Equal Justice Foundation funding trimmed, but 23 grants total $3.3 million

A veto by the governor of a legislated increase in funding for the Illinois Equal Justice Foundation has left the state further behind similar states in grants to the legal aid system.

The Illinois General Assembly passed a legal aid budget hike from $3.5 million to $5 million in March, but the summer veto caused the IEJF to trim projected funding for its four largest grantees and to eliminate two others.

“With these grants, legal aid organizations are able to directly help some of our most vulnerable residents protect their legal rights,” said IEJF President Christine M. Ory of Wheaton.

In announcing $3.3 million in grants to 23 not-for-profit organizations last month, the foundation dropped Catholic Charities of Chicago and the Midwest Center for Law and the Deaf from the list, but added the Center for the Analysis of Alternative Dispute Systems.

The largest award, totaling $756,000, goes to the Land of Lincoln Legal Assistance Foundation for four separate areas of legal assistance, information and education.

Prairie State Legal Services receives a total of $688,230 for three similar areas of service. The Legal Assistance Foundation of Metropolitan Chicago gets $312,270 for seven distinct initiatives.

Other major grants total $320,000 to the Coordinated Advice and Referral Program for Legal Services, $200,000 to Illinois Legal Aid Online, $135,000 to the Center for Conflict Resolution in Chicago, and $100,000 each to the Chicago Legal Clinic and Chicago Volunteer Legal Services.

The new grant of $70,000 to the Center for Analysis of Alternative Dispute Resolution Systems supports a pilot program of development of mediation centers in two downstate circuits to serve legal needs in family, housing and consumer matters.

Other grant recipients are the following:

Cabrini Green Legal Clinic, Chicago Coalition for the Homeless, DePaul University College of Law Asylum and Immigration Clinic, Equip for Equality, Immigration Project (Granite City), Kankakee Center for Conflict Resolution of the John R. Tate Advocacy Center;

Lawyers’ Committee for Better Housing, Legal Aid Bureau of Metropolitan Family Services, Life Span Center for Legal Services, National Immigrant Justice Center, Sargent Shriver National Center on Poverty Law, Southern Illinois University School of Law Foundation, and Will County Legal Assistance Pro-gram.

“Our mission is to support innovative, cost-effective programs that empower people to resolve their legal issues and regain control of their lives,” Ory said. “Last year, our grants helped 118,000 low-income people access the legal system.”

The IEJF was created by the 1999 Illinois Equal Justice Act in recognition of the state’s responsibility to ensure equal access to the legal system for low-income families and individuals.

The legislated funds are administered by the Office of Illinois Attorney General. For more information, access http://www.iejf.org.