How can Legal Aid help a Veteran facing issues with money, housing, family, health or employment?
Are you a low-income U.S. Veteran facing problems with:
Money?
- Have your veteran’s benefits been terminated or reduced due to overpayment?
- Have you been denied or terminated from other government benefits? (e.g. Food Stamps, cash assistance, SSI, Unemployment Compensation)
- Do you have debts that cause problems with meeting your needs, for example obtaining utilities, driver’s license, or housing?
- Have you received any letters or notices from the IRS about your federal taxes?
Housing?
- Have you applied for and been denied a subsidy to help pay for housing?
- Is your rent subsidy being terminated?
- Does your apartment need repairs that your landlord refuses to make?
- Has your landlord given you a notice to leave your apartment or are you being evicted?
- Are you behind on mortgage payments or facing foreclosure?
- Did you receive a shut off notice for your lights, gas, or water?
Family?
- Are you afraid for your safety because of your current or former significant other or household member?
- Are you afraid for your child’s safety?
- Do you have problems paying child support?
- Does your child have problems in school with learning or with behavior?
- Do you have trouble accessing health care?
Health?
- Do you have trouble filling your prescriptions for medication?
- Do you have a criminal record that prevents you from getting a job?
Employment?
- Have you been denied a professional license (e.g. barber, day care provider, STNA?)
- Do you need your driver’s license reinstated in order to work?
If YES, contact The Legal Aid Society of Cleveland for help. Click here for a flyer with more information!
Tax Help for H2A Workers
Farmers may apply with the U.S. government to hire workers from other countries on temporary work visas called H2A visas. Not all work visas are H2A visas. If you are not sure what kind of visa you have, check your passport or other immigration documents.
H2A workers with questions about taxes or getting an ITIN for a dependent should call The Legal Aid Society of Cleveland. Legal Aid has a Low Income Taxpayer Clinic (LITC) that may be able to help. Please call Legal Aid at 1.888.817.3777.
More information is available in this bilingual brochure published by Legal Aid: Tax Help for H2A Workers / Ayuda con los Impuestos para Trabajadores/as H2A
How Do You Respond to a Custody Summons?
How do you respond to a custody summons from juvenile court? This brochure outlines what happens during and after a summons, and what steps you should take if a parent poses a violent threat to your child.
More information can be found in this brochure published by Legal Aid: How Do You Respond to a Custody Summons?
This information can also be found in Spanish at: ¿Cómo responder a un Citatorio de Custodia?
Healthy Mommies, Healthy Babies
Are you pregnant or do you have a child? This brochure explains how pregnancy or having a child might affect your public benefits and other legal issues.
More information can be found in both English and Spanish at: Healthy Mommies, Healthy Babies/Mamás y bebés sanos
Legal Help for Immigrant Victims of Crime
If you are an immigrant and have been a victim of crime, Legal Aid may be able to assist you with asserting your rights under immigration laws. This brochure outlines U-Visas for victims of Crime, Special Immigrant Juvenile Status, and T-Visas for human trafficking. This brochure also discusses how immigrants can assert their rights under the Violence Against Women Act.
More information is available in multiple languages in this brochure published by Legal Aid: Legal Help for Immigrant Victims of Crime
A Spanish version of this brochure is available by clicking here: Spanish Version – Legal Help for Immigrant Victims of Crime
Legal Assistance for Immigrants
This brochure outlines what Legal Aid can do for Immigrants in Northeast Ohio. Legal Aid can assist many immigrants to the U.S., not just citizens or permanent residents, and works on cases such as detainee and deportation, and naturalization and citizenship. This brochure explains what Legal Aid can assist immigrants and their families with.
More information is available in multiple languages in this brochure published by Legal Aid: Legal Assistance for Immigrants
Notice to Immigration Detainees in Northeast Ohio
Legal Aid may be able to help you with your immigration situation if you cannot afford an attorney. This brochure outlines the rights immigration detainees have, including the right to speak with an attorney about their cases, the right to request release from custody on bond, the right to contact their country’s Consulate or Embassy, and the right to contact family members. Also included are important contact numbers that may help in resolving your immigration issue.
This brochure is available in both English and Spanish at: Notice for Immigration Detainees in Northeast Ohio/ Aviso a los Detenidos de Inmigración en el Nordeste de Ohio.
Language Access for Parents
The Cleveland Metropolitan School District has agreed to provide interpretation and translation services to students and parents with material related to schooling. This flyer explains what services the Cleveland School district has agreed to provide.
This flyer is available in both English and Spanish at: Language Access for Parents/Acceso lingüístico para los padres.
Bullying in Schools: Know Your Rights and Your Public School’s Obligations
This brochure explains Ohio’s anti-bullying laws, which apply to all public school and charter schools. Bullying is defined broadly as mental harm, physical harm, harm within a dating relationship or harm by an act done through an electronic device. Schools are required to make a safe, bully-free learning environment. Parents can protect their child by knowing their rights, reporting abuse, and communicating with their child. This brochure also explains how parents can seek legal advice if a school has failed to protect their child or comply with state laws.
More information is available in this brochure published by Legal Aid: Bullying in Ohio Schools
This brochure is also available in Spanish: Intimidación en las Escuelas de Ohio
Access to Education for Homeless Students and Students Living in Temporary Housing
This brochure explains the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act, which is a federal law that requires school districts to provide an education to homeless students. This law protects students rights to enroll in school or continue attending school despite lacking necessary documents, and to transfer and be transported to a school that is convenient to them. Public school has a liaison who assists homeless students and their families. This brochure also explains how families can seek legal help if a child’s school is not fulfilling these obligations.
More information is available in this brochure published by Legal Aid: Access to Education for Homeless Students
This information is also available in Spanish: Acceso a la Educación por Alumnos Sin Casa y Alumnos que Están Viviendo en Viviendas Temporales
Lead Poisoning: Rights, Remedies & Resources
Lead poisoning occurs when lead builds up in the body, often over months or years. Even small amounts of lead can cause serious health problems. Children younger than 6 years are especially vulnerable to lead poisoning, which can severely affect mental and physical development. At very high levels, lead poisoning can be fatal.
Lead-based paint and lead-contaminated dust in older buildings are the most common sources of lead poisoning in children. There is treatment for lead poisoning, but taking some simple precautions can help protect you and your family from lead exposure before harm is done.
Legal Aid can help! Click here for an informative brochure about Lead Poisoning: Know Your Rights, Remedies & Resources. You can also browse other Legal Aid articles related to lead poisoning and related FAQ’s and brochures by clicking here.
Get Tested for Lead
Young Children at Risk
Children 6 years old and under are at most risk for damage from lead poisoning. Children may be at risk of lead poisoning if:
- They live in or visit a home built before 1978.
- Paint is peeling on windows or doors.
- Large patches of bare dirt are exposed around their home.
Child Testing
Have your child’s doctor test your child’s blood lead levels. If you are covered by Medicaid, the lead screening will be covered. If the blood lead level is above 5 μg/dl there is cause for concern.
If the blood lead level is above 10 μg/dl, Ohio law requires the Ohio Department of Health or a local health department to inspect the child’s home for lead hazards. Update your contact information with the child’s doctor to ensure the Department of Health can inspect.
Home Testing
Call the Ohio Department of Health at 877-532-3723 to get more information on having the place a child lives or visits tested for lead. Cleveland residents should call 216-664-2175. Other Cuyahoga County residents should call 216-201-2000.
Get the Lead Out
Tenants
If you live in a rental unit built before 1978, notify your landlord in writing if there is any peeling paint, large patches of bare dirt on the premises, or if your child has lead poisoning and request that your landlord make repairs. Date the letter and keep a copy for your records. If your landlord fails to make repairs within 30 days, under Ohio law you may:
- Deposit your rent in escrow at the court. You must be current in rent payments to use this process. See step by step directions for rent depositing at: https://tinyurl.com/LegalAidRentDeposit.
