BENEFICIARY SPOTLIGHT 2010

REAF plans to spotlight different beneficiaries on our website between now and the Summer gala which will hopefully generate additional interest in the gala as well as awareness about our beneficiary agencies, the services they provide, what their current funding needs are and how funds from REAF impact the services they are able to provide.

This month, we are spotlighting AIDS LEGAL REFERRAL PANEL (ALRP).

1. What programs does your agency provide to people with HIV and AIDS?

ALRP’s mission is to help people living with HIV/AIDS maintain or improve their health by resolving their legal issues. ALRP handles more than 2,000 legal matters each year for almost 1,500 people with HIV in seven Bay Area counties. In addition to its seven staff attorneys, ALRP has volunteer attorneys who are expert in everything from confidentiality to employment. These volunteers, all of whom are members of the State Bar of California, donated over $3.5 million worth of legal services to ALRP’s clients in 2009.

Over the years, ALRP has developed several programs to meet the changing needs of our clients, including:

The ALRP Referral Project:
When ALRP was founded in 1983, our main focus was to refer people living with HIV/AIDS in San Francisco to free or no cost volunteer attorneys, and to provide the support these attorneys needed to help our clients. Since then, ALRP has handled over 50,000 legal matters for our clients. Our services include housing, employment, insurance, confidentiality matters, family law, credit, government benefits or public accommodations, wills, power of attorney and guardianship contracts.

The ALRP Housing Advocacy Project (AHAP)
ALRP’s Housing Advocacy Project (AHAP) has become the centerpiece of our service provision, with almost one third of all ALRP cases now comprised of housing issues. Many of these clients are facing not only housing discrimination, but also eviction, threatening their very survival. Stable, affordable housing is directly related to higher levels of ART adherence, lowered viral loads, and reduced mortality. AHAP attorneys fight zealously to keep people in their homes.

ALRP HIV/AIDS Insurance Protection Project (HIPP)
HIPP helps clients who are struggling to obtain the benefits they are entitled to under public and private long-term disability insurance programs as well as public and private health insurance programs. Without the benefit provided by these insurance programs, many of our clients would not have enough money to pay rent, pay for medications and health care, and feed themselves. The appeals process for these insurance programs is uniformly complicated and time consuming. People in this situation require legal representation for a fair chance against large insurance companies.

The ALRP HIV+ Community Outreach Project
This program ensures that ALRP's services are available to underserved communities such as people of color, women, transgender constituents, people with substance/mental health issues along with HIV/AIDS, and the indigent. Outreach efforts include the provision of community clinics, outreach presentations to community-based organizations (CBOs) in collaboration with local bar associations, and various partnership alliances such as the current partnership with AIDS Project East Bay.

The ALRP Immigrant HIV Assistance Project (IHAP)
The Immigrant HIV Assistance Project (IHAP) provides free immigration legal services to HIV positive immigrants living in San Francisco. IHAP services include assistance with obtaining legal permanent residence (green cards), HIV waivers, political asylum, suspension of deportation, and naturalization.

What impact has past funding from REAF events had on your agency and the services you provide?

REAF support over the years has been a cornerstone of ALRP’s efforts to provide legal services to all persons living with HIV/AIDS. ALRP has been a beneficiary of REAF support in 2003, 2006, 2007, and 2009, with grant support now totaling more than $85,000. For our small agency and our operating budget of less than $1 million, this support has been critical to our ability to continue to be there for our clients over this time period. As government, foundation and corporate funding continues to shrink, ALRP and our clients are relying more and more on our community partners like REAF to keep our services available.

These REAF Grants have directly supported several ALRP programs, including our AIDS Community Outreach Project (ACOP), and most recently our HIV/AIDS Insurance Protection Project (HIPP). REAF support over the years has impacted the lives of hundreds of ALRP clients. In just 2009 the grant from REAF helped ALRP handle 2,025 legal matters for almost 1500 clients, including 525 clients with housing-related legal issues and 298 clients with insurance-related issues.

The legal matters handled in 2009 included:

• Stopping unlawful evictions - fulfilling the basic need for shelter
• Protecting and regaining lost jobs and insurance/medical benefits
• Protecting people's assets, and their children's future
• Reducing people's stress and improving their health
• Assuring people's personal dignity

Approximately 71% of ALRP’s 2009 clients had incomes of $20,000 or less, and 82% of clients had incomes of less than $30,000. Over 50% of our 2009 clients were people of color. Clients were served in seven counties around the San Francisco Bay, including Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, San Francisco, San Mateo, Solano, and Sonoma counties.

