Backlash over Hochul’s attempt to divert $120 million from Legal Aid Fund

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Gov. Kathy Hochul is under scrutiny for her budget proposal that diverts funds from poverty legal services, raising concerns among legal advocates and experts.
Photo: Hans Pennink/AP

The New York State Bar Association (NYSBA) has voiced strong opposition to Governor Kathy Hochul’s recent executive budget proposal. The proposed budget would direct $120 million from the Poverty Legal Services Fund to the state’s general fund.

The move, coupled with the rejection of a $46.3 million budget increase requested by Poverty Legal Services, has left legal experts and advocates speaking out about the potential impact on legal aid for the state’s most vulnerable people. This caused concern among the group.

NYSBA President Richard Lewis criticized the proposal, saying it would jeopardize essential legal services for New York’s poor, particularly in areas such as family court and public defenders. Lewis said the proposal calls for these earmarked funds to be earmarked annually, a process that has repeatedly seen the executive branch withhold needed funds.

“Governor Hochul is proposing to put the $120 million earmarked for Poverty Legal Services into the state’s general fund,” Lewis said. “She also rejected a request from Poverty Legal Services to increase last year’s budget by $46.3 million. That amount would have all come from the Poverty Legal Services Fund and did not have to be appropriated from the general budget. .

“Even if these funds are allocated, they must be allocated annually to Poverty Legal Services from the state budget in order for the funds to be distributed,” Lewis continued. “Despite annual requests to use these funds in accordance with their specified purposes, the executive branch has refused to appropriate the desperately needed funds, and while the funds remain in the fund, they have been depleted from the national coffers. A contradiction has arisen in that it cannot be distributed in accordance with the law.”

The controversy follows similar circumstances earlier this year when Hochul proposed cutting $100 million from the state’s Interest on Lawyers’ Accounts (IOLA) fund, a plan that received widespread condemnation from the legal community. ing. IOLA funds are critical to supporting nonprofit law organizations that provide civil legal services, but the governor’s decision was overturned after significant backlash and the importance of these funds in addressing justice disparities in New York state. Gender was highlighted.

Critics, including leaders of public defenders and prominent New York law firms, have emphasized the legal and ethical implications of diverting funds earmarked for civil defense. The IOLA Fund relies on interest from attorney escrow accounts, rather than taxpayer dollars, and serves as an important resource for legal service providers in the state. Last year, the Fund’s grant recipients solved more than 307,000 cases, providing significant economic benefits to New York.

Gov. Kathy Hochul’s executive budget transfers $234 million from the Indigent Legal Services Fund (ILSF), directs $120 million to the state general fund, and $114 million to the state’s assigned attorney general fund. / Proposes appropriate allocation of funding for 1.8 billion lawyers. ILSF was created to strengthen New York’s public defense system and helps improve the County, the City of New York, and public defense services.

Hochul’s budget specifically rejects a requested $46.3 million increase for public defense in family courts and ignores calls for an $18 billion fully state-funded fee increase for lawyers. The move contradicts the ILSF’s legislative purpose, threatens the quality of public defense improvements, and has drawn opposition from the New York State Bar Association, which advocates for the ILSF to be used as intended.

“The New York State Bar Association opposes this purge and urges Governor Hochul to allow the funds to be used for their intended purpose, which is to address the serious need for lawyers in family court and improve the quality of public defense. Request,” Lewis said. “We commend the state Senate for supporting this position.”