- Apply to the court to order the landlord to make repairs to lead hazards.
- Terminate your lease and move.
- Depositing rent may waive your rights to sue your landlord for any injury resulting from the lead poisoning. To consider any claims against your landlord, consult with an attorney before depositing rent.
Call Legal Aid if your landlord files an eviction or raises your rent after you have provided notice of a lead condition or because you have contacted the Health Department because of lead conditions.
Homeowners
Contact your local public health authorities for information on assistance programs to make your home lead-safe. Federal law requires disclosure of any known lead hazard at the time of sale.
Get Help
Help Your Child
Lead poisoning may have long term effects including attention difficulties, behavior problems, or learning challenges. A nutritional diet early on may help. For more information see: www.epa.gov/lead.
Early Intervention
A child under the age of 3 years old that has been lead poisoned may qualify for early intervention Help Me Grow services, even if they are not showing signs of delay. Call Help Me Grow at 800-755-4769.
Special Education
If a child has learning or behavior problems in school, ask the school to evaluate the child for special education services. Let the school know the child was lead poisoned, and it is impacting the child’s education.
- Put the request in writing.
- Date the request and keep a copy.
- If you are not given a written response within 30 days, contact Legal Aid.
Personal Injury Suit
You may have claims if your child has been lead poisoned. Lawsuits based on lead poisoning may be difficult to prove. Call your local bar association to consult with an attorney who handles personal injury claims.
Contact Legal Aid
Call Legal Aid’s intake line or visit your local Legal Aid office. Click here for details: www.lasclev.org/contact/
Legal Aid’s Brief Advice Clinics
Want to talk in-person with an attorney? In addition to in-person and phone intake, Legal Aid offers Brief Advice Clinics in neighborhoods throughout Northeast Ohio. At the Clinics you can talk in-person with an attorney and ask questions about your legal problem.
Text 216-242-1544 with the message LAS CLINIC for date and location of next clinic or visit www.lasclev.org for a complete schedule.
Contact the Bar Association
Contact your local bar association for a referral to a private attorney.
- Cleveland Metropolitan Bar Association: 216-696-3532
- Lorain County Bar Association: 440-323-8416
- Lake County, Ohio Bar Association: 440-350-5800
- Geauga County Bar Association: 440-286-7160
- Ashtabula County Bar Association: 440-415-4503
Lead Poisoning – Know Your Rights!
Click here for a helpful info card which briefly highlights your rights related to Lead Poisoning.
First steps to prevention
- The most common sources of lead are peeling paint and bare soil.
- Contact your landlord in writing to request a repair of these conditions.
Test your Children
- Ask your pediatrician to test your child for lead poisoning.
- If your child’s blood lead level is above 5 μg/dl there is cause for concern.
- If it is above 10 μg/dl the Department of Health should inspect your home.
Get Help
- If your child is falling behind in school, ask the school in writing to evaluate them for special education and mention their lead
poisoning. Contact Legal Aid if you do not receive a response within 30 days. - If your landlord refuses to repair lead hazards, contact Legal Aid.
Text FAQ LEAD to 216.242.1544 for a link to more information, including resources for homeowners.
Do You Need Health Insurance? Learn about free or reduced cost health care.
Do You Need Health Insurance? Sign up NOW for free or reduced cost health care! Almost everyone in Ohio can get health insurance now under the Affordable Care Act.
Many more Ohioans are now eligible for FREE health care coverage through Medicaid:
- If you are between the ages 19 to 64 years old; and
- If your income is below 138% of the federal poverty level (about $1,321 per month for an individual and about $2,708 per month for a family of 4); and
- Even if you were denied Medicaid in the past…
Apply for Medicaid:
- online at www.benefits.ohio.gov; or
- by phone at 1-800-324-8680; or
- in person at your local County Department of Job and Family Services office.
If you are denied Medicaid by the county or tax credits by the Marketplace, Legal Aid may be able to help you. Call Legal Aid intake at 1-888-817-3777.
CLICK HERE for an informational flyer in both English and Spanish!
Healthy Mommies, Healthy Babies
Are you pregnant or do you have a child? This brochure explains how pregnancy or having a child might affect your public benefits and other legal issues.
More information can be found in both English and Spanish at: Healthy Mommies, Healthy Babies/Mamás y bebés sanos
City of Bedford Ceases Enforcement of Unconstitutional Nuisance Ordinance
Published in ACLU Ohio on 07/22/2019
BEDFORD – Today, as a result of litigation brought by the ACLU, the ACLU of Ohio, and The Legal Aid Society of Cleveland, the City of Bedford has suspended enforcement of its unconstitutional Criminal Activity Nuisance Ordinance while the litigation proceeds. The plaintiffs, the Fair Housing Center for Rights & Research and Beverley Somai, filed a lawsuit on February 20, 2019 alleging that Bedford’s Nuisance Ordinance violates the First Amendment by penalizing people for calling the police for help—and is used to discriminate against communities of color, low-income households, people with disabilities, and domestic violence survivors.
“A call for help should never result in eviction. No one’s housing should be at risk simply because they called 911. Bedford’s law and other nuisance laws like it don’t benefit anyone—they are used to exclude and mistreat people. We are pleased that the City agreed to a preliminary injunction. We will continue fighting for the ordinance to be repealed for good,” said Elizabeth Bonham, staff attorney for the ACLU of Ohio.
Courts across the country have found that local nuisance ordinances violate residents’ rights under the First Amendment and the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment because they punish people for reaching out to their governments, often without notice or an opportunity to challenge whether they should be considered a “nuisance.”
“Bedford’s nuisance ordinance does not further any legitimate public safety goals, it actually harms public safety by penalizing victims of crime and other people who require emergency assistance,” added Jennifer Sheehe, attorney for The Legal Aid Society of Cleveland. “Our clients’ experience is far from an anomaly. Bedford’s broad, discriminatory, punitive ordinance should be permanently struck down.”
Click here to read the full article in ACLU Ohio.
City of Bedford to stop enforcing ‘nuisance ordinance’ amid lawsuit claiming it discriminates against minorities and women
Written by Evan MacDonald in Cleveland.com on 7/22/2019
BEDFORD, Ohio — The city of Bedford agreed to stop enforcing a nuisance ordinance that is the subject of an federal lawsuit claiming it is used to discriminate against and make housing unavailable to minorities, women and people with disabilities, court records say.
The suit, filed Feb. 20 by the American Civil Liberties Union of Ohio and the Legal Aid Society of Cleveland, says Bedford’s Criminal Activity Nuisance Ordinance violates the First Amendment by penalizing people for calling the police for help. It also says Bedford’s ordinance is one of the harshest in the country and targets black residents, the majority of whom are renters.
A federal judge approved the stipulation Monday afternoon, and granted a preliminary injunction to keep Bedford from enforcing the ordinance while the lawsuit is pending.
An ACLU of Ohio staff attorney said Monday the organization is pleased Bedford is suspending its enforcement of the nuisance ordinance, but is still fighting for its repeal.
“A call for help should never result in eviction. No one’s housing should be at risk simply because they called 911,” ACLU staff attorney Elizabeth Bonham said in a news release. “Bedford’s law and other nuisance laws like it don’t benefit anyone—they are used to exclude and mistreat people.”
Under Bedford’s ordinance, someone can be designated a nuisance after the ordinance is broken twice on a property or in the city. But it does not distinguish between an offender and a complainant, meaning that someone can be penalized for calling the police, the suit says.
The ordinance allows tenants can be penalized even if they are not at fault, the suit says. It also allows the city to threaten landlords with fines and criminal prosecution if they rent to “nuisance” tenants, the suit says.
Bedford officials passed the ordinance in 2005 and updated it several times over the years, most recently in 2017. The suit says the city passed the ordinance as its demographics were shifting, with more black residents moving into Bedford.
