CHAPTER 361

H.P. 510 - L.D. 715

An Act To Provide Support for Legal Services for Low-income

Mainers

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:

Sec. 1. 4 MRSA §18-A, sub-§1, ¶B, as amended by PL 1997, c. 173, §1, is further amended to read:

B. Except as provided in paragraph C, money in the fund must be disbursed to legal service services providers to support the provision of free civil legal services to low- income or needy people or the needy elderly in this State. Money disbursed from the fund may not be used by a recipient to support lobbying as defined in Title 3, section 312-A, subsection 9, unless the recipient is responding to a request by a Legislator or a member of the Executive Department. Only the following legal service services providers may receive disbursement to provide free civil legal services:

(1) Nonprofit organizations whose missions are to provide include the provision of free civil legal services and who have at least one year of experience providing free civil legal services;

(2) Legal aid clinics of accredited law schools operating exclusively in Maine; and