Last month, we updated you on the launch of our 2020 (FY20) budget advocacy. As mentioned there, our attention is now focused on the Legislature as the House, and then the Senate, craft their own budgets. Right now, the House Committee on Ways and Means is examining the Governor’s Proposal and gearing up to release its own recommendations, which will be debated and voted on in April.
We communicate our budget priorities at each step of this process, and earlier this month, BBA President Jonathan Albano sent a letter to the newly-appointed Chair of the House Committee on Ways and Means, Aaron Michlewitz, explaining those line-items critical to a well-functioning legal system and providing equal access to justice to residents of the Commonwealth.
You can read the full letter here.
As usual, we spell out our support for the Massachusetts Legal Assistance Corporation (MLAC), the largest funder of legal services organizations in the Commonwealth and argue for a $5 million increase in funding, or a $26 million total appropriation. For the full overview of why this funding is so important, visit this blog post.
Our letter also explains our continued support for adequate funding for the Trial Court, which handles all the cases filed in the Commonwealth’s courts and urges the inclusion of the Trial Court’s requested maintenance-level appropriation and any necessary increases that results from collective-bargaining negotiation. From there, the letter further supports the full funding of the Committee for Public Counsel Services operations up-front, noting the vital role the agency plays in keeping with the right to counsel under our laws and the Constitutions of Massachusetts and the United States. And finally, the letter asks that $5 million go toward community-based residential re-entry services, which would help to ensure lasting recidivism reduction on the heels of last session’s historic criminal justice reforms.
Visit this post for more details on these budget asks.
After the House debate and vote, it’s on to the Senate and then to a conference committee to reconcile the differences between the two. We’ll keep you posted at each step of the way and let you know how you can join us in supporting these critical line-items!
—Alexa Daniel
Legislative and Public Policy Manager
Boston Bar Association