Cleveland landlords have questions about lead-safe legislation’s fairness, feasibility. Here are some answers
Written by Rachel Dissell, Jordan Grzelewski, and Nick Castele in The Plain Dealer on 07/21/2019
CLEVELAND, Ohio – What concerns do landlords and property managers have about Cleveland’s proposed lead legislation, which would require rentals to be inspected for hazardous levels of the toxin?
We asked, and they answered, sharing their perspectives with The Plain Dealer and WCPN/90.3 ideastream.
The number of landlords we heard from, nearly 80 who answered our survey, 100 including those who called or emailed, is relatively small when you consider the number of rental units in Cleveland is estimated at 85,000 to 100,000.
Collectively, however, they raised a host of concerns and questions about the legislation, which was introduced last month and based, in part, on recommendations from the Lead Safe Cleveland Coalition.
The most common concerns included:
- Cleveland isn’t capable of carrying out a lead-safe certificate program.
- The law would be an extra burden on “good” landlords who already register their properties and would have no effect on scofflaw landlords who refuse to register or test their units.
- Provisions in the law aren’t adequately rooted in local data regarding rentals or sources of lead exposure.
- The law would put an unfair financial onus on landlords, and not the historical makers of lead paint, or on government entities that failed to enforce housing code in the past.
Many of the landlords also told us they felt they had a responsibility to provide a safe home, and some said they believed that having a lead-safe home could improve the value of their property.
City council will continue its public discussion of the proposal at a July 23 hearing.
Below, we answer some of the most frequently raised questions.
Why does the proposed city ordinance apply only to rental properties and not all homes if the health and safety of children is the issue?
Lead Safe Cleveland Coalition (LSCC) members and city officials shared several reasons for putting the law’s focus on rental properties, though both rentals and owner-occupied properties constructed before 1978 are at risk for lead hazards if not maintained.
Practically, the city and its partners said they decided to build off Cleveland’s rental registry and rental inspection programs. The coalition said it based its recommendations on “science and national best practices.”
There’s no perfect or easy way to compare risks in rentals and owner-occupied homes.
Not all kids are screened for lead poisoning and not all poisoning cases result in an investigation and verification of a lead hazard.
However, there is evidence that rentals pose a higher lead-poisoning risk for young children.
Researchers from Case Western Reserve University’s Center on Urban Poverty and Community Development, who are advising the Lead Safe Cleveland Coalition, calculated high-, medium- and low-risk areas of the city based on the number of children poisoned. In census tracts where the risk for lead poisoning is high, 69% of the housing units are rentals, compared to 42% of the housing units in low-risk areas.
“This idea that neighborhoods with higher proportions of rental housing have higher proportions of children testing positive for lead, that is not just a finding in the city of Cleveland,” said Claudia Coulton, director of the center. “That tends to be found in many places.”
The Plain Dealer looked at nearly 400 Cleveland properties with health department orders to clean up lead hazards from 2014 through mid-2018 and compared them to properties Case researchers flagged as rentals, using multiple factors.
Of the matching addresses, 73% were rental properties in 2018.
Although the legislation’s requirements would apply only to rental units, city council doesn’t want to exclude homeowners from the conversation about lead paint, Councilman Kerry McCormack said.
“We want to make sure that through our Lead Safe Resource Center that homeowners have the ability to learn about lead safety and have the ability to engage in that conversation to ensure that their homes are lead safe as well,” he said.
Owner-occupied homes are not covered under the proposed law. The health department can order remediation if a child is poisoned in an owner-occupied home and lead hazard is found.
How do we know that children are not being poisoned by water that flows through pipes that are made of lead or sources other than paint in their home?
There’s no way to precisely determine the source of lead in a child’s body. From decades of research, we know children most often ingest the toxin by putting a hand that touched lead dust in their mouths or consuming paint chips or other items coated with lead paint or dust.
In Ohio, when blood tests show that a young child is poisoned at a level that requires action from health officials, investigators look for potential sources of the exposure based on where a child spends time. The investigators test to determine where lead hazards might exist, including using a machine to locate lead-based paint and testing dust or soil in a home. They can also collect other items for testing.
In 2016, the Ohio Department of Health took a look at the sources of exposure from investigations health officials conducted and found that lead paint and lead dust were by far the most frequent. Lead paint was a source in 86% of the cases where a source was identified.
Investigators don’t test for all possible sources, though. For instance, a public health investigator might not test water if hazardous levels of lead were already found in paint, dust or soil.
Children can ingest lead by drinking water that has flowed through lead pipes or fixtures. In many Cleveland neighborhoods, more than 30%, and as many as 90%, of city service lines could contain lead. Homes also often have internal plumbing or fixtures that contain the toxin.
Cleveland Water, the public water system, treats the water that leaves its distribution facilities with an additive called orthophosphate, which creates a coating on lead pipes to prevent the lead from leaching into the water.
The water system serves more than 1.5 million customers in 80 Northeast Ohio communities and is required by federal and state law to test drinking water from at least 50 home faucets every 3 years. Testing is done in conditions most likely to identify a problem: during warm weather, from homes with known lead service lines and drawing water that remained in the pipes for at least 6 hours.
Those tests show good results; it’s a rare occurrence to find lead.
However, Cleveland Water relies on volunteers, and in recent years, many of the samples collected have not been in neighborhoods were lead risks are highest and many of the samples are collected by city or water department employees or contractors.
Tests also aren’t automatically done when the risk of exposure is at its highest: during road construction, service pipe or water meter replacement, home demolitions or renovations.
Why will this law apply in rentals where no children live?/Am I allowed to not rent to tenants with children?
It is illegal under federal, state and local law to deny housing because a prospective tenant has children.
Fair housing laws include protections against discrimination based on familial status, which means landlords cannot refuse to rent to pregnant women, families with children under the age of 18 or a person who is in the process of obtaining legal custody of a minor. The only exception to this is for designated senior housing that complies with federal law.
Fair housing protections extend to how landlords advertise and discuss their properties with prospective tenants.
Beyond the issue of discrimination, the city’s proposed lead-safe law applies to rentals where no children live for other reasons.
“While children may not be residents to the unit, they may visit the unit and spend significant time there,” said Abigail Staudt, an attorney with the Legal Aid Society of Cleveland. “For example, perhaps a grandmother, aunt or even a neighbor watches the child while the parents are at work. That unit needs to be free from lead hazards, too, even though those children are not residents.”
Why has the city not held Sherwin Williams and other companies that sold dangerous lead-based paint accountable?
City and community officials have often talked about holding companies that produced and sold lead-based paint accountable to help remedy the lead-poisoning problem.
The company most often singled out is Sherwin-Williams, which was founded here 150 years ago and employs more than 3,000 people at its local headquarters.
Sherwin-Williams is a member of the Lead Safe Cleveland Coalition and company officials have been “actively engaged,” spokesman Mike Conway said.
The company is prepared to commit to help with workforce training, including the U.S. EPA required Lead Renovation, Repair and Painting, Conway said. The company also will donate paint and supplies, he said, though the amounts have not yet been determined, and will offer discounted materials.
The company has collaborated with the Cuyahoga Metropolitan Housing Authority to train people to maintain and replace paint safely and already supports efforts like Habitat for Humanity and Rebuilding Together.
An Ohio law enacted in 2007 made it nearly impossible for municipal or government entities, or anyone, for that matter, to sue paint makers over lead contamination on the grounds that the toxin was a public nuisance.
Before that, several cities, including Columbus, Toledo, Cincinnati and East Cleveland, were gearing up for lawsuits against national paint companies in hopes of securing money to help them fund lead cleanup.
Cleveland declined to sign on to the lawsuits and Mayor Frank Jackson never publicly shared his reason for that decision.
