New York State Bar Association Urges Congress to Lift
Monday, May 17, 2004
- Organization: Brennan Center's Legal Services E-lert
New York State Bar Association Urges Congress to Lift "Private Money Restriction" on LSC Grantees
New York State Bar Association (NYSBA) President A. Thomas Levin has sent a letter to Representative José E. Serrano (D-NY) urging Congress to lift the funding restriction that prohibits LSC grantees from using their own non-LSC funds to provide certain types of legal assistance to low-income people. In the letter, NYSBA emphasizes its dedication to ensuring equal access to justice and to strengthening programs that provide legal services to low-income people in New York. Noting that the "private money" restriction makes providing the highest quality legal representation to low-income New Yorkers more difficult, NYSBA President A. Thomas Levin states, "Among the many charitable endeavors affected by this restriction is the New York Bar Foundation, the philanthropic arm of the New York State Bar Association, which each year provides several hundred thousand dollars in grants to LSC grantees and other non-profit organizations throughout New York State. Due to the unreasonable federal restrictions, the grantees are not permitted to use these funds for the purposes for which they are intended."
Letter from A. Thomas Levin, New York State Bar Association President, to U.S. Representative José E. Serrano (Apr. 30, 2004) (on file with the Brennan Center), available at the Brennan Center Web site.
New York State Bar Association (NYSBA) President A. Thomas Levin has sent a letter to Representative José E. Serrano (D-NY) urging Congress to lift the funding restriction that prohibits LSC grantees from using their own non-LSC funds to provide certain types of legal assistance to low-income people. In the letter, NYSBA emphasizes its dedication to ensuring equal access to justice and to strengthening programs that provide legal services to low-income people in New York. Noting that the "private money" restriction makes providing the highest quality legal representation to low-income New Yorkers more difficult, NYSBA President A. Thomas Levin states, "Among the many charitable endeavors affected by this restriction is the New York Bar Foundation, the philanthropic arm of the New York State Bar Association, which each year provides several hundred thousand dollars in grants to LSC grantees and other non-profit organizations throughout New York State. Due to the unreasonable federal restrictions, the grantees are not permitted to use these funds for the purposes for which they are intended."
Letter from A. Thomas Levin, New York State Bar Association President, to U.S. Representative José E. Serrano (Apr. 30, 2004) (on file with the Brennan Center), available at the Brennan Center Web site.
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