Texas Equal Access to Justice Foundation Awards $1.9 Million to Austin Groups to Provide Legal Aid to the Poor.

AUSTIN, Texas -- Eight nonprofit organizations in Austin will receive grants totaling $1.9 million from the Texas Equal Access to Justice Foundation to provide civil legal assistance, such as advice or representation, to individuals who cannot afford attorneys. The Foundation will disburse $11.8 million statewide to providers of legal aid over the 2005 grant year.

Advocacy, Inc. will receive $605,803; AIDS Services of Austin will receive $26,400; Oficina Legal del Pueblo Unido, Inc. -- Texas Civil Rights Project will receive $171,876; Political Asylum Project of Austin will receive $115,584; Southern Disability Law Center will receive $52,300; Texas Legal Services Center will receive $628,454; Volunteer Legal Services of Central Texas will receive $89,721; and Women's Advocacy Project will receive $221,670.

In addition to the organizations based in Austin, the Texas Equal Access to Justice Foundation has allocated $3,219,414 to Weslaco-based Texas RioGrande Legal Aid. Texas RioGrande Legal Aid is the primary provider of legal aid for the Southwest Texas Service Area, which is composed of 68 counties, including Bexar, Cameron, El Paso, Nueces, Travis and Webb. Texas RioGrande Legal aid operates an office in Austin.

The Supreme Court of Texas created the Foundation (www.teajf.org) in 1984 to administer funds earmarked for the provision of civil legal aid to low-income Texans. Currently, the Foundation manages funds from the Interest on Lawyers' Trust Accounts (IOLTA) Program; the Basic Civil Legal Services (BCLS) Program, a court filing fee add-on; the Crime Victims Civil Legal Services (CVCLS) Program; and private donations.

Unlike the criminal system, Texans facing civil legal problems are not guaranteed an attorney. Each year, legal aid organizations assist more than 100,000 poor Texans with their civil legal needs in matters such as protection from domestic violence, access to medical care and landlord-tenant issues.

"Legal aid advocates work tirelessly to provide much needed civil legal services to the most vulnerable people in our society -- from the elderly to the abused to those with disabilities," said Lisa Melton, director of grants for the Texas Equal Access to Justice Foundation. "With these grant funds, legal aid organizations can continue their wonderful work of providing access to justice for those in seemingly hopeless situations."

To be eligible for legal aid under IOLTA and BCLS funding, an individual must not earn more than $11,638 per year. To be eligible under CVCLS, an individual must not earn more than $17,456. However, because the need for legal services is so great, legal aid groups only meet about 25 percent of the legal needs of poor Texans. According to the 2000 Census, more than 99,000 Travis County residents, or 12.5 percent of the county population, live below poverty level.

For a complete list of TEAJF 2005 grant awards, go to www.teajf.org.