Sam Halpert, NALP Director of Public Service Initiatives

Hello, interested public! It’s been a busy week for those of you who’ve joined us at NALP’s Annual Education Conference in Boston. Meanwhile, the world outside our convention hall has been marching along. You can catch up on public service news in the links below.

Take care,

Sam

Student Debt and Student Loans

• No, federal loan forgiveness will not be reported to the IRS as income, for now (KHOU 11; 18 Apr 2024)

• Those with student loan debt are being forced to delay life events, report finds (CNN Newsource; 17 Apr 2024)

• Senators Schumer, Warren celebrate Biden student loans forgiveness (The Hill; 12 Apr 2024)

• Biden unveils draft rule for his latest student debt relief plan (Politico; 16 Apr 2024)

• The fate of student debt forgiveness will once again lie with the Supreme Court (The Hill; 13 Apr 2024)

Non-Profit & Government Management & Hiring

• With job on the line, CT's chief defender faces charges of mistreating employees, dishonesty (CT Insider; 12 Apr 2024)

  • Conn.'s top public defender denies misconduct claims as commission debates firing her (The Day; 16 Apr 2024)

• Utah’s anti-DEI law ‘lights a fire’ under nonprofits as public resources stand to dismantle (The Salt Lake Tribune; 18 Apr 2024)

• Some concerned University of Michigan proposed policy on protests could quell free speech efforts (CBS News; 14 Apr 2024)

• Judicial Branch Employees Have No Rights At Work. The Judiciary Accountability Act Could Change That (Balls and Strikes; 15 Apr 2024)

• U.S. Supreme Court Provides Test For Protected Speech On Government Official's Social Media Pages (Mondaq; 15 Apr 2024)

• Empower tribal justice; retiring DOJ official says (AP; 15 Apr 2024)

• Knight Institute Comments on Arrests of Pro-Palestinian Student Protesters at Columbia University (Knight First Amendment Institute at Colubmia University; 18 Apr 2024)

• The Israel-Hamas War Is Tearing Nonprofits Apart. But Some Are Bridging Staff Divides (The Chronicle of Philanthropy; 15 Apr 2024)

Access to Justice – Civil & Economic

• Legal aid funding, auto theft crack down and redistribution of judgeships feature in federal budget (Law360 Canada; 16 Apr 2024)

• Gov. Hochul’s plan to divert escrow funds risks essential legal aid for needy New Yorkers (Brooklyn Eagle; 18 Apr 2024)

• Right to Counsel Program seeks to reduce eviction rates in Oklahoma County (KGOU; 12 Apr 2024)

• BYU Law Students Introduce Automation Platforms to Streamline Divorce Documents and Court-Assigned Community Service (BYU Law; 16 Apr 2024)

• People without lawyers are an early focus of new state court access group (South Dakota Searchlight; 16 Apr 2024)

• Notre Dame [IN] law students offer free legal help with sealing evictions (South Bend Tribune; 10 Apr 2024)

• The Supreme Court effectively abolishes the right to mass protest in three US states (Vox; 15 Apr 2024)

Access to Justice – Criminal

• Public defenders pushback on bill that would increase time to charge detainee (KUAM News; 19 Apr 2024)

• Efforts underway for [IL] statewide public defender system to ‘even legal playing field’ (Advantage News; 17 Apr 2024)

• EXCLUSIVE: WA cities warn reduced public defender caseload limits could result in dismissed cases, budget cuts (The Post Millennial; 12 APr 2024)

Prosecutorial and Public Defense Office Hiring Crises

• [Greene County NY] Officials change residency requirement for assistant public defenders (Hudson Valley 360; 19 Apr 2024)

Criminal Legal Reform & Counterreform

• Another progressive Bay Area prosecutor faces a recall vote; Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price is fighting for her political life (Politico; 15 Apr 2024)

• The race for Pa. attorney general is all about Larry Krasner (Philadelphia Inquirer; 16 Apr 2024)

Sam Halpert, NALP Director of Public Service Initiatives

Hello, interested public! Hope you’re all doing alright. Looking forward to seeing some of you next week in Boston for NALP’s Annual Education Conference! The digest is a bit late this week; hopefully it’ll make good train/plane reading for those of you heading to Boston.

