Madigan & 38 Other Attorneys General Send Bipartisan Letter Requesting Funding for Legal Services Corporation to Expand Access to Legal Services for Millions of Americans
Chicago —(ENEWSPF)—May 15, 2018
By: Rosemary Piser
Attorney General Lisa Madigan joined 38 other Attorneys General announcing that they sent letters to the U.S. House and Senate Committees on Appropriations to request funding for the Legal Services Corporation (LSC) in the Fiscal Year 2019 Commerce, Justice, Science and Related Agencies Appropriations bill. President Trump has zeroed out funding.
At today’s announcement, Attorney General Madigan said, “The Legal Services Corporation provides critical funding for civil legal aid to organizations that give people access to our justice system. Without Legal Services Corporation funding, millions of Americans will have nowhere to turn and no advocate when facing terrible crises.”
LSC is a nonprofit legal services organization established by Congress in 1974 to promote equal access to justice for all Americans by funding independent nonprofit legal aid programs across the country. It is the single largest funder of civil legal aid for low-income Americans in the nation, providing millions of dollars to legal aid organizations that serve and support low-income individuals, veterans and military families, seniors, survivors of domestic violence, victims of natural disasters and disabled individuals. In return, these funds save millions of dollars by keeping families safe, healthy and in their homes.
LSC distributes more than 90 percent of its funding to 133 independent nonprofit legal aid programs with more than 800 offices. It is headed by a bipartisan board of directors whose 11 members are appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate.
Joining Madigan in sending the letters to the House and Senate are the Attorneys General of Alaska, American Samoa, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Guam, Hawaii, Idaho, Iowa, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, N. Mariana Islands, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Tennessee, Vermont, Virgin Islands, Virginia, Washington and Wisconsin.
Source: www.illinoisattorneygeneral.gov
