough evidence to justify additional checking could be probed further, Schneider said. At that point, the Labor Department could attempt to reconcile the participants in a case, or order a hearing before an administrative law judge.

The proposed rules do not mention administrative hearings, "which is the main enforcement remedy that the Labor Department has," Schneider said. "My supposition is, they're doing everything they can to avoid taking these cases to an administrative hearing."

Bergian and Schneider believe North Dakota law requires the Labor Department to decide whether a complaint may have merit before the agency attempts conciliation, or orders an administrative hearing.

Bachmeier disagrees. Instead, the Labor Department has focused on reconciling complaints before it makes a formal determination that they may be justified.

The proposed rules say the Labor Department is responsible for investigating complaints, and making findings about whether there is probable cause that discrimination occurred.

However, a complaint may be resolved by conciliation before the investigation is finished, the proposed rules say. A complaint is also considered closed if it is referred to a federal agency, such as the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.

Schneider objects to the possibility that a complaint could be "resolved" by transferring it to a a federal agency.

"The whole legislative purpose was to have a state agency, under state law, to have a state remedy for discrimination," Schneider said. "It wasn't to shuffle off a complaint to some federal bureaucracy in Denver or Kansas City or Chicago."

Bergian said she believed Bachmeier and his staff "have the best intentions," but that they do not have enough staff or money to handle the responsibilities the Legislature has given them. The Labor Department has 10 employees, and a two-year budget of $1.1 million.

"They have been given a lot of responsibility, and I think they have way more responsibility than resources," she said.