At the end of May, the Biden/Harris administration released its budget for FY22. Continuing the theme that emerged with the American Rescue Plan that President Biden signed in March and the American Jobs Plan and American Families Plan legislation he introduced in April, the new budget highlights the ways that the new administration is working to ease the burden of poverty on some of the country’s most vulnerable communities.

It’s a significant change in tone, not only from the administration immediately prior to this one but to several previous presidential administrations. It’s been decades since a U.S. President has focused on strengthening our nation’s social safety net, rather than weakening it thread by thread. And for those of us who have been on the front lines of advocating for laws and policies that help people living in poverty, rather than hurting them, it’s refreshing.

We thought we’d focus on one aspect of the President’s budget because it symbolizes this important sea change: its support of legal services and civil legal aid.

In the budget, President Biden requested $600 million for the Legal Services Corporation (LSC). According to the National Legal Aid and Defender Association (NLADA), that is a $135 million increase for the agency and the most significant increase that the LSC has seen in recent years. The LSC was founded in 1974 and “is the single largest funder of civil legal aid for low-income Americans in the nation.”

So why is this important?  Because the programs that the LSC funds help to keep individuals and families safely housed; assist workers who have been cheated out of compensation get their money back and access government benefits to which they are entitled; protect seniors and other vulnerable individuals from dishonest actors; and much more.  And the fact that the Biden/Harris administration is willing to increase funding says quite a bit about their priorities.

Stay tuned for more analysis on the Biden/Harris budget.