When Idaho Gov. Butch Otter set the Idaho Human Rights Commission on a four-year glide path to extinction, some innovative thinkers took charge. Now it looks as if the commission will be merged with the state Department of Labor and the important mission will be preserved.

The commission gets $600,000 a year. Otter wanted to reduce that to $396,000 in fiscal year 2011 and ultimately eliminate funding. As soon as that was announced, officials sought a solution. They noted that other states have placed such commissions inside labor departments since both agencies handle discrimination complaints. The commission unanimously approved such a merger after being satisfied that it could effectively carry out its duties.

The Legislature will still have to approve of the move. The Department of Labor is financed with employment taxes and federal funds. It gets no money from the state’s general fund, so Otter would get the savings he seeks. He lauds the merger. We do, too, because it shows the kind of creative thinking all governments should be doing to save money in times of fiscal crisis. Actually, they should do this as a matter of course.

The death of the commission would have been a huge blow to the strides the state has made in addressing the national perception that it is a hotbed of bigotry. That work needs to continue. The commission dealt with more than 500 complaints in the 2009 fiscal year. The battle to defend human rights needs to stay in the forefront.

Many human rights activists and two former governors signed a letter that stated the importance of the mission. Tony Stewart, a founder of the Kootenai County Task Force on Human Relations, was one of them. He is encouraged that the merger will preserve this important work.

Last year, racist activities experienced a bit of a revival in North Idaho. Ending the commission would have sent the wrong message about this governmental priority.

The merger has been rightly characterized as a “win-win.” It saves money; it maintains the mission. But to people who want to disseminate messages of hate or engage in discrimination, it’s probably seen as bad news.

That’s good news.