COLTAF was established in 1982 by the Colorado Supreme Court, in response to dramatic cuts in federal funding for civil legal aid. Since then, COLTAF has used the interest earned on COLTAF accounts to make grants of over $55 million dollars.<\/p>\n
Approximately 80 percent of these funds have gone to Colorado\u2019s federally-funded legal aid programs. The other 20 percent is distributed through COLTAF\u2019s Pro Bono and Discretionary Grant Programs to advance one or more of the following purposes:<\/p>\n
COLTAF\u2019s only regular source of revenue is the interest earned on COLTAF accounts, thus the funds available for grants vary, sometimes dramatically, from year to year. For that reason, COLTAF\u2019s Discretionary Grant Program is suspended from time to time, in order to preserve resources for COLTAF\u2019s core grantees.<\/p>\n
Click here<\/u><\/a> for information about COLTAF\u2019s Pro Bono Grant Criteria.<\/p>\n Click here<\/a><\/span> for information about COLTAF’s Discretionary Grant Criteria.<\/p>\n Legal Services Program Grant $5.4 million was distributed to Colorado Legal Services (CLS), Colorado\u2019s statewide staffed legal aid program.\u00a0 CLS provides services with few exceptions to those living at or below 125% of the federal poverty guidelines, which is currently $37,500 for a family of four.\u00a0 CLS operates as a legal emergency room, giving priority to the poor and elderly in greatest social and economic need, and focusing on legal issues that have an impact on basic needs, including at least minimally-adequate income, food, shelter, utilities, necessary medical care, and freedom from domestic violence and abuse.\u00a0 CLS currently has 84 lawyers statewide to serve over 700,000 income-eligible Coloradans.\u00a0 By comparison, there are 535 public defenders statewide to serve the indigent in serious criminal matters.<\/p>\n Administrative and Legislative Advocacy Grant<\/strong><\/p>\n $100,000 was distributed to the Colorado Center on Law and Policy (CCLP), which engages in multi-forum advocacy for the benefit of low-income Coloradans.\u00a0 CCLP conducts research and independent legal and policy analysis, working to foster greater economic security for low-income individuals and families and to increase access to affordable, quality health care.<\/p>\n Pro Bono Program Grants $326,600 was distributed to pro bono programs around the state, to support their work in developing and mobilizing pro bono\u00a0 resources to help meet the civil legal needs of low-income Coloradans.\u00a0 This total includes funds from the Colorado Bar Foundation, which for the eleventh consecutive year made a grant to COLTAF to supplement the funds available for pro bono grants.<\/p>\n Discretionary Grants<\/strong><\/p>\n $65,000 was distributed to the Colorado Access to Justice Commission (ATJC) for general operating expenses to ensure the ATJC\u2019s long-term effectiveness.\u00a0 The ATJC\u2019s mission is to develop, coordinate, and implement policy initiatives to expand access to and enhance the quality of justice in civil legal matters for persons who encounter barriers in gaining access to Colorado\u2019s civil justice system.<\/p>\n Applications for a 2024 COLTAF grant are due by June 30, 2024.\u00a0 Applicants for funding that did not receive a 2023 COLTAF grant must submit a Letter of Intent by March 31, 2024.\u00a0 COLTAF will decide, in light of the funds available and relevant grant criteria, whether a full grant application will be requested, and decisions in that regard will be communicated by May 1, 2024.\u00a0 Grant decisions will be communicated by early September 2024.<\/p>\n The required Letter of Intent should be no more than three pages long, and should include the following information:<\/p>\n If a full grant application is requested, applicants should complete and submit the Colorado Common Grant Application, which can be found\u00a0here<\/a>.<\/p>\n A Letter of Intent and, if requested, a completed Colorado Common Grant Application may be submitted via email to\u00a0coltaf@legalaidfoundation.org<\/a>\u00a0or via regular mail to 1120 Lincoln Street, Suite 701, Denver, CO 80203.<\/p>\n Submission of a Letter of Intent does not assure or guarantee that COLTAF will accept a full grant application, and a request for a full Grant Application does not assure or guarantee funding.<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" COLTAF was established in 1982 by the Colorado Supreme Court, in response to dramatic cuts in federal funding for civil legal aid. Since then, COLTAF has used the interest earned on COLTAF accounts to make grants of over $55 million … Continue reading ——————————————————————————————————————–<\/h2>\n
2023 COLTAF Grant Awards<\/h2>\n
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\n \u2022 Alpine Legal Services (serving Pitkin, Garfield & Eagle counties)<\/td>\n <\/td>\n $20,000<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n \u2022 CLS of Boulder (serving Boulder County)<\/td>\n <\/td>\n $5,000<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n \u2022 Larimer County Bar Association (serving Larimer County)<\/td>\n <\/td>\n $18,000<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n \u2022 The Justice Center (serving El Paso and Teller counties)<\/td>\n <\/td>\n $50,000<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n \u2022 Metro Volunteer Lawyers (serving Adams, Arapahoe, Broomfield, Denver,
\nDouglas, Elbert & Jefferson counties)<\/td>\n<\/td>\n $75,000<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n \u2022 NW Colorado Legal Services (serving Clear Creek, Eagle, Grand, Gunnison,
\nJackson, Lake, Moffat, Rio Blanco, Routt, Summit, Pitkin & Garfield counties)<\/td>\n<\/td>\n $25,000<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n \u2022 Pro Bono Project of Mesa County (serving Mesa County)<\/td>\n <\/td>\n $20,000<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n \u2022 CLS Pueblo County Pro Bono Project (serving Baca, Bent, Cheyenne, Crowley, Huerfano, Kiowa, Las Animas, Otero, Prowers and Pueblo counties)<\/td>\n <\/td>\n $30,000<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n \u2022 San Luis Valley Bar Association Pro Bono Project (serving the San Luis Valley)<\/td>\n <\/td>\n $9,500<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n \u2022 Volunteer Attorney Program (serving Archuleta, La Plata & San Juan counties and Southern Ute and Ute Mountain Ute Reservations)<\/td>\n <\/td>\n $8,100<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n \u2022 Uncompahgre Volunteer Legal Aid (serving Montrose, Ouray & San Miguel counties)<\/td>\n <\/td>\n $45,000<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n \u2022 Weld County Legal Services (serving Weld County)<\/td>\n <\/td>\n $21,000<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n ——————————————————————————————————————–<\/h2>\n
2024 COLTAF Grant Cycle<\/h2>\n
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