Tenants facing their landlords in court over an eviction case are often in over their heads, without the access to resources they need to take on the uphill legal battle. For these tenants, the Legal Aid Foundation of Santa Barbara is one of the few options available for legal assistance. And while the organization’s handful of attorneys is able to help hundreds of clients a year, there is a severe need for more funding to meet the demands of the community.
On Tuesday, the Santa Barbara City Council unanimously approved $250,000 toward a “right to counsel” program with the Legal Aid Foundation, which will provide enough money over the next year for another full-time attorney and resources to cover at least 80 more cases for low-income families at risk of eviction.
The city’s Housing and Human Services Manager Laura Dubbels and Legal Aid Executive Director Jennifer Smith laid out the proposal, which was created over the past year and a half following council direction for the program back in December 2022. That year, the city had a chunk of money left over in its general fund surplus, and council — with input from several housing advocates and organizations — asked that a quarter-million dollars be set aside to provide legal support for tenants.
According to the proposal, the goal is for Legal Aid to provide services to low-income tenants at risk of eviction. Specifically, during the first year of the pilot program, the city would prioritize residents making 50 percent of the area median income (below $53,560 a year), those who have been served eviction notices, and cases where eviction is “likely unlawful.”
Smith said the program would help close what she called the “civil justice gap” that comes with tenants facing landlords in court. “If you’re poor and accused of a crime, you are entitled to counsel,” Smith said. “But in civil matters, you’re not.”
Last year, Legal Aid took on more than 650 cases in Santa Barbara County and closed 258. This year, the number of cases closed is already at 265. With the added funding approved by the city, Smith estimates that her staff can take on an additional 80 cases.
Every member of the council supported the proposal, though there was discussion over how the city would fund the program after the first year, given that the budget is in a far different place in 2024 with a projected deficit. The first quarter-million was set aside when the city had a surplus, and Dubbels said there was “no funding earmarked going forward.”
The council voted unanimously to start the pilot program effective August 2024, and Legal Aid will return prior to the one-year mark to provide a report on how the money was used, at which point the city will decide whether to continue the program and how to find funding.
