Office of Civil Legal Aid

Policy Changes

Appointed Counsel for Tenants

The Office of Civil Legal Aid requests funding in fiscal year (FY) 2027 to continue to provide the same level of legal counsel for tenants facing evictions. The approved 2025–27 biennial budget reduces funding for the program, although the demand for the program is anticipated to remain the same. This additional funding is necessary as the state of Washington continues to see a significant increases in unlawful detainer (UD), or eviction, filings as compared to pre-pandemic levels, which continues to strain capacity. Early data from FY 2026 UD filings shows no signs of decline, and providers report that demand remains high. Without continued funding at the FY 2026 level, the program will not have the capacity to meet court appointment needs under RCW 59.18.640. (General Fund - State)

Children's Representation Program

Funding is requested to adjust the Office of Civil Legal Aid’s (OCLA) Children’s Representation Program’s (CRP) contract attorney (vendor) rates to levels necessary to facilitate recruitment and retention of qualified attorneys representing children and youth eligible for appointment of counsel in dependency matters. A vendor rate adjustment is requested for both the CRP’s “1219 program” under RCW 13.34.212(3) & RCW 13.34.267(7) and its “legally free” program under RCW 13.34.212(1). This vendor rate adjustment is requested beginning in fiscal year 2027 in order to match the 2025-–27 contract attorney rates of the Office of Public Defense (OPD), whose contracted attorneys provide similar services. The absence of a VRA increases the risk of OCLA being unable to obtain sufficient contract attorneys for the fiscal year. Additionally, licensed attorneys in the state are facing increasing pressures on their licenses to add support staff, which are not included within the current compensation rates. (General Fund - State)

DES Central Services

Adjustments are made to reflect each agency's anticipated share of charges from the Department of Enterprise Services for Capitol Campus costs; real estate, risk management, and small agency services; the Perry Street and Capitol Campus child care centers; enterprise applications, and other items. (General Fund - State)

GOV Central Services

Adjustments are made to reflect each agency's anticipated share of charges from the Office of the Governor for the Office of Equity. (General Fund - State)

Legal Counsel for LTC Discharge

OCLA is requesting funding to provide legal counsel for Medicaid-eligible residents at risk of discharge or transfer from long-term care facilities, addressing a gap left by the limited start-up funding provided in the 2025–27 biennial budget. This decision package builds on the Department of Social and Health Services’ request that OCLA stand up a program to provide these services, following a Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services finding that Washington’s current protections for residents in certain long-term care settings do not comply with federal standards. A forthcoming WAC will make the right to legal counsel explicit, and without sufficient access to qualified legal counsel when the rule takes effect, the state risks continued non-compliance with both federal and state mandates. With the additional funding requested, OCLA will be able to contract with enough legal aid providers to meet anticipated need, ensuring that the program fulfills its intended role of protecting residents from unlawful or unsafe discharge, promoting placement stability, reducing downstream Medicaid costs, and strengthening compliance with federal requirements. (General Fund - State)

OFM Central Services

Adjustments are made to reflect each agency's anticipated share of charges from the Office of Financial Management for existing statewide applications, the One Washington program, and other central services. (General Fund - State)

Reentry Legal Aid Programs

The Office of Civil Legal Aid requests supplemental funding in fiscal year 2027 to stabilize the Reentry Legal Aid Program (RLAP). The approved 2025–27 biennial budget reduced overall funding for reentry-related legal aid, a reduction that has left thousands of Washingtonians without meaningful access to legal assistance needed to remove barriers to employment, housing, education, and stability. These additional funds will partially fill the gap left by lost resources and sustain RLAP capacity to address the overwhelming unmet demand for reentry legal services. The request represents the amount needed to maintain service levels that can reasonably be expected to serve approximately 2,000 additional individuals, vacate 250 additional convictions, and remit millions more in Legal Financial Obligations (LFOs). (General Fund - State)

Self-Insurance Liability Premium

Adjustments are made to reflect each agency's share of actuarially projected costs of the self-insurance liability premium. (General Fund - State)

WTS Central Services

Adjustments are made to reflect each agency's anticipated share of charges from Washington Technology Solutions for the Office of Cybersecurity, the state network, enterprise services, small agency IT services, enterprise architecture and data management, Microsoft 365 licenses, and other items. (General Fund - State)