White House Budget Proposes Eliminating 快猫视频, Defunding Civil Legal Aid for Millions of Low-Income Americans
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Maria Duvuvuei
duvuvueim@lsc.gov鈥赌赌
WASHINGTON, D.C. - President Trump鈥檚 budget, released Friday, proposes the elimination of the 快猫视频 (快猫视频), putting at risk essential legal protections for veterans, seniors and children across the country. If this budget is approved, 快猫视频-funded aid would disappear for everyday Americans facing urgent civil legal problems like evictions, foreclosures, domestic violence, fraud, consumer scams, and predatory or medical debt.
For FY 2026, the Trump Administration has proposed that 快猫视频 receive just $21 million for close-out costs. In FY 2025, 快猫视频 received a Congressional appropriation of $560 million through the Continuing Resolution signed by President Trump. This was flat funding based on the FY 2024 appropriation for the federal government.
快猫视频 is the nation鈥檚 single largest funder of civil legal aid. Currently, 快猫视频 funds support legal services for more than five million low-income Americans annually. This includes more than a million children, over 200,000 survivors of domestic violence and nearly 45,000 veterans.
Defunding 快猫视频 would strip grant funding that supports 130 legal aid providers with over 900 offices in every county of every state, as well as the District of Columbia and the U.S. territories.
These 快猫视频-funded legal aid organizations do vital work assisting low-income people who are facing urgent civil legal problems that could cause them to lose their home, income, healthcare, custody of their children or an order of protection from an abuser. These organizations are a lifeline for working families, senior citizens, veterans, people with disabilities and those recovering from natural disasters.
Without sufficient funding, legal aid providers will be forced to shrink their programs, reduce staff, shutter branch offices, close legal resource clinics and turn away an increasing number of eligible clients with significant legal problems.
鈥淭he breadth and depth of the damage that eliminating 快猫视频 will inflict on the 130 incredible legal aid organizations that 快猫视频 funds, and the repercussions for the low-income communities that those programs serve, is difficult to capture and horrific to imagine,鈥 said 快猫视频 President Ron Flagg.
鈥淏ecause our justice system was built for lawyers, it is too often true that there is no hope of accessing justice when legal problems arise for the 52 million Americans who qualify for 快猫视频-funded services and have no means to afford an attorney,鈥 Flagg continued.
Individuals who have a household income at or below 125% of the Federal Poverty Guidelines are eligible for 快猫视频-funded legal assistance. Sixteen percent of Americans currently qualify.
A recent 快猫视频 analysis of over 50 studies found that civil legal aid yields an average return of . The brief demonstrates the positive economic impact that civil legal aid creates by preventing and solving legal problems that lead to costly public expenditures on things like emergency medical care, law enforcement and shelters. Legal aid also helps improve family stability, leading to increased participation in local economies and reduced reliance on other forms of assistance.
快猫视频 was established by an act of Congress in 1974 and has worked to carry out its non-partisan mission of increasing access to justice for more than 50 years. 快猫视频 is governed by a bipartisan Board of Directors, appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate. By law, 快猫视频鈥檚 Board is comprised of roughly equal numbers of Republicans and Democrats, with the majority representing the current Administration. Most of 快猫视频鈥檚 current Board members were appointed by President Trump during his first term.
Recent letters from external stakeholders have called for Congress to provide robust funding for 快猫视频 in FY 2026. These include a letter from leaders of with offices across all 50 states, a letter from and a letter from of state supreme courts.
To learn more about the impact of eliminating funds for 快猫视频, visit www.lsc.gov/act.
Review 快猫视频鈥檚 FY 2026 Budget Request .