This year, unlike last, Florida Governor Jeb Bush signed his name on a bill appropriating state funding for civil legal aid.  The governor’s decision to sign the Florida Access to Civil Legal Assistance Act marks a change of heart from last year, when he vetoed a bill appropriating $5 million for civil legal aid.  This year’s bill includes $2.5 million, which the Florida Bar Foundation will grant to local legal services programs to help low-income Floridians contend with a range of civil legal problems, including domestic violence tragedies, unlawful evictions, and wrongful government benefits denials.  Bar Foundation President William Davis says, “This is great news for all Floridians, because it means that Florida is back in the ranks of the vast majority of states where government does something about the need for all people to have access to our civil-justice system.” 

Jan Pudlow, Civil Legal Assistance Act Funded: Vetoed a Year Ago, Program Is Once Again Back in Business, Florida Bar News, June 15, 2006.