Homestead exemptions remove part of your home’s value from taxation, so they lower your taxes. For example, your home is appraised at $300,000, and you qualify for a $40,000 exemption (this is the amount mandated for school districts). You will pay school taxes on the home as if it was worth only $260,000. Not all homes qualify for a homestead […]
The federal government is now offering aid in Harris County and several other Southeast Texas communities affected by a tornado that ripped across the region on Jan. 24. Survivors can receive help from the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) through its Physical Disaster and Economic Injury Disaster loan programs. One member of the applying household must be a U.S. citizen […]
March 1, 2023 For Immediate Release Houston, TX – The Supreme Court of Texas issued an additional Emergency Order, the fourteenth such order related to sealing and making eviction court records confidential. Eviction record sealing is key to improving housing security for millions of individuals and families. Lone Star Legal Aid (LSLA) has been instrumental in getting these cases sealed. […]
Houston, TX – Lone Star Legal Aid’s Eviction Right to Counsel Initiative will spread the love on Valentine’s Day at Harris County Justice of the Peace – Precinct 5, Place 1. Currently, there are over 500 eviction cases set for trial in Harris County JP 5-1. Attorneys in our Eviction Right to Counsel Initiative will be on site all day […]
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE January 30, 2023 Contact: Lowell Brown | Communications Director, State Bar of Texas | (512) 427-1713 | LBrown@texasbar.com Contact: Clarissa Ayala | Communications Director, Lone Star Legal Aid | (832) 627-8404 | Cayala@lonestarlegal.org Free legal resources are available to low-income individuals affected by the January 24, 2023, tornado and torrential rain in the Southeast Houston, Pasadena, and Deer Park areas. Disaster […]
Pasadena, Texas – Lone Star Legal Aid is available to low-income individuals who suffered wind damage and other conditions caused by the powerful cold front that caused tornadoes and torrential rain in the Southeast Houston, Pasadena, and Deer Park areas on Tuesday, January 24, 2023. An EF3 tornado tore through Southeast Houston and the surrounding area earlier this week, causing […]
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE January 19, 2023 Contact: Courtney Naquin, Sierra Club, (512) 661-1285, courtney.naquin@sierraclub.org, Devorah Ancel, Sierra Club, (415) 845-7847, devorah.ancel@sierraclub.org Lauren Parker, Center for Biological Diversity, (202) 868-1008, lparker@biologicaldiversity.org Joanie Steinhaus, Turtle Island Restoration Network, (409) 795-8426, joanie@tirn.net Dustin Renaud, Earthjustice, (228) 209-2194, drenaud@earthjustice.org Clarissa Ayala, Lone Star Legal Aid, (832)627-8404, cayala@lonestarlegal.org Massive Gulf Coast Deepwater Oil Export Terminal […]
In honor of Giving Season, we are hosting food drives to support local food banks! Our goal is to increase food stability and raise awareness of our services in all 76 counties we serve. Giving Season takes place between November 1 and December 31. During this time, nonprofit organizations campaign for donations, champion volunteer work, and inspire acts of kindness. […]
In honor of Giving Season, we are hosting food drives to support local food banks! Our goal is to increase food stability and raise awareness of our services in all 76 counties we serve. Giving Season takes place between November 1 and December 31. During this time, nonprofit organizations campaign for donations, champion volunteer work, and inspire acts of kindness. […]
Summer P-EBT (June-August 2022) is for families with children (K-12) who were certified for free or reduced-price meals through the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) during the 2021-2022 school year or during summer 2022. Children born on or after Aug. 1, 2015, who receive SNAP, are eligible for summer P-EBT. It is a one-time benefit of $391 for each eligible […]
Houston, TX – Lone Star Legal Aid joined Houston Area Texas Access to Justice Funded organizations on Friday, December 9, 2022, for a Summit on Access to Justice. Presentations were given on the organizations’ work in housing stability, family safety, and immigration issues. The presenters included leaders from our firm, and Aid to Victims of Domestic Abuse (AVDA), Beacon Law, […]
There have been reports of SNAP fraud all over the country. Thieves use a method called “card skimming” to steal SNAP benefits. Thieves do so by placing a device on a store’s card-swiping machine to copy EBT card information. Card skimming can happen to anyone who uses a credit, debit or EBT card, including SNAP participants. HHS will never call or […]
Hurricane season officially ends today, but extreme weather can take many forms. As we head into winter, staying warm and safe can be a challenge. Winter storms can bring cold temperatures, power failures, loss of communication services, and icy roads. To keep yourself and your loved ones safe, you should know how to prepare your home and your car before […]
In honor of Giving Season, we are hosting food drives to support local food banks! Our goal is to increase food stability and raise awareness of our services in all 76 counties we serve. Giving Season takes place between November 1 and December 31. During this time, nonprofit organizations campaign for donations, champion volunteer work, and inspire acts of kindness. […]
Texas Veterans Legal Aid Week is an annual celebration of our services to Veterans. Texas has the second-highest population of veterans in the nation. According to the Department of Veterans Affairs’ annual survey of homeless and formerly homeless Veterans, legal issues account for five of the top 10 unmet needs of homeless Veterans. Obtaining access to free legal services can […]
Since 2019, Lone Star Legal Aid has been part of the A Month of Service (AMOS), a collaboration managed by the City of Houston Department of Neighborhoods (DON) under the direction of Director TaKesha L. Francis and Neighborhood Recovery Community Development Corporation (NRCDC) under the leadership of Executive Director Paul Charles. In addition to DON, NRCDC, and LSLA, AMOS includes […]
Our Texarkana Branch office is grateful to the Pro Bono Attorneys, who continue to support our mission and clients year after year. In honor of Pro Bono Week, we’d like to highlight Pam Fisk and John Delk, who continuously accept Pro Bono referrals and have done so for years. They are also both known to refer clients to us, and […]
Since March 2021, Ms. Hilary Tyson of Boyar Miller Attorneys at Law has been working closely with Lone Star Legal Aid to serve the Houston/Trinity Gardens community. The Houston/Trinity Gardens community is predominately African American, low-income, and while historically residential—it has suffered from years of neglect and divestment. Because Houston is without zoning, incompatible land uses plague this residential community, […]
Since 2017, initially as part of a collaborative grant funded by the Texas Access to Justice Foundation, the Environmental Justice Team at Lone Star Legal Aid has worked closely with Professor Kelly Haragan and her law students at the Environmental Law Clinic at the University of Texas School of Law to expand legal aid’s capacity to address the needs of […]
Pro bono work is a professional responsibility and an individual ethical commitment of each lawyer. The Pro Bono Committee of the American Bar Association launched the National Celebration of Pro Bono in 2009 due to the increasing need for pro bono services in harsh economic times, and the unprecedented response of lawyers to meet this demand. Every October since 2009, […]