Update: The Rent Guidelines Board yesterday approved rent increases in rent stabilized buildings of 4.5 percent for one-year leases and 8.5 percent for two-year leases.

Washington, DC--The House Appropriations Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies last week approved $390 million for the Legal Services Corporation's (LSC) FY 2009 budget, a $40 million, or 11 percent, increase over current funding levels. LSC is a major funder of Legal Services NYC.

An article in the June 17th Staten Island Advance focuses on the new pro-bono immigration services being offered by Staten Island Legal Services (SILS), a program of Legal Services NYC, beginning today.

Legal Services NYC has seen a number of changes to our Board of Directors in recent months.

Attorneys from our Queens Legal Services Office, among others, are representing tenants who have been targeted for harassment by private equity firms which are buying up thousands of rent-regulated apartments across New York City expecting to generate quick profits by increasing rents after existing tenants leave their units. The tenants’ fight against the firms has received extensive coverage in the media over the past two months.