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WASHINGTON— The House Appropriations Committee last night approved legislation that would provide $300 million for the ��è��Ƶ (��è��Ƶ) in FY 2026—a 46% reduction from its current funding level.

In contrast, the Senate Appropriations Committee  approved a $6 million increase back in July. This would bring ��è��Ƶ’s funding to $566 million for FY 2026.

Notably, the House did not follow the White House’s FY 2026 budget proposal, which called for eliminating ��è��Ƶ entirely and included only enough funding to facilitate the organization’s shutdown. Support from Rep. Hal Rogers (KY-5), Chairman of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, and Related Agencies was instrumental. In remarks today, he highlighted the vital importance of ��è��Ƶ’s work, but said the cut was necessary for fiscal reasons.

More than 94% of ��è��Ƶ’s funding is distributed as grants to 130 independent nonprofit organizations with offices in every congressional district. These organizations deliver direct legal representation, education and resources to help people navigate civil legal issues such as domestic violence, disaster recovery and fraud.

“We are grateful to Congress for this display of bipartisan support and for recognizing the essential role of ��è��Ƶ-funded legal services in the lives of millions of Americans,” said ��è��Ƶ President Ronald S. Flagg. “Our grantees provide critical legal help, they are often the difference between whether veterans and seniors receive the benefits they’ve earned, whether disaster survivors can rebuild their lives and whether families can stay in their homes.”

The House’s proposed cut would take ��è��Ƶ’s funding back to 1999 levels—even as the need for legal help has grown significantly. In 1999, 45.6 million Americans qualified for ��è��Ƶ-funded legal services. Today, more than 52.3 million do. Adjusted for inflation, the $260 million cut amounts to more than a 60% reduction.

"[In this bill], the ��è��Ƶ, which provides basic civil legal assistance to the poorest American families, seniors, and veterans is cut by nearly half,” said Rep. Grace Meng (NY-6), ranking member of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies. “Under this funding level, nearly 3 million fewer people will receive help with their legal problems including over 8,000 in my district alone. This bill abandons our most vulnerable constituents who can't afford a lawyer when they're facing eviction, seeking safety from domestic violence or are denied benefits that they have earned."

Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman (NJ-12) introduced an amendment to restore ��è��Ƶ’s funding to its current level of $560 million.

“The ��è��Ƶ is an indispensable resource for low-income Americans who need legal services but cannot afford them,” Rep. Watson Coleman said. “Let me be clear about who the ��è��Ƶ is serving: their clients are victims of domestic violence, seniors, veterans, children, survivors of natural disasters, etc. These are folks living on less than $19,000 a year.”

She added that cutting ��è��Ƶ’s budget “would have a devastating consequence for low- income Americans who are already vulnerable. It would strip crucial resources from struggling families who do not have the means to defend themselves and pursue the justice that they are owed.”

Rep. Watson Coleman cited the impact that funding cuts would have on her own constituents, as well as people living in Rep. Rogers’ district. ��è��Ƶ’s Funding Impact Calculator shows how changes to ��è��Ƶ's appropriation would affect the number of people that ��è��Ƶ grantees can serve by state or by congressional district.

The amendment was defeated on a voice vote; however, it was one of the only issues in the markup that received bipartisan support.

Rep. Dan Newhouse (WA-4) said: “[��è��Ƶ] ensures that Americans in every corner of our country have access to civil legal services, which truly is a fundamental tenet of American society. One hundred and thirty ��è��Ƶ grantees provide civil legal services to over 2 million Americans every year. They help homeowners and renters avoid wrongful evictions or foreclosures. They help seniors and veterans avoid fraud and abuse. They help families escape domestic violence and help remove barriers to employment.”

He noted that every dollar invested in civil legal services comes back seven times over in value, “a strong economic return on investment in anybody’s estimation.”

Earlier in the year, “Dear Colleague” letters supporting strong funding for ��è��Ƶ were endorsed by 48 bipartisan U.S. Senators and 154 bipartisan House members.

External stakeholders also sent letters urging robust FY 2026 investment in ��è��Ƶ, including , , with offices in all 50 states, and of 104 major U.S. corporations.

A $260 million cut to ��è��Ƶ would result in nearly 3 million fewer Americans receiving vital legal assistance. That would include nearly 454,000 children, almost 144,000 adults aged 60 and over, more than 20,000 veterans and more than 94,000 survivors of domestic violence.