Lawsuits in some other places fizzled, but a 2017 lawsuit in a California court just resulted in a $305 million settlement by Sherwin-Williams and two other companies that used to make lead paint.
In 2016, Sherwin-Williams officials told The Plain Dealer that the responsibility for dealing with lead poisoning rests with landlords and the government — not paint companies that stopped producing lead-based paint decades ago. Sherwin-Williams stopped selling residential use lead-based paint in the United States in 1937, company officials said.
“The fact of the matter is there are a lot of dilapidated homes in Cleveland,” Robert Wells, senior vice president for communications at Sherwin-Williams, told The Plain Dealer.
What can landlords do to hold tenants responsible for upkeep in a home?
State law spells out the obligations tenants have in terms of maintaining properties, including keeping the property “safe and sanitary.”
If a tenant fails to comply with these requirements, the landlord can bring an action against them, according to Staudt. Tenants are not liable for “normal wear and tear” to the property, she said. Most landlords collect a damage/security deposit in case of damage.
Under Ohio law, it is the landlord’s responsibility to comply with “applicable building, housing, health and safety codes that materially affect health and safety” and to make repairs.
Tenants have a duty to inform landlords of any issues with the conditions of the unit so the landlord can make a repair, particularly if it’s an issue that could get worse if left unattended.
But, Staudt said, “The overriding law is that the landlord has a duty to keep the unit in a fit and habitable condition. I don’t think there’s any lack of clarity that a unit with lead hazards is not meeting that standard.”
How did the city arrive at an interval of every 2 years for a lead-paint inspection?
Inspection intervals vary in cities and states with similar laws aimed at reducing lead hazards. Some places require inspections when a new tenant moves in; others require inspections in intervals from 1 to 6 years.
The city looked to federal Department of Housing and Urban Development guidelines for its 2-year requirement, according to Emily Lundgard with Enterprise Community Partners, one of the LSCC partners.
HUD requires reevaluations every 2 years for public housing and multi-family properties that contain lead hazards. The agency requires visual assessments, but not full lead-risk assessments, in properties that accept housing vouchers, unless a child is found to be poisoned there. Public housing and multi-family properties that pass two consecutive 2-year reevaluations can be exempt from further ones.
Cleveland’s proposed law doesn’t have that type of exemption, though council members and coalition partners have stressed plans to examine data and make adjustments over time. The legislation would require the city to evaluate the program each year “to determine if tenants have been unduly displaced and to identify any other negative unintended consequences.”
Under Cleveland’s proposed rules, landlords do not have to obtain a lead certification every 2 years if they provide the city with a comprehensive report showing that they’ve fully abated lead paint. That means contractors have removed lead paint and dust, replaced surfaces and fixtures painted with lead, permanently enclosed remaining lead paint and removed or covered lead-contaminated soil. The abatement report must have been completed within the last 20 years.
The reason inspections need to be repeated, according to Akbar Tyler of Environmental Health Watch: Paint deteriorates over time on surfaces exposed to regular impact and friction.
The opening and closing of windows grinds layers of paint into dust. Paint on staircases wears away as people walk up and down them. Water leaks can break down paint on walls.
“If you’re not doing all abatement, removing all the lead, interim controls require ongoing monitoring,” Tyler said. “You have to consistently make sure the paint is intact and it’s not creating a hazard.”
A housing lifeline for low-income residents
Written by Jeremy Nobile in Crain’s Cleveland’s Business on 07/07/2019
Anyone who’s ever watched a TV cop drama knows about Miranda warnings and a citizen’s constitutionally protected right to an attorney when accused of a crime.
But what you may not learn on television is that when it comes to civil cases, including housing and eviction disputes, there is no right to counsel in a system that favors landlords.
The Housing Justice Alliance, an initiative led by the Legal Aid Society of Cleveland, aims to restore balance for low-income residents who could never afford an attorney on their own.
If successfully established, it could make Cleveland just the fourth city in the country — behind New York City, San Francisco and Newark, N.J. — with a guaranteed right to counsel, something that stands to benefit not just the individuals and their families facing eviction, but the wider community and, perhaps counterintuitively, even the real estate market itself.
Statistics from the Ohio Supreme Court indicate there are roughly 9,000 evictions filed each year in Cleveland — where about 58% of all homes are rentals — and about 20,000 countywide.
According to an analysis by The Eviction Lab, an average of 12 people were evicted each day in Cleveland in 2016, where the eviction rate of 4.53% is nearly double the national average.
Traditionally, just 1% to 2% of those cases involve an attorney on the tenants’ side, according to legal aid attorneys, while landlords almost always have lawyers in tow.
The hearings typically last all of five minutes, said Hazel Remesch, supervising attorney in the housing group for Cleveland Legal Aid. The nonprofit regularly assists low-income residents facing eviction, although because of already stretched resources that’s still only a fraction of those who might qualify for help.
As Remesch explained, the courts are designed to move eviction cases through the system quickly, tipping the scales in favor of lawyer-backed landlords versus tenants who often don’t show up to their hearings at all. Those who do appear often don’t know their rights or how to plead a case when they might have recourse against their landlord for something like unsuitable living conditions. Without a lawyer, those concerns are almost never raised.
“At the end of those five minutes, the usual outcome is the tenant loses their housing. But they’ve been put in that situation without having the information on what their rights are, what defenses the could have raised, or told of what negotiations representation could bring,” Remesch said. “I think the system has been created in a way that it’s really landlord-friendly.”
Critics say housing courts have become machines designed to process evictions, not necessarily to administer justice.
“So what a right to counsel does is change the landscape,” Remesch pointed out. “It disrupts the system and generally makes the process more fair.”
Securing funding for the program is legal aid’s current challenge.
Why a right to counsel?
The idea is to address systemic issues created by eviction, which can have a compounding impact on displaced tenants, who, without their home, may end up on the streets or in prison, or may lose their job or kids, or worse.
Affected children may end up bouncing between school districts, or missing school altogether, creating instability that begets other problems and straining social services.
So addressing eviction means addressing the factors that lead to homelessness, and the other issues that leads to, said John Pollock, coordinator for the National Coalition for a Civil Right to Counsel.
“Say someone becomes homeless or ends up in a shelter. Those are taxpayer-funded services. Say they went to prison or there’s court time spent on prosecuting them for whatever vagrancy crime. The cost of shelter services (in New York City) alone was something like $36,000 a year for one family,” Pollock noted. “When you look at the cost of counsel, it’s a pittance compared to that.”
Businesses don’t tend to like homeless people and often lobby for ordinances criminalizing homelessness, Pollock added. Economically speaking, “the better answer is not to make people homeless in the first place.” That can often be as simple as helping someone bridge the gap of one rent or utility payment or helping them negotiate a way to stave off eviction.
“We consider a right to counsel as preventive legal medicine,” Pollock said. “It’s intervening in a system at the point where you can treat the underlying problem instead of just the symptom.”
There’s also the ideological sense of justice that comes with it and is absent otherwise.
Yet half the people who face eviction don’t even show up to court at all, let alone with a lawyer.
“And why would that be? Because the system is horribly broken and they know it,” Pollock said.
What comes next
In Cleveland, legal aid is ironing out the details of its inaugural program as it works with city council. That includes finalizing the parameters for support and priorities for anyone receiving help, such as having a young family, said legal aid managing attorney Abigail Staudt.
There also needs to be a framework for the rollout of the entitlement, which could take several years to hit full implementation, similar to what New York City is doing.
Ultimately, legal aid would like to see the right to counsel expand for all of Cuyahoga County.
Other details involve how the attached funding mechanism could work. For example, the related funds might be used to outright cover a single month of rent or a utility payment for a needy tenant, avoiding the need for an eviction hearing at all.
That all comes down to funding, the need for which could vary depending on the look of the program. Securing funding likely means striking a number of community and philanthropic partnerships.
