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Civil legal aid asks for nearly $29.3 million over biennium to expand capacity and sustain salaries
Summary
Legal aid presenters credited recent state investments with improving retention and outcomes, then requested $29.34 million over the FY2026–27 biennium (phased) to continue salary improvements and expand capacity, especially in rural areas.
Doria Rapoport, Executive Director of Justice North, and Milo Mumgaard, Executive Director of Mid Minnesota Legal Aid, told the Senate Judiciary and Public Safety Committee that recent state investments dramatically reduced turnover and improved service capacity, and they asked for further biennial funding to continue that progress.
Rapoport described a client case in which civil legal aid representation preserved a parent’s custody and secured child support and a financial settlement. "This happened because of the investment in civil legal aid," she said, urging continued support to reduce unmet legal needs among low‑income Minnesotans.
Presenters outlined the scope of civil legal services across the state: programs close tens of thousands of cases annually (the presenters cited nearly 48,000 case closures in 2023 and more than 115,000 Minnesotans served across programs). They said staff‑attorney starting salaries for many programs are now at about $80,000 and credited the prior biennial increase with cutting turnover from about 32% in 2021 to roughly 14.6% in 2024.
The funding request for the FY2026–27 biennium was presented as a phased plan: an $8,830,000 increase over base in FY2026 and an additional $20,508,000 in FY2027 (a two‑year total request of $29,338,000). The presenters said the plan stretches an earlier six‑year compensation and capacity roadmap to a ten‑year timeline in response to the state forecast and would continue salary improvements and capacity building so more eligible low‑income residents can be served.
Rapoport and Mumgaard emphasized equity measures: roughly 52% of clients served in 2023 were Black, Indigenous or people of color, and legal aid staff provide statewide regional services and targeted programs to address disability, domestic violence and other priority areas. They also cited a return‑on‑investment study noting that every dollar invested in civil legal services yields an estimated $4.32 in economic benefit to clients and communities.
Ending: The presenters asked the committee to preserve and continue funding increases so the civil legal services network can further reduce the number of eligible clients turned away; no committee action was taken at the hearing.