In 2009, ALRP staff conducted 19 MCLE Trainings to volunteer attorneys, more than twice the number of 2008 MCLE Trainings. As a result of these increased trainings, over 175 attorneys were trained on a variety of legal issues affecting people with HIV/AIDS (more than three times the number trained in 2008), and more than 30 new attorneys joined the ALRP Panel in 2009. ALRP also conducted over 40 presentations to client groups, AIDS service agencies, and other CBOs in the San Francisco Bay Area, ten more presentations than in 2008. Additionally, over 25 Fair Housing trainings were held for tenants with disabilities and for service providers at community partner locations.

How are funds designated to be used as proceeds from “Help is on the Way XVI”?

Funding from REAF in 2010 will underwrite ALRP’s HIV/AIDS Insurance Protection Project (HIPP). Specifically, REAF’s $20,000 grant will allow HIPP to serve clients in at least 175 insurance-related matters, recruit and train five additional volunteers to take on insurance cases, and conduct four lay trainings on insurance issues for clients. HIPP helps dramatically level the playing field for clients whose health and well-being are being put at risk by big insurance companies, by providing clients with a forceful, experienced, and dedicated legal advocate. ALRP established HIPP in the summer of 2006, which was expected to handle 25 to 50 cases a year, but due to overwhelming client need, HIPP has handled ten times the anticipated number of insurance-related matters, serving more than 600 clients since its inception (including 301 clients in 2009 alone).

What impact has the current economy had on your agency and the programs you provide?

The economic downturn is proving challenging for many AIDS service providers, and it has had a direct impact on our clients, many of whom experienced reductions in income support, medical and dental services, mental health services, and in-home supportive services.. ALRP is also experiencing challenges, with corporate funding for ALRP’s legal services down by 18% and foundation support down an astonishing 74% in 2009. While difficult economic conditions and fundraising challenges persist, ALRP is committed to ensuring that its services remaining available to people with HIV/AIDS, especially now, when the need for our services is greatest.

Have you seen any increase or decrease in demand for services from clients?

In 2009 ALRP handled 2,024 legal matters for almost 1,500 clients, the third year in a row of an annual caseload over 2,000. This number reflects a 35% increase in our caseload over the last five years. ALRP’s HIV/AIDS Insurance Protection Project (HIPP), the program being supported by REAF in 2010, experienced a 17% increase in clients last year alone, handling over 300 cases in 2009.

Have you had to cut any programs or reduce staffing due the current economy?
Are any programs in jeopardy of being cut?

Fortunately, thus far ALRP has not had to reduce staffing or cut services during this economic downturn. ALRP is committed to ensuring that our services remain available to our client now, when they are most needed. As a result of hard work and advance planning, ALRP set aside some of its reserve for Board-designated reserve fund -- our ‘rainy day’ fund -- to help cover future revenue shortfalls during these tough times. ALRP has resolved to use up to $100,000 of its Board-designated reserve fund for operating expenses in 2010 if needed.

What is your current biggest funding need?

What ALRP (and most AIDS service organizations) needs is a steady, reliable funding stream to cover general operating expenses. Unrestricted funding allows an agency to direct its resources to address the needs of its clients and fill the gaps created by shrinking government and foundation support.

Have you seen any other advantages or benefits from participating as a beneficiary of REAF events beyond dollars raised for your agency?

Over the years, the REAF grants have helped ALRP expand its services to meet growing and changing client needs, while also ensuring that ALRP remains financially stable. It has also enabled ALRP to offer our volunteers a fun, exciting and very entertaining volunteer opportunity. Our volunteers enjoy their REAF experience (and the Gala, of course!), which helps us keep our volunteer pool happy. Additionally, being a beneficiary of the REAF Help Is On The Way Galas is a great way for ALRP to gain media exposure in the community beyond our own outreach efforts. Finally, ALRP Board members, staff and volunteers really enjoy the event itself, and being a beneficiary makes attending the event (and selling tickets) even better!

Any additional comments you would like to make?

Government funding as a share of ALRP’s total revenue has declined steadily and will account for less than 50 percent of ALRP’s budget in 2010. Additionally, the dramatic downturn in the economy will continue to have an adverse effect on foundation, corporate, and law firm giving in 2010, making support from community partners like REAF more important than ever.