Take care,

Sam

Editor’s Choice(s)

• UNIONIZED NYC LEGAL WORKERS HOLD LONGEST STRIKE IN OVER TWO DECADES (UAW; 9 Apr 2024)

Student Debt and Student Loans

• Inside Elizabeth Warren’s crusade against the company that foiled Biden’s student debt relief plan (Courier Newsroom; 11 Apr 2024)

• Biden Cancels $7 Billion in Student Debt in Election-Year Push (Bloomberg; 12 Apr 2024)

• US appeals court bars Biden's debt relief for students defrauded by colleges (Reuters; 5 Apr 2024)

• Missouri Attorney General leads coalition challenging Biden student debt relief (Missouri Independent; 9 Apr 2024)

Non-Profit & Government Management & Hiring

• OPM finalizes reforms to federal internship programs (Government Executive; 11 Apr 2024)

• Jewish legal aid lawyers sue NYC union over criticism of Israel (Reuters; 11 Apr 2024)

• The Coming Attacks on Nonprofits (The Chronicle of Philanthropy (1 Apr 2024)

• CT agency to hold open hearing on state's embattled chief public defender (Hartford Courant; 10 Apr 2024)

• Government Hiring is Boosting US Job Growth (Fitch Ratings; 11 Apr 2024)

Access to Justice – Civil & Economic

• Saskatchewan expanding law student placements in name of access to justice (Law360 Canada; 10 Apr 2024)

• Law Society of BC to be disbanded under new legislation (Delta Optimist; 12 Apr 2024)

  • B.C. introduces legislation on legal profession reform; law society, bar association opposed (Law360 Canada; 11 Apr 2024)

• P.E.I. increases legal aid eligibility thresholds (Law360 Canada; 5 Apr 2024)

• Access To Court Records Should Be Free For Everyone (Above the Law; 10 Apr 2024)

• HUD funds [Iowa] Legal Aid to enforce Fair Housing Act (Oelwein Daily Register; 6 Apr 2024)

• Pandemic legal aid funding to end for Michigan renters (WILX 10; 9 Apr 2024)

Access to Justice – Criminal

• [IL] Senate President Don Harmon Proposes Statewide Office to Support Public Defender System (Chicago Tribune; 7 Apr 2024)

Prosecutorial and Public Defense Office Hiring Crises

• Delaware sets public hearings on salary increases (The Daily Star; 11 Apr 2024)

• The Impact of Underfunding on Justice: A Deep Dive into Budget Constraints and Their Ripple Effects from District Attorney Linda Stanley (Ocean City NY Daily; 8 Apr 2024)

Sam Halpert, NALP Director of Public Service Initiatives

Hello, interested public!

Nice to be with you again, after a bout with bronchitis. I’m back with a Digest that isn’t our longest ever but is truly packed with major news. The biggest items are in “Editor’s Choices” section, but I highly you look over the headlines in each section this week.

Take care,

Sam

Editor’s Choice(s)

• Student-loan borrowers in public service are facing a key change starting in May — and it'll mean delays in their debt cancellation progress (Business Insider; 3 Apr 2024)

• Congress Poised to Prevent One Form of Student Debt Relief (The American Prospect; 5 Apr 2024)

• Government Lawyers, Particularly at DOJ, Are 'Flooding' the Job Market (National Law Journal; 4 Apr 2024)

• NYC's AI chatbot was caught telling businesses to break the law. The city isn't taking it down (NY1; 3 Apr 2024)

Student Debt and Student Loans

• Student loan forgiveness for public service workers to take brief pause (Ed Source; 2 Apr 2024)

