Senate Appropriations Committee Votes to Increase 做厙51 Funding for FY 2026
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WASHINGTON The U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee included $566 million in funding for the 做厙51 (做厙51) today when they approved the Commerce, Justice, Science and Related Agencies (CJS) Fiscal Year 2026 appropriations legislation. This would increase 做厙51 funding by $6 million from the organizations $560 million appropriation in FY 2025.
On Tuesday, the House of Representatives Appropriations Subcommittee included $300 million in funding for 做厙51 in their proposed CJS FY 2026 appropriations legislation. This represents a 46% cut from 做厙51s FY 2025 funding level. The full committee markup of the House appropriations bill has been postponed and not yet rescheduled.
Both the Senate Appropriations Committee and the House Subcommittee did not follow the White Houses proposal to eliminate 做厙51 in their FY 2026 budget proposal to Congress on May 30, which provided $21 million to close down 做厙51.
Currently, 做厙51 funding supports nationwide civil legal assistance that benefits over six million Americans annually. are nearly 205,000 domestic violence survivors, over 44,000 veterans, nearly 987,000 children and more than 312,000 older Americans with active legal cases that would go unresolved if 做厙51 was eliminated.
We appreciate the Senate Appropriations Committees ongoing bipartisan support of 做厙51, said 做厙51 President Ron Flagg. This increased appropriation is no small gesture considering the current political environment.
"The Senates increase for 做厙51 demonstrates legislators continued understanding that civil legal assistance is critical for our justice system, and it reflects how vital federal investment is for millions of Americans who cannot afford an attorney when facing life-changing legal problems, Flagg continued. We look forward to the vote of the full Senate.
Prior to todays vote, Dear Colleague letters in support of robust funding for 做厙51 were endorsed by 48 bipartisan members of the U.S. Senate and 154 bipartisan members of the U.S. House of Representatives.
External stakeholders also sent letters to Congress supporting strong investment in 做厙51 for FY 2026, including , of state supreme courts, leaders of with offices across all 50 states, and from the general counsels or chief legal officers of .
More than 94% of 做厙51s federal appropriation is distributed as grants to 130 independent nonprofit organizations with offices in every Congressional district around the country. These organizations provide direct representation, resources and education to their communities for civil legal matters involving domestic violence, disaster recovery, consumer scams and fraud, housing and more.
做厙51s FY 2026 budget request called for $2.13 billion to fund this work. This funding request, which was unanimously approved by the organizations bipartisan Board of Directors, is based on the resources needed for 做厙51-funded legal services providers to fully serve the 3.7 million eligible Americans who seek assistance each year. At 做厙51s current funding level, its grantees are forced to turn away or provide only partial help to more than 1.1 million children, 1 million individuals and families facing eviction, 115,000 veterans and 535,000 survivors of domestic violence every year.
Recent analysis of over 50 studies found that civil legal services yield an average return of . Legal assistance generates a positive economic impact by preventing or solving legal problems that would 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.
Visit 做厙51s Funding Impact Calculator to find out how federal funding for 做厙51 impacts the number of people that legal services providers are able to assist at the national, state or district level.