[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 71 (Thursday, May 17, 2012)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E835]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  THE COMMERCE, JUSTICE, SCIENCE, AND RELATED AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS 
                               ACT, 2013

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                          HON. JOHN B. LARSON

                             of connecticut

                    in the house of representatives

                          Tuesday, May 8, 2012

       The House in Committee of the Whole House on the state of 
     the Union had under consideration the bill (H.R. 5326) making 
     appropriations for the Departments of Commerce and Justice, 
     Science, and Related Agencies for the fiscal year ending 
     September 30, 2013, and for other purposes:

  Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. Mr. Chair, I rise today in opposition to 
H.R. 5326, the Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies 
Appropriations Act for FY 2013. While there have been several 
amendments that have improved the bill, including the increase in COPS 
funding, I still cannot support the measure in its current form.
  One program that is particularly hard hit by this bill and is 
important for many of my constituents, and citizens across the country, 
is the Legal Services Corporation. The Legal Services Corporation is 
the largest funder of civil legal aid for low-income Americans, and 
makes aid available to some 60 million people nationwide. Once again, 
the Republican majority is proposing to cut millions of dollars from 
its budget, and leave thousands of the poorest among us underserved 
just when they need help the most.
  The mission of the Legal Services Corporation is to provide at-risk 
citizens like the elderly, veterans, and single mothers with legal 
assistance when they need help from a trained lawyer or paralegal. The 
people we are talking about helping are mothers trying to protect their 
children from an abusive spouse; senior citizens trying to prevent 
their homes from being foreclosed on; and veterans trying to secure the 
benefits they are entitled to.
  The economic downturn and the collapse of the housing market left 
many of our families in greater need of legal aid than ever before. We 
must make sure that access to well-trained legal assistance is not only 
available to wealthy Americans who can pay for it out of pocket, but 
also to the least among us.
  In Connecticut, the cuts to funding will probably mean another round 
of layoffs in addition to the cuts the program was already forced to 
make last year. This will again decrease the number of trained staff 
available to handle calls when citizens who are confused and 
intimidated by the legal system reach out for help. Millions of dollars 
in additional cuts will mean that tens of thousands of calls from 
people seeking advice will go unanswered, and thousands of ongoing 
cases will remain unresolved.
  Mr. Chair, for this reason, and for several others, I have decided 
that I cannot support this bill in its current form and hope that 
through negotiations we are able to find some way of rolling back these 
destructive cuts to a successful, longstanding program that benefits 
millions of our fellow Americans.

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