House Bill 48 would increase state funding for Alaska Legal Services Corporation

By SUZANNE DOWNING

March 1, 2026 – A bill moving through the Alaska Legislature would dramatically increase the fees taken from Alaskans who file court cases, and would make that money available for civil legal services organizations serving low-income Alaskans and groups that engage in what’s known as “law fare.”

House Bill 48 proposes raising the portion of Alaska Court System filing fee revenue that may be appropriated to the state’s Civil Legal Services Fund, from 10%  to 25%. It might raise as much as $460,000 per year, according to one fiscal note.

The Civil Legal Services Fund is established as a special account within the general fund. It consists of legislative appropriations drawn from a portion of punitive damages awards deposited into the general fund and a percentage of court filing fees collected during the previous fiscal year.

Under current law, the Legislature may appropriate up to 10% of prior-year court filing fees to the fund. HB 48 increases that allowable amount to 25%.

The fund provides grants to organizations that deliver civil legal services to individuals whose income is at or below 125%of the federal poverty guidelines for Alaska. In practice that is only Alaska Legal Services Corporation.

HB 48 does not automatically dedicate money to the fund. The statute explicitly states that nothing in the section creates a dedicated fund. The Legislature would still need to make annual appropriations.

However, the bill substantially increases the ceiling for how much filing fee revenue could be directed toward legal aid.

Court filing fees are paid by individuals and businesses filing civil actions, including divorces, contract disputes, property claims, and other litigation. Thus, this is a new tax on people who file with the court system for any reason.

Democrats argued on the House that many low-income Alaskans cannot afford legal representation in civil matters involving housing disputes, domestic violence protective orders, child custody, consumer fraud, or access to public benefits. They call it an issue over  access to justice, particularly in a state with high legal costs and vast geographic challenges.

But it expands government spending at a time when Alaska faces ongoing structural budget pressures, including debates over the Permanent Fund dividend, new taxes, education funding, and Medicaid growth.

Some lawmakers have raised broader concerns about the role of publicly funded legal services organizations. While such groups provide direct representation in individual cases, some legal aid entities also engage in policy-related litigation that can affect businesses, landlords, or others.

The fee increase from 10% to 25% represents a 150% expansion in the allowable transfer from filing fees to the fund.

The vote in the House, after extensive debate, was 27-13:

Yeas: Bynum, Carrick, Dibert, Edgmon, Eischeid, Fields, Foster, Frier, Galvin, Gray, Hall, Hannan, Himschoot, Holland, Jimmie, Josephson, Kopp, Mears, Mina, Moore, Saddler, Schrage, Story, Stutes, Tomaszewski, Underwood, Vance

Nays: Allard, Costello, Coulombe, Elam, Johnson, McCabe, D.Nelson, G.Nelson, Prax, Ruffridge, Schwanke, St. Clair, Stapp

Underwood changed from “NAY” to “YEA”

HB 48 now advances to the Senate. As with many funding measures this session, the debate may ultimately center less on the bill’s technical language and more on a broader philosophical question about the use of these funds to attack the private sector.