Like many grass-roots initiatives, the challenge in moving from concept to practice, whether with donor groups or city council, will be getting that first group to step up with money.
“We already know it’s the morally right thing to do,” Remesch said. “We are trying to solve really major issues our community has faced and in that process, it will make the bottom line look better for our entire community.”
The impact
New York City legislated a right to counsel in summer 2017, following a three-year tenants’ rights campaign, becoming the first city in the U.S. to do so. It took backing by city council, which established the right through legislation and a mandate to fund it. The related funds largely pay for legal aid attorneys, who assist those facing eviction living at 200% or below of the federal poverty line. The program is being phased in through various ZIP codes until fully implemented in 2022.
It’s a little over $150 million for five years, said Susanna Blankley, coalition coordinator for the Right to Counsel NYC Coalition.
“Evictions are about power, not individual facts of a case,” Blankley said. “They’re used en masse because landlords have had control over the court system for so long. It’s a tool to scare, gentrify and displace. It won’t shift the balance of power unless all tenants know they have a right to fight with the same tools landlords have in housing court.”
According to New York City’s Office of Civil Justice, the program had a transformative effect in just one year. In that time, 84% of tenants provided a lawyer stayed in their homes (22,000 households), with total evictions dropping 14%. And landlords began suing people less often, with eviction filings dropping 5% by the next summer.
Other cities followed with different programs backing the right to counsel with variations between them. Pollock said similar initiatives are gaining ground in other markets, including Philadelphia, Detroit and Los Angeles.
A study commissioned in Philly (one is in the works in Cleveland involving Case Western Reserve University, but hasn’t been completed yet) showed that 30% of tenants facing eviction would not be able to afford legal representation. While serving them could cost about $3.5 million annually, the costs associated with things like social services that would be avoided if those tenants weren’t evicted would be more than $45 million.
That creates an estimated ROI of $12.74 for every dollar spent supporting low-income tenants facing eviction, said Neil Steinkamp, a managing director with Stout Risius Ross, a Chicago advisory firm that completed the Philly study and others like it. He suggested that results of a study in Cleveland might look similar to Philly’s.
While Cleveland Legal Aid said the dollar figure for funding a program annually in Cleveland has not been determined yet, it’s likely in the neighborhood of low to mid-seven figures.
Praise and criticism
Critics of a right to counsel might include landlords. A May Cleveland.com story about city council preparing to introduce legislation related to Cleveland’s Housing Justice Alliance drew commenters who criticized council for “working against landlords who only wish to receive rent on time.” Some suggested it would be a deterrent from owning rental properties in the city.
But criticism is more of a “knee-jerk” reaction by some in the landlord community, said Christian Patno, an immediate past president of the Cleveland Academy of Trial Attorneys and HJA advisory committee member.
“With this, we think we will be able to help landlords by facilitating tenants who are consistent and able to stay and help those tenants who have complicated issues or just aren’t understood to help facilitate a discussion and resolve a dispute so eviction can be avoided,” Patno said. “In that way, it’s a win-win.”
Landlords sought out by Crain’s generally praised the HJA.
“Anyone working in the multifamily business, regardless of area of specialty, deals with evictions. It’s an inevitable part of the business. We believe regulations like the HJA will have a negative impact on property managers who do not follow the rules, and we believe that this outcome is precisely the point of the legislation,” said David Heller, CEO of NRP Enterprises, which has more than 50 communities across Northeast Ohio. “We can imagine that the legislation may create some additional work for the management companies who play by the rules, but as a whole, we believe that this is a small price to pay if it has a beneficial impact on the unfortunate individuals who find themselves on the receiving end of unfair treatment.
“We think the greatest application of the HJA will be in circumstances where residents are battling cases of wrongful eviction, such as discrimination and other unlawful practices,” he added. “In those instances, we see this as a great benefit for those seeking representation.”
After learning of legal aid’s work, Garfield Heights Municipal Court Judge Deborah Nicastro was inspired to look at a smaller right-to-counsel program in that city, independent of the one sought in Cleveland that could serve as a pilot program.
Nicastro’s court handled 900 evictions last year, much fewer than Cleveland. Still, most people “have no clue what their rights and responsibilities are,” she said, adding that most of the time spent with tenants in housing court is educating them. Legal support would likely result in different outcomes beyond eviction.
“I thought this would be a good way for them to have individual representation to explain all that before we get into the trial process,” she said. “A judge has to be impartial during hearings. I’m not supposed to help a landlord or tenant. But when the understanding is deficient on one side, then the system just doesn’t work.”
Click here to read the full article in Crain’s Cleveland Business
Lead Safe Summit Tackles Toxic Paint In Cleveland
Written by Nick Castele in ideastream.org on 6/21/2019
Can Cleveland prevent its old housing stock from poisoning a new generation of children?
That question is at the heart of today’s Lead Safe Home Summit at the Huntington Convention Center of Cleveland downtown. The summit brings together health experts, city officials, nonprofit leaders and others to grapple with how to protect children from lead paint.
Organizers plan sessions on such topics as reading lead exposure data, knowing tenant rights and controlling lead paint hazards. Dr. Mona Hanna-Attisha, the pediatrician who revealed lead poisoning among children in Flint, Michigan, will deliver the keynote address.
“First and foremost, it’s to elevate the issue,” said organizer Andrew Katusin, the United Way’s director of basic needs. “And to help the broad group of stakeholders understand what are the symptoms, how are children and individuals in our community lead poisoned.”
Summit speakers also will discuss the resources are available for children with lead poisoning. Cleveland officials also hope to raise money for a lead safe home fund that would help landlords afford to clean up their properties; one session will detail the development of a funding formula for lead remeidation efforts.
Cleveland’s Long Battle With Lead
Congress banned lead paint in 1978, but the hazard still lurks in the walls and windowsills of many Cleveland homes. Nearly 90 percent of the city’s housing units were built before 1980.
“The lead isn’t going to jump off the wall and get you if the paint’s intact,” said Akbar Tyler, the director of training and healthy homes with Environmental Health Watch. “Impact friction surfaces are the thing we need to address in houses.”
Windows, baseboards, floors and stairs can be a source of lead paint chips and dust without the proper controls, Tyler said.
While the rate of lead poisoning in Cleveland has been falling, the city continues to face difficulties in remediating paint hazards in homes.
As part of ideastream’s “Lead: Crisis Abandoned” series in 2015, city officials acknowledged they only had money to fix properties in which children had been seriously poisoned. The Plain Dealer’s “Toxic Neglect” series showed that how the city struggled to respond to poisoning cases.
New Lead-Safe Legislation
City council took up legislation this month requiring landlords to make their properties safe from lead paint by 2023. The legislation would require landlords to hire inspectors to certify that they’ve controlled any lead hazards in a property, such as by painting over chipped and peeling paint.
Council will hold a hearing on the measure during the summit, with plans to bring it up for a vote by the fall, Councilman Blaine Griffin said.
“The change in legislation requiring everybody to get a lead safe certificate,” EHW’s Tyler said, “this is something that should have been done, and it’s good to see it coming about now.”
CLASH Sues Over Petitions
The advocacy group Cleveland Lead Advocates for Safe Housing sued the clerk of city council last week, asking a judge to compel her to accept the group’s petitions for a lead-safe ordinance.
CLASH had hoped to put the ordinance before council by the city’s initiative process. If council declined to pass the measure, it would have gone to a citywide vote.
But the clerk rejected the petitions on the grounds that the papers lacked a disclaimer required by Ohio law. CLASH leaders have said they will gather signatures again for a second attempt.
Legal Aid Receives Grant from the Ashtabula Foundation Towards Creating Housing Stability
Legal Aid recently received a $7,500 grant from the Ashtabula Foundation to create housing stability for Ashtabula County residents through information and legal assistance for renters and homeowners facing housing instability. With this program, Legal Aid will provide legal information, advice and representation on rental housing and foreclosure issues and will expand the Tenant Information Line – which currently serves mostly Cuyahoga County residents – to Ashtabula County.
