- Gov. Rick Scott veto hurts legal assistance program for poor, By Michael Peltier, April 18, 2012, Miami Herald: ” A $2 million veto by Gov. Rick Scott will mean fewer attorneys to represent low-income residents through foreclosure proceedings, domestic violence hearings and consumer fraud cases, legal aid officials and a top Democrat lamented Wednesday. A day after the governor vetoed $142 million from the budget, officials at an organization that provides legal help for low income Floridians said Scott’s decision will mean a 25 percent reduction in the number of attorneys available for legal assistance in the coming year. A year later, the number of available attorneys will drop even further…”
- LePage line-item veto throws Maine cities a curve, By Scott Thistle, April 19, 2012, Lewiston-Auburn Sun Journal: “Managers in Maine’s biggest cities were sharpening their budget pencils and re-crunching numbers Thursday in the wake of a Gov. Paul LePage line-item vetoes to the state budget. The veto that’s giving city officials consternation cuts the amount the Legislature set aside in the state budget to partially reimburse cities for costs through General Assistance welfare programs by about $5 million. Republican legislative leaders have said they will resolve the matter when the Legislature reconvenes in mid-May to take up a supplemental budget for the state’s Department of Health and Human Services. But for cities trying to get approval of their budgets in time for the new fiscal year that starts July 1, the LePage veto throws the process into a tailspin…”
Poverty-related issues in the news, from the Institute for Research on Poverty