Press Release  AG Campbell Co-Leads Bipartisan Multistate Effort Urging U.S. House And Senate Leaders To Appropriate Robust Funding For Legal Services Corporation

Boston — Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell, in partnership with D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb, Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond, and Georgia Attorney General Christopher Carr, co-sponsored a multistate letter sent by a bipartisan coalition of attorneys general calling on leaders of the U.S. House and Senate Appropriations Committees to allocate maximum funding for the Legal Services Corporation (LSC) in the FY2025 budget.  

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 county. LSC provides millions of dollars in funding 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. Each year, LSC awards field grants to a network of nonprofit legal service providers who together extend legal assistance, generally at a free or low-cost, to low-income Americans in every county, state, and territory of the United States. The letter highlights the critical work performed by LSC’s grantees across the nation.  

“The Legal Services Corporation (LSC) supports critical and often life-changing legal services for low-income communities across our country, allowing them to better access a range of civil legal services, related to everything from housing, employment, safety for themselves and their families, and much more,” said AG Campbell. “I am proud to co-lead this multistate effort calling on Congress to support maximum funding for LSC in the FY2025 budget and help expand nationwide equal access to justice and opportunity for all.”  

The broad bipartisan appeal to Congress by 39 attorneys general underscores the urgent call for legal services crucial to protecting the homes, health, safety, and economic security of under-resourced Americans who otherwise would not have access to civil justice. LSC-funded programs assist individuals and families at greatest need of services – those whose household incomes fall at or below 125% of federal poverty guidelines and who are facing critical legal challenges. Veterans and military families, struggling renters and homeowners, domestic violence survivors, and rural and elderly Americans are among those vulnerable populations served by LSC.  

In Massachusetts, the organizations funded by LSC include Community Legal Aid, Northeast Legal Aid, South Coastal Counties Legal Services, and the Volunteer Lawyers Project of the Boston Bar Association. The AG’s Office regularly partners with these organizations to assist low-income families and communities in addressing a range of civil issues, including issues related to employment, housing, civil rights, economic and consumer justice, and much more. Nearly 12.8% of the Massachusetts population is eligible to receive services funded by LSC.  

“Community Legal Aid provides critical services to the low-income and elderly residents of central and western Massachusetts. LSC provides much-needed support for our work assisting tenants facing evictions; domestic violence survivors seeking safety; children in need of school-based services to accommodate their special needs; and elders facing abuse and exploitation,” said Jonathan Mannina, Executive Director of Community Legal Aid. “We are grateful for the support of both the Commonwealth and the Legal Services Corporation.” 

This matter is AG Campbell’s latest effort to further her priority of advancing opportunity for all across the Commonwealth, the forefront of her recently announced strategic plan. Earlier this year, AG Campbell announced a $800,000 grant program to expand access to legal services for consumers facing unlawful debt collection. Additionally, this past fall, AG Campbell distributed $780,000 in grant funding to organizations providing immigrant legal services across the Commonwealth.  

The letter, which was co-sponsored by AG Campbell, AG Schwalb of D.C., AG Drummond of Oklahoma, and AG Carr of Georgia, was transmitted by the National Association of Attorneys General, and was also signed by the Attorneys General of Alaska, American Samoa, Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Hawaii, Illinois, Iowa, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Northern Mariana Islands, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Tennessee, Vermont, U.S. Virgin Islands, Washington, Wisconsin, and Wyoming.   

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