Legal Services seeks more funding
Ty Wheeler, an attorney with Kansas Legal Services, Emporia, asked the Marion County Commission to consider increasing its funding of KLS by 50 percent next year. The request was made at Monday's county commission meeting.
Wheeler said KLS, a nonprofit law firm, tries not to compete with the local bar or to take cases of high priority and need.
The agency handled 10 divorce cases in Marion County last year. Wheeler said KLS takes such cases "only when there is an allegation of an ongoing pattern of abuse" of the spouse or children.
KLS closed 11 disability project cases in Marion County last year, he said. Those people are receiving $545 per month minimum now. They are mostly people who had no previous job history.
That makes a total of nearly $72,000 in benefits for those 11 people, per year. They are on disability for at least 36 months, when their cases will be reviewed. Many will be on it longer than three years, even permanently.
KLS has gotten about $215,000 in "new income" for Marion County, Wheeler said, by also winning Social Security benefits for other people. Social Security is relucant to pay if a client can walk at all, even a few feet, he said.
But, "we have a good record here in Marion County with the Social Security office, on disability cases," he said.
KLS is not taking cases away from local attorneys, he said. The agency has been asking Marion County for $3,000 per year for several years, and getting $2,000. He again asked for $3,000 for 2004.
Wheeler said the added funding would help him to "leverage time, help with the costs of doing things (cases) in Marion County.
The Emporia office serves seven counties — Marion, Chase, Morris, Lyon, Coffey, Anderson, and Greenwood. It operates with a $379,000 budget. There are three lawyers, including Wheeler, a paralegal, and two support staff people.
The agency has 41 different funding sources. It receives about $50,000 from the federal government, the same amount from the state, some from the United Way, some from the Kansas Department of Social and Rehabilitation Services.
Kansas Legal Services was forced to reject 57 qualified clients in Marion County last year, Wheeler said, because of lack of resources — people and money.
He would like to have a fourth attorney in the Emporia office, he said.
County Commission Chairman Howard Collett suggested Wheeler talk to Judge Michael Powers about KLS possibly taking over public defender duties in Marion County.
KLS does the public defender work in Morris County, which provides no funding for KLS as yet. Morris County has been with KLS for only about three years, Wheeler said.
