FY21 Budget Testimony: Access to Justice Grants
Children’s Law Center strongly believes that civil legal services not only help DC residents access justice, but that early legal intervention can have significant societal benefits. Through our own medical-legal partnerships, we have seen how early intervention improves health outcomes and saves significant sums in Medicaid costs. That’s why Executive Director Judith Sandalow submitted written testimony urging the DC Council to ensure that the DC Bar Foundation, specifically the Access to Justice Grant, is fully funded in the District’s FY21 budget.
The Access to Justice Grant makes civil legal servcies like CLC’s medical-legal partnerships possible. As DC plans for emergence from the present COVID-19 public health crisis, access to civil legal services will be essential, particularly in protecting DC residents from a surge of evictions and homelessness.
Read CLC’s full testimony here: