Kentucky

Letters: Justice secretary explains status of Legal Aid from the Courier Journal, 3/9/2008

On Feb. 27, this newspaper headlined a story: "Beshear budget eliminates Legal Aid funding." The story itself led off by saying, "Funding for Kentucky legal services ? which provide free legal help to the states' poorest citizens ? has been eliminated from Gov. Steve Beshear's proposed two-year budget," thereby losing some $1.5 million in funding.

Presented with this proposition by the journalist who had discovered it, high-ranking Legal Aid officials expressed appropriate concern. Key legislators did the same, along with many others who, knowing Gov. Beshear and the principles on which he stands, could hardly believe their eyes. The story took on a life of its own resulting in a vicious cartoon on Saturday, March 1, and a biting story in another newspaper based mostly on the usually trustworthy Courier-Journal.
   
No one (except, perhaps, the Governor himself) was more upset with this than I, because I knew how wrong it was. On Jan. 17, I had a meeting in my office with the key representatives of Legal Aid, including those quoted in the newspapers. I explained that their $1.5 million grant was included in my Justice and Public Safety Cabinet budget, and that it was likely to take a cut proportionate to that of the cabinet itself.

This was 12 days before the Governor's Budget Address. At the time, we were bracing ourselves for up to a 12 percent cut, which would translate to a $180,000 reduction to the Legal Aid award. I thought that everyone in the room understood our position -- that there would be funding from my budget which would probably be north of $1.3 million -- and hopefully more.

Whoever searched for the Legal Aid funds in the Governor's budget that was announced on Jan. 29 was looking in the wrong place. Their only conclusion was that the funding had been eliminated. Assurances from the spokesmen for both the Governor and this cabinet were ignored, and follow-up explanations went unreported or unbelieved. Trying to set this record straight is a lot like responding to the question about whether you have stopped beating your mother.

Funding for Legal Aid has always been part of the Governor's mandate, and he designated this Justice Cabinet and me to be the agents of delivery. We will deliver to the best of our financial ability, and Legal Aid will suffer no more and probably less than others in my cabinet.

The shame is that damage has been done, because the only elimination relevant to this story has been some crucial facts.

J. MICHAEL BROWN

Secretary

Justice and Public Safety Cabinet

Frankfort, Ky. 40601