• Kansas, other Republican states sue Biden over student loan forgiveness (UPI; 29 Mar 2024)

• Why student loan forgiveness remains a key issue for the Biden campaign even after Supreme Court loss (News Chan. 12-3-11; 30 Mar 2024)

• N.Y. Sen. Gillibrand wants to continue federal student loan forgiveness; here’s her plan (Staten Island Live; 3 Apr 2024)

Non-Profit & Government Management & Hiring

• You’re hiring a summer intern … what about payment? (Virginia Lawyers Weekly; 2 Apr 2024)

• Lawyers Can Expand Access to Justice by Seeding Global Pro Bono (Bloomberg Law; 5 Apr 2024)

• Iowa gender balance law's repeal ends unconstitutional discrimination in public service (Des Moines Register; 4 Apr 2024)

• The positive impact of policy entrepreneurs in the public service (Government Executive; 5 Apr 2024)

• Are U.S. courts delivering on language access? (JD Supra; 2 Apr 2024)

• The federal government will now offer its employees generous fertility benefits (Government Executive; 3 Apr 2024)

• CT commission may begin decision-making on future of chief public defender put on leave (CT Insider; 3 Apr 2024)

Access to Justice – Civil & Economic

• [Oklahoma County] Tenant Advocates Push for Right to Free Counsel (Oklahoma Watch; 1 Apr 2024)

• This App Helps Immigrants Reclaim Their Stolen Wages (Triple Pundit; 1 Apr 2024)

• Post-Disaster Legal Aid Funding Fills a Growing Need — And Could Help Shore Up Democracy (Inside Philanthropy; 1 Apr 2024)

• Legal Aid Ontario releases report on its racialized communities strategy action plan (1 Apr 2024)

• Lawyers, judges, nonprofit leaders address access to justice for children, parents at ABA conferences (ABA; 2 Apr 2024)

• Thousands of Immigrants in Wisconsin in Court Without Lawyers (Urban Milwaukee; 24 Mar 2024)

Access to Justice – Criminal

• Sixth Amendment Center Launches New Right to Counsel Interactive Website (PR Newswire; 25 Mar 2024)

• New Leader Discusses The Next Era For NY Federal Defenders (Law360; 4 Apr 2024)

• Maine needs significant action to address shortage of legal representation (Bangor Daily News; 2 Apr 2024)

  • This chart shows how bad Maine's indigent defense system has gotten (Bangor Daily News; 25 Mar 2024)

• ABA criminal justice and legal aid sections launch Task Force for Public Defense Independence (ABA; 26 Mar 2024)

• Hennepin County [MN] public defender concerned clients will miss court appearances without rideshare (Star Tribune; 3 Apr 2024)

Prosecutorial and Public Defense Office Hiring Crises

• Hillsdale County [MI] Board of Commissioners narrowly approve public defender budget (Hillsdale Daily News; 30 Mar 2024)

• Two-month wait for public defenders as Yakima County attorney shortage grows worse (Yakima Herald-Republic; 5 Apr 2024)

• CNN's Tapper draws national focus to Philadelphia defendant's story to advocate for better pay for court-appointed lawyers (KYW News Radio; 24 Mar 2024)

Criminal Justice Reform & Counter-Reform

• 'Every DA… Should Follow Suit': Prosecutor Seeks to Commute County Death Sentences (Common Dreams; 4 Apr 2024)

• El Paso public defender waives migrants' bond hearings to avert federal custody transfer (KFox TV; 1 Apr 2024)

• In a shift, [Oswego County NY] public defender insists on preliminary hearings for defendants (Oswego County News Now; 3 Apr 2024)

• LA Public Defender CIO digitizes to divert people to programs, not prison (CIO Case Study; 4 Apr 2024)

• [LA Gov.] Landry’s new public defense system takes effect this week with few details about new board (The Illuminator; 25 Mar 2024)