The Ashtabula Foundation is a philanthropic organization whose primary mission is the betterment of Ashtabula County through the administration of funds consistent with the intent of donors to address the significant needs of Ashtabula County.
How to Rent Deposit when Housing Conditions are a Problem
In Ohio, if a landlord refuses to make necessary repairs within a reasonable amount of time, a tenant can “rent deposit.”
“Rent deposit” or “rent escrow” means a tenant can pay rent to a court, instead of the landlord.
The tenant must be very careful to follow certain rules when paying rent to a court. If a tenant stops paying rent because the property needs repairs, the tenant risks an eviction for non-payment of rent. Instead of refusing to pay the rent, a tenant should follow the rent deposit procedure.
Click here for a brochure on “How to Rent Deposit” published by Legal Aid.
Ohio Landlord-Tenant Law: The Basics
Learn about Ohio Landlord-Tenant Law through this new brochure published by Legal Aid. Click here to see a PDF of the brochure.
In Ohio a Landlord has a duty to:
- Keep the property in livable condition.
- Keep the common areas clean and safe.
- Comply with building, housing, health, and safety codes.
- Keep in good working order all electrical, plumbing, heating, and ventilation equipment.
- Maintain all appliances and equipment supplied by the landlord.
- Provide running water, hot water and heat (unless the hot water and heat are controlled entirely by the tenant and supplied by a direct public utility hook-up).
- Provide garbage cans and trash removal (if the landlord owns four or more residential units in the same building).
- Give at least 24 hours notice, unless it is an emergency, before entering a tenant’s unit, and enter only at reasonable times and in a reasonable manner.
- Evict the tenant when informed by a law enforcement officer of drug activity by the tenant, a member of the tenant’s household, or a guest of the tenant occurring in or otherwise connected with the tenant’s premises.
In Ohio a Tenant has a duty to:
- Keep the property clean and safe.
- Dispose of rubbish in the proper manner.
- Keep the plumbing fixtures as clean as their condition permits.
- Use electrical and plumbing fixtures properly.
- Comply with housing, health, and safety codes that apply to tenants.
- Refrain from damaging the property and keep guests from causing damage.
- Maintain appliances supplied by the landlord in good working order.
- Conduct yourself in a manner that does not disturb any neighbors and require guests to do the same.
- Permit landlord to enter the dwelling unit if the request is reasonable and proper notice is given.
- Comply with state or municipal drug laws in connection with the property and require household members and guests to do the same.
Lead Poisoning: Rights, Remedies & Resources
Lead poisoning occurs when lead builds up in the body, often over months or years. Even small amounts of lead can cause serious health problems. Children younger than 6 years are especially vulnerable to lead poisoning, which can severely affect mental and physical development. At very high levels, lead poisoning can be fatal.
Lead-based paint and lead-contaminated dust in older buildings are the most common sources of lead poisoning in children. There is treatment for lead poisoning, but taking some simple precautions can help protect you and your family from lead exposure before harm is done.
Legal Aid can help! Click here for an informative brochure about Lead Poisoning: Know Your Rights, Remedies & Resources. You can also browse other Legal Aid articles related to lead poisoning and related FAQ’s and brochures by clicking here.
Get Tested for Lead
Young Children at Risk
Children 6 years old and under are at most risk for damage from lead poisoning. Children may be at risk of lead poisoning if:
- They live in or visit a home built before 1978.
- Paint is peeling on windows or doors.
- Large patches of bare dirt are exposed around their home.
Child Testing
Have your child’s doctor test your child’s blood lead levels. If you are covered by Medicaid, the lead screening will be covered. If the blood lead level is above 5 μg/dl there is cause for concern.
If the blood lead level is above 10 μg/dl, Ohio law requires the Ohio Department of Health or a local health department to inspect the child’s home for lead hazards. Update your contact information with the child’s doctor to ensure the Department of Health can inspect.
Home Testing
Call the Ohio Department of Health at 877-532-3723 to get more information on having the place a child lives or visits tested for lead. Cleveland residents should call 216-664-2175. Other Cuyahoga County residents should call 216-201-2000.
Get the Lead Out
Tenants
If you live in a rental unit built before 1978, notify your landlord in writing if there is any peeling paint, large patches of bare dirt on the premises, or if your child has lead poisoning and request that your landlord make repairs. Date the letter and keep a copy for your records. If your landlord fails to make repairs within 30 days, under Ohio law you may:
- Deposit your rent in escrow at the court. You must be current in rent payments to use this process. See step by step directions for rent depositing at: https://tinyurl.com/LegalAidRentDeposit.
- Apply to the court to order the landlord to make repairs to lead hazards.
- Terminate your lease and move.
- Depositing rent may waive your rights to sue your landlord for any injury resulting from the lead poisoning. To consider any claims against your landlord, consult with an attorney before depositing rent.
Call Legal Aid if your landlord files an eviction or raises your rent after you have provided notice of a lead condition or because you have contacted the Health Department because of lead conditions.
Homeowners
Contact your local public health authorities for information on assistance programs to make your home lead-safe. Federal law requires disclosure of any known lead hazard at the time of sale.
Get Help
Help Your Child
Lead poisoning may have long term effects including attention difficulties, behavior problems, or learning challenges. A nutritional diet early on may help. For more information see: www.epa.gov/lead.
Early Intervention
A child under the age of 3 years old that has been lead poisoned may qualify for early intervention Help Me Grow services, even if they are not showing signs of delay. Call Help Me Grow at 800-755-4769.
Special Education
If a child has learning or behavior problems in school, ask the school to evaluate the child for special education services. Let the school know the child was lead poisoned, and it is impacting the child’s education.
- Put the request in writing.
- Date the request and keep a copy.
- If you are not given a written response within 30 days, contact Legal Aid.
Personal Injury Suit
You may have claims if your child has been lead poisoned. Lawsuits based on lead poisoning may be difficult to prove. Call your local bar association to consult with an attorney who handles personal injury claims.
Contact Legal Aid
Call Legal Aid’s intake line or visit your local Legal Aid office. Click here for details: www.lasclev.org/contact/
Legal Aid’s Brief Advice Clinics
Want to talk in-person with an attorney? In addition to in-person and phone intake, Legal Aid offers Brief Advice Clinics in neighborhoods throughout Northeast Ohio. At the Clinics you can talk in-person with an attorney and ask questions about your legal problem.
Text 216-242-1544 with the message LAS CLINIC for date and location of next clinic or visit www.lasclev.org for a complete schedule.
Contact the Bar Association
Contact your local bar association for a referral to a private attorney.
- Cleveland Metropolitan Bar Association: 216-696-3532
- Lorain County Bar Association: 440-323-8416
- Lake County, Ohio Bar Association: 440-350-5800
- Geauga County Bar Association: 440-286-7160
- Ashtabula County Bar Association: 440-415-4503
Lead Poisoning – Know Your Rights!
Click here for a helpful info card which briefly highlights your rights related to Lead Poisoning.
First steps to prevention
- The most common sources of lead are peeling paint and bare soil.
- Contact your landlord in writing to request a repair of these conditions.
Test your Children
- Ask your pediatrician to test your child for lead poisoning.
- If your child’s blood lead level is above 5 μg/dl there is cause for concern.
- If it is above 10 μg/dl the Department of Health should inspect your home.
Get Help
- If your child is falling behind in school, ask the school in writing to evaluate them for special education and mention their lead
poisoning. Contact Legal Aid if you do not receive a response within 30 days. - If your landlord refuses to repair lead hazards, contact Legal Aid.
Text FAQ LEAD to 216.242.1544 for a link to more information, including resources for homeowners.
How can Legal Aid help a Veteran facing issues with money, housing, family, health or employment?
