Brennan Center for Justice

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The Honorable Barbara A.
Mikulski

Chairwoman

Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science, and
Related Agencies

Committee on Appropriations

SD-144                        

United States Senate

Washington, D.C. 20510

The Honorable Richard C.
Shelby

Ranking Member

Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science, and
Related Agencies

Committee on Appropriations
SH-123

United States Senate        

Washington, D.C. 20510

The Honorable Alan B.
Mollohan

Chairman
Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science and Related
Agencies
Committee on Appropriations
Room H-310, The Capitol
U.S. House of Representatives
Washington, D.C. 20515                                                    

The Honorable Frank R. Wolf

Ranking Member

Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science and Related
Agencies

Committee on Appropriations

1016 Longworth HOB

U.S. House of Representatives

Washington, D.C. 20515

Dear Senators Mikulski and Shelby and Representatives
Mollohan and Wolf:

As groups dedicated to the
expansion of access to justice for the most vulnerable Americans, we write to
thank you for the support for civil legal services you have shown over the
years and the support reflected in your marks of the FY 2010
Commerce-Justice-Science ("CJS") appropriations bills.  We urge you to seize this moment of widespread
recognition of the importance of legal aid, and help address the unprecedented
level of legal need in this country, by adopting final language in the CJS conference
committee that would partially repeal the restriction on the state, local and
private funds of Legal Services Corporation ("LSC") recipients.

As you know, a rider has been
placed on LSC's annual federal appropriation since 1996 that limits both the
tools LSC-funded legal services providers can use when representing eligible
clients and the types of clients those providers can represent.  Families and communities across the country
are suffering because of the restrictions: communities are hamstrung in their
ability to combat predatory lending practices because legal aid clients cannot
participate in class actions; victims of consumer fraud and illegal housing
practices are placed at a disadvantage because LSC-funded attorneys cannot seek
attorneys' fees; and those most knowledgeable about issues critical to
low-income clients cannot engage themselves in legislative and administrative
reform efforts.

The most onerous provision of
the restrictions extends their control to LSC grantees' non-LSC money.  This restriction on state, local, private,
and other funds creates waste and inefficiency throughout the legal aid
delivery system that is unconscionable at this time of such tremendous
need.  Nationally, only 40 percent of LSC
grantees' total funds come from LSC, yet the restrictions extend federal
control to the other 60 percent as well. 
An unparalleled federal overreach, this restriction on non-LSC funds
prevents programs from using their revenue in a manner consistent with their
funders' wishes.

As you know, the House-passed
CJS bill would repeal the prohibition on LSC-funded providers seeking
attorneys' fees.  The bill that the Senate
Appropriations Committee has passed would repeal a good part of the most
onerous restriction, the restriction on non-federal funds, while leaving in
place all restrictions on federal funds. 
The Senate language also leaves intact the current restrictions
prohibiting representation in abortion-related litigation and litigation on
behalf of people in prison for all cases, even those financed with non-federal
dollars.  When these two CJS bills go to
conference, we urge that the repeal of the restriction on non-federal funds be
included in the final language, along with the repeal of the restriction on
seeking attorneys' fees that was passed by the House. 

President Obama, in his FY 2010
detailed budget, called for the repeal of the non-LSC funds restriction and has
since reiterated this call in his "Statement of Administrative Policy" on the
House CJS bill and most recently in his statement on the 35th
anniversary of LSC.  Numerous Members of
Congress have also signed onto letters urging the rollback of the restrictions.

This year, given the tremendous
progress that both Appropriations Committees have made on the issue, and the
widespread Congressional and Administrative support, a unique moment exists to accomplish
this no-cost policy fix.  As conferees on
the FY 2010 CJS appropriations bill, we urge you to preserve the Senate's
language repealing the non-federal funds restriction while also maintaining the
House's $440 million LSC funding appropriation and removing the attorneys' fee restriction.  Such a change would go a long way toward
closing this country's ever-widening justice gap.

Sincerely,

AARP

Alliance for Justice

American Civil Liberties Union

Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund

Brennan Center for
Justice at NYU School of Law

Center for Law and Social Policy

Center for Lobbying in the Public Interest

Equal Justice Works

Independent Sector

Leadership
Conference on Civil Rights

National
Association of IOLTA Programs

National
Committee for Responsive Philanthropy

National
Legal Aid & Defender Association

OMB Watch

Poverty & Race Research
Action Council

Sargent Shriver National Center on Poverty Law

Service Employees
International Union

UAW Local 2320, National
Organization of Legal Services Workers, and UAW International

Cc:   Representative David R. Obey, Committee on
Appropriations

        Representative Jerry Lewis, Committee
on Appropriations

        Senator Daniel K. Inouye, Committee on
Appropriations

       
Senator Member Thad Cochran, Committee on Appropriations