Failure and fraud in civil rights enforcement by the Department of Education are reported. Investigation and enforcement of the law is the duty of the department's Office for Civil Rights (OCR), which has not followed procedural guidelines for these duties. Complaint cases have accumulated without resolution and few attempts have been made to withdraw federal monies from states and agencies which are not in compliance. Desegregation plans in school districts and institutions of higher education have been disregarded, causing a retrenchment in black enrollment and the number of black graduates. Efforts have been made to backdate some civil rights documents, improperly close discrimination investigations, and provide false information to a federal court. The Committee on Government Operations recommends that the OCR investigate these infractions thoroughly. Opposing views are presented by a group of 15 Representatives who believe that the work of the OCR is not as delinquent as has been suggested. The following issues are raised in support of the OCR: (1) there is a tremendous amount of material the OCR must review before making determinations; (2) failure to achieve a desegregation goal is not sufficient evidence of a violation; (3) OCR has taken corrective measures in the cases of back dating; and (4) OCR is not part of a scheme to mislead the court. (VM)