Are you a low-income U.S. Veteran facing problems with:
Money?
- Have your veteran’s benefits been terminated or reduced due to overpayment?
- Have you been denied or terminated from other government benefits? (e.g. Food Stamps, cash assistance, SSI, Unemployment Compensation)
- Do you have debts that cause problems with meeting your needs, for example obtaining utilities, driver’s license, or housing?
- Have you received any letters or notices from the IRS about your federal taxes?
Housing?
- Have you applied for and been denied a subsidy to help pay for housing?
- Is your rent subsidy being terminated?
- Does your apartment need repairs that your landlord refuses to make?
- Has your landlord given you a notice to leave your apartment or are you being evicted?
- Are you behind on mortgage payments or facing foreclosure?
- Did you receive a shut off notice for your lights, gas, or water?
Family?
- Are you afraid for your safety because of your current or former significant other or household member?
- Are you afraid for your child’s safety?
- Do you have problems paying child support?
- Does your child have problems in school with learning or with behavior?
- Do you have trouble accessing health care?
Health?
- Do you have trouble filling your prescriptions for medication?
- Do you have a criminal record that prevents you from getting a job?
Employment?
- Have you been denied a professional license (e.g. barber, day care provider, STNA?)
- Do you need your driver’s license reinstated in order to work?
If YES, contact The Legal Aid Society of Cleveland for help. Click here for a flyer with more information!
Do You Need Health Insurance? Learn about free or reduced cost health care.
Do You Need Health Insurance? Sign up NOW for free or reduced cost health care! Almost everyone in Ohio can get health insurance now under the Affordable Care Act.
Many more Ohioans are now eligible for FREE health care coverage through Medicaid:
- If you are between the ages 19 to 64 years old; and
- If your income is below 138% of the federal poverty level (about $1,321 per month for an individual and about $2,708 per month for a family of 4); and
- Even if you were denied Medicaid in the past…
Apply for Medicaid:
- online at www.benefits.ohio.gov; or
- by phone at 1-800-324-8680; or
- in person at your local County Department of Job and Family Services office.
If you are denied Medicaid by the county or tax credits by the Marketplace, Legal Aid may be able to help you. Call Legal Aid intake at 1-888-817-3777.
CLICK HERE for an informational flyer in both English and Spanish!
Cancelled Debt Flyer
Lost your home to foreclosure? Resolved a different debt problem? This brief brochure explains that you may not have to pay income tax on cancelled debts such as foreclosure, bankruptcy or insolvency. It also explains the steps you need to take to reduce your taxes.
More information is available in the brochure published by Legal Aid: Cancelled Debt Brochure.
This information is also available in Spanish at: Cancelada.
How to Deal with Debt Collectors
This brochure outlines ways you can effectively deal with debt collectors and includes information on your rights under the Federal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act as well as steps to take after a debt collector has contacted you. The brochure tells you what debt collectors cannot do, including harass you, make false statements, or trick you into accepting their phone calls. Also included are sample letters on how to stop contact from a collector and how to ask for verification of your debt.
More information is available in this brochure published by Legal Aid: How to Deal with Debt Collectors
This brochure is also available in Spanish at: Como Tratar Con Los Cobradores De Duedas
How to Get Your Free Credit Report and Why You Need It
To help prevent identity theft and ensure your ability to receive favorable loan interest rates, housing, and a job, you should get your free credit report. This brochure tells you how to obtain your three free credit reports each year from the three credit report companies, TransUnion, Equifax, and Experian. It recommends that you get one credit report from a different company every four months.
More information is available in this brochure published by Legal Aid: Get Your Free Credit Report
Here is the form to send in to the Annual Credit Report Request Service to receive your free report: Credit Report Application Form
Be Smart about Managing Your Debt
Tips for managing debt and avoiding bankruptcy. This brochure provides some advice on how to deal with debt, including seeking help from the Consumer Credit Counseling Service (CCCS). It urges that you avoid payday loans, instant tax refunds, and “rent-to-own” products. These things will end up costing you much more money than they are really worth. Also included are tips on how to spot bad mortgage lenders and brokers. Advice is given on how to manage your debt if you do have to declare bankruptcy.
More information is available in this brochure published by Legal Aid: Be Smart About Managing Your Debt
This information is also available in Spanish: Se Cauteloso al Manejar Sus Deudas.
Bankruptcy for Low-Income Persons
Considering Bankruptcy? There are some basics you should know. This brochure describes what bankruptcy is and some requirements for filing for bankruptcy. It outlines the differences between Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 bankruptcy, including an explanation of what property may be exempt in a Chapter 7 bankruptcy. Also included is information on what bankruptcy can and cannot do for you and reasons why you might not have to file bankruptcy.
More information is available in this brochure published by Legal Aid: Bankruptcy for Low-Income Persons.
This brochure is also available in Spanish at: Bancarrota Para Personas De Bajos Ingresos.
You Have The Right to an Interpreter
You have the right to an interpreter in your native language if you have Limited English Proficiency, which means that you are not fluent in English. Many agencies and organizations are required to provide Limited English Proficient individuals with interpreters.
For a list of agencies that must provide interpreters, instructions on how to request an interpreter, and what you can do if you are denied an interpreter, click on the link below for a brochure written in many languages: You Have The Right to an Interpreter
Tax Help for H2A Workers
Farmers may apply with the U.S. government to hire workers from other countries on temporary work visas called H2A visas. Not all work visas are H2A visas. If you are not sure what kind of visa you have, check your passport or other immigration documents.
H2A workers with questions about taxes or getting an ITIN for a dependent should call The Legal Aid Society of Cleveland. Legal Aid has a Low Income Taxpayer Clinic (LITC) that may be able to help. Please call Legal Aid at 1.888.817.3777.
More information is available in this bilingual brochure published by Legal Aid: Tax Help for H2A Workers / Ayuda con los Impuestos para Trabajadores/as H2A
Legal Help for Immigrant Victims of Crime
If you are an immigrant and have been a victim of crime, Legal Aid may be able to assist you with asserting your rights under immigration laws. This brochure outlines U-Visas for victims of Crime, Special Immigrant Juvenile Status, and T-Visas for human trafficking. This brochure also discusses how immigrants can assert their rights under the Violence Against Women Act.
More information is available in multiple languages in this brochure published by Legal Aid: Legal Help for Immigrant Victims of Crime
A Spanish version of this brochure is available by clicking here: Spanish Version – Legal Help for Immigrant Victims of Crime
Legal Assistance for Immigrants
This brochure outlines what Legal Aid can do for Immigrants in Northeast Ohio. Legal Aid can assist many immigrants to the U.S., not just citizens or permanent residents, and works on cases such as detainee and deportation, and naturalization and citizenship. This brochure explains what Legal Aid can assist immigrants and their families with.
More information is available in multiple languages in this brochure published by Legal Aid: Legal Assistance for Immigrants
Notice to Immigration Detainees in Northeast Ohio
Legal Aid may be able to help you with your immigration situation if you cannot afford an attorney. This brochure outlines the rights immigration detainees have, including the right to speak with an attorney about their cases, the right to request release from custody on bond, the right to contact their country’s Consulate or Embassy, and the right to contact family members. Also included are important contact numbers that may help in resolving your immigration issue.
This brochure is available in both English and Spanish at: Notice for Immigration Detainees in Northeast Ohio/ Aviso a los Detenidos de Inmigración en el Nordeste de Ohio.
Language Access for Parents
The Cleveland Metropolitan School District has agreed to provide interpretation and translation services to students and parents with material related to schooling. This flyer explains what services the Cleveland School district has agreed to provide.
This flyer is available in both English and Spanish at: Language Access for Parents/Acceso lingüístico para los padres.
Federal Income Tax Help for Low-Income Taxpayers
Federal income tax problem? Legal Aid may be able to help you.
