Access to justice.
Letter to Editor (NATIONAL)
Deborah Rhode
Washington Post
May 26, 2017
READ THE FULL STORY HERE
Tags: Funding: Federal
Organizations mentioned/involved: Legal Services Corporation (LSC)
Letter to Editor (NATIONAL)
Deborah Rhode
Washington Post
May 26, 2017
READ THE FULL STORY HERE
Tags: Funding: Federal
Organizations mentioned/involved: Legal Services Corporation (LSC)
DETAILS
As a consequence, a majority of those who seek help from federally funded civil legal aid programs are turned away due to lack of resources. The budget for the LSC has declined almost 40 percent over the past three decades. Only 5,000 attorneys serve a nation with more than 60 million low-income individuals eligible for assistance. Funding for direct legal services for low-income individuals comes to just $5.85 per eligible person per year and would drop dramatically if federal funding dried up.
Those grants are highly cost-effective. Much of this aid helps individuals meet their most basic human needs and prevents exploitation of the most vulnerable groups: veterans, the elderly, disaster victims and impoverished children.