Jeff Bingaman: “I speak on behalf of the Legal Services Corporation. In my home State of New Mexico, the Legal Services Corporation has…”

“I speak on behalf of the Legal Services Corporation. In my home State of New Mexico, the Legal Services Corporation has a proven track record. Without this program, there are few alternatives if any for the poor to have access to the legal system. Many of the people who benefit from Legal Services were once considered part of the middle class. However, as a result of unemployment, illness, divorce or aging, these people are now left without the means to afford a private attorney. Some of the people who are helped by this program are: the senior citizen living on social security in rural New Mexico who is a victim of a consumer fraud scam; the disabled veteran who has had VA health benefits denied; the woman who has children and is trying to escape from an abusive relationship. There are many reasons to vote against the block grant approach adopted by the appropriations committee. By eliminating the Legal Services Corporation, a new bureaucracy is created because States now have to set up administrative structures to fund and oversee legal services programs. This new bureaucracy with higher administrative costs will soak up much needed resources.”