Legal Aid’s Low Income Taxpayer Clinic (LITC) assists low-income taxpayers in resolving their disputes with the IRS about federal income tax matters.
We provide free legal services to people whose income is too small to hire a private attorney. If you have a tax problem with the IRS, please contact us to discuss it. Depending upon your circumstance, we may assist you with education, negotiation, and litigation.
Click here for the full brochure: Low Income Taxpayer Clinic (LITC)
How to Get Your Criminal Record Sealed
In Ohio, adult convictions generally cannot be “expunged” or completely erased from your record. Instead of expungement, Ohio uses a court process called “sealing a criminal record.” If your record is sealed, you do not have to disclose your conviction, arrest, or any charge against you when you apply for most jobs. Under Ohio law, once the record is sealed, it is as if the offense never occurred.
Even sealed records will be available to some employers for some jobs. For example, your convictions, even if sealed, may disqualify you from a job working with children, older persons, developmentally disabled persons, or from a job that has a substantial connection with your offense. You must report sealed records when enlisting in the military. The Ohio Bureau of Criminal Identification and Investigation (BCI) keeps a record of all sealed criminal records.
More information is available in this brochure published by Legal Aid: Sealing an Ohio Criminal Record
Click here for the Spanish Version: Sellar un Antecedente Penales en Ohio
Are You a Low-Income Entrepreneur and Need Federal Tax Help?
If you are a self-employed individual, the only shareholder in an S Corporation or a single member LLC, the Low Income Taxpayer Clinic (LITC) at Legal Aid may be able to provide you with federal tax assistance and to refer you to others for free assistance with tax preparation and business development. Legal Aid provides free legal services and direction to people, not business entities, whose income is too small to hire a private attorney.
Self-employed individuals have several tax obligations. The self-employed are required to file an annual return and pay estimated tax on a quarterly basis. A penalty may be assessed by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) if taxes are not paid throughout the year. The IRS has an Electronic Federal Tax Payment System (EFTPS) that makes it easier for self-employed taxpayers to make quarterly payments by allowing a taxpayer to schedule automatic estimated payments up to one year in advance. The IRS also provides a Self-Employed Individuals Tax Center that can be accessed for help at https://www.irs.gov/businesses/small-businessesself-employed/self-employed-individuals-tax-center.
Self-employed individuals also must pay a self-employment tax, in addition to income tax if net earnings are $400 or more. Self-employment tax primarily is a Social Security and Medicare tax for individuals who work for themselves. The tax rate is 12.4% for Social Security and 2.9% for Medicare taxes. It always is a good idea to review the IRS instructions for Schedule SE (self-employment) before preparing and submitting IRS Form 1040. The Social Security Administration uses the information from Schedule SE to figure the self-employed individual’s benefits under the social security program.
Legal Aid’s LITC can assist self-employed individuals with IRS tax problems. Legal Aid can negotiate with the IRS to obtain a reasonable payment plan and/or offer in compromise that may reduce your tax burden; if your current expenses exceed your income, you may qualify for currently not collectible status. When your case must go to court, we can represent you.
After receiving the appropriate guidance, the low-income entrepreneur can establish and maintain his/her own job when there are few labor market options, create wealth and economic security, and achieve upward economic mobility demonstrating success among the 3.6 million existing small businesses.
Legal Aid’s LITC does not prepare and file tax returns. A list of free tax preparers is posted on our website at www.lasclev.org/taxpreplocations. And, learn more about Legal Aid’s tax law practice: www.lasclev.org/get-help/special-programs/low-incometaxpayer-clinic
How can Legal Aid help a Veteran facing issues with money, housing, family, health or employment?
Are you a low-income U.S. Veteran facing problems with:
Money?
- Have your veteran’s benefits been terminated or reduced due to overpayment?
- Have you been denied or terminated from other government benefits? (e.g. Food Stamps, cash assistance, SSI, Unemployment Compensation)
- Do you have debts that cause problems with meeting your needs, for example obtaining utilities, driver’s license, or housing?
- Have you received any letters or notices from the IRS about your federal taxes?
Housing?
- Have you applied for and been denied a subsidy to help pay for housing?
- Is your rent subsidy being terminated?
- Does your apartment need repairs that your landlord refuses to make?
- Has your landlord given you a notice to leave your apartment or are you being evicted?
- Are you behind on mortgage payments or facing foreclosure?
- Did you receive a shut off notice for your lights, gas, or water?
Family?
- Are you afraid for your safety because of your current or former significant other or household member?
- Are you afraid for your child’s safety?
- Do you have problems paying child support?
- Does your child have problems in school with learning or with behavior?
- Do you have trouble accessing health care?
Health?
- Do you have trouble filling your prescriptions for medication?
- Do you have a criminal record that prevents you from getting a job?
Employment?
- Have you been denied a professional license (e.g. barber, day care provider, STNA?)
- Do you need your driver’s license reinstated in order to work?
If YES, contact The Legal Aid Society of Cleveland for help. Click here for a flyer with more information!
Tax Help for H2A Workers
Farmers may apply with the U.S. government to hire workers from other countries on temporary work visas called H2A visas. Not all work visas are H2A visas. If you are not sure what kind of visa you have, check your passport or other immigration documents.
H2A workers with questions about taxes or getting an ITIN for a dependent should call The Legal Aid Society of Cleveland. Legal Aid has a Low Income Taxpayer Clinic (LITC) that may be able to help. Please call Legal Aid at 1.888.817.3777.
More information is available in this bilingual brochure published by Legal Aid: Tax Help for H2A Workers / Ayuda con los Impuestos para Trabajadores/as H2A
Filing Taxes Can Help Immigrants
Immigrants should file taxes for several reasons.
More information is available in this brochure published by Legal Aid: Filing Taxes Can Help Immigrants
This brochure is also available in Spanish at: Presentar Declaración de Impuestos Puede Ayudar a los/as Inmigrantes
Consult with a qualified tax preparer or a tax attorney if you have questions about filing tax returns. You may be able to find free tax preparation help by calling 211.
Cancelled Debt Flyer
Lost your home to foreclosure? Resolved a different debt problem? This brief brochure explains that you may not have to pay income tax on cancelled debts such as foreclosure, bankruptcy or insolvency. It also explains the steps you need to take to reduce your taxes.
More information is available in the brochure published by Legal Aid: Cancelled Debt Brochure.
This information is also available in Spanish at: Cancelada.
The IRS May Owe You Money through the Earned Income Tax Credit
If you are low-income, you may be eligible for the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC). The EITC is a special credit to assist some working people. It can mean a refund for you or a reduction in the amount of income tax you pay.
More information is available in this brochure published by Legal Aid: The IRS may owe you money through the EITC.
This brochure is also available in Spanish at: El IRS puede Deberle Dinero a Través del Crédito por Ingreso Del Trabajo.
What You Need to Know About Unemployment Benefits
Are you recently unemployed? You can receive unemployment compensation benefits if you are unemployed (1) due to lack of work (laid off), (2) you were discharged without just cause, or (3) you quit with just cause. This brochure outlines how to apply for unemployment benefits, what a Determination is, and how you can appeal an unfavorable Determination. Also included is information on what happens after a Redetermination is issued and steps you must take to continue receiving unemployment benefits after you apply. For more information and to apply for benefits online, you can visit https://unemployment.ohio.gov.
More information is available in this brochure published by Legal Aid: What You Need to Know About Unemployment Benefits
This brochure is also available in Spanish at: Lo que usted debe Conocer Acerca del Beneficio de Desempleo
Need Legal Help with Your Job?
Have you been paid late or not at all? Are you not receiving minimum wage or overtime pay? Have you not received you last paycheck? This short flyer contains numbers you can call if you need work-related legal help. You might also want to view Legal Aid’s brochure: Can’t Get Your Last Pay Check?
More information is available in English and Spanish at: Need Legal Help With Your Job?