The Legal Services Corporation will operate at current funding levels through the beginning of next year under a continuing resolution approved by Congress and signed into law by President Obama on Dec. 22.

The resolution, the Continuing Appropriations and Surface Transportation Extensions Act of 2011 (H.R. 3082), funds most federal programs, including LSC, at Fiscal Year 2010 levels through March 4, 2011—two months into the first session of the 112th Congress.

“This has been a challenging year for our legal aid programs in the field,” said LSC President Victor M. Fortuno. “The crush of foreclosure, unemployment and other recession-related cases has overwhelmed our grantees. LSC will continue to stress the need for increased funding next year.”

LSC has been operating at its FY 2010 funding level of $420 million since FY 2011 officially began on Oct. 1. Spending panels in both houses of Congress approved increases for LSC during the regular FY 2011 appropriations process but those increases were not acted on by the full chambers.

Earlier this month, the Senate Appropriations Committee released the text of an omnibus spending bill that included a $20 million increase for LSC and lifted the class-action restriction on LSC grantees, but the measure was never acted on.

From LSC Updates, December 22, 2010