MLAC’s response to Governor’s FY23 Budget

BOSTON, January 26, 2022 – Today, Governor Charlie Baker released his FY23 budget with a recommendation to fund civil legal aid at $35 million, the same amount of funding it received in the FY22 budget.

“While we are grateful to Gov. Baker for his commitment to funding civil legal aid during the ongoing COVID-19 crisis, which has had such a disproportionate impact of the lives of low-income people in Massachusetts, we will work with Senators and Representatives in the Legislature to improve upon the level-funding recommendation included in the Governor’s Budget today,” said Lynne Parker, executive director of the Massachusetts Legal Assistance Corporation “Since the pandemic began, civil legal aid has seen dramatic increases in the need for assistance in cases related to housing, unemployment compensation, family law, income maintenance, bankruptcy, and immigration. Even before the crisis, insufficient funding forced legal aid organizations to turn away the majority of eligible people who sought help. Recent funding increases have enabled civil legal aid organizations to reduce the percent of eligible people turned away to 57 percent, down from 64 percent five years ago.

“To meet these urgent civil legal needs, MLAC is seeking an additional $6 million in funding so more people can have equal access to justice. We will strongly urge the legislature to increase civil legal aid funding to $41 million for FY23.

“Civil legal aid is essential to protecting the safety, financial stability, and wellbeing of our most vulnerable neighbors as we enter a third year of the pandemic.”