Maine Equal Justice Partners

Litigation & Other Advocacy: MEJ represents clients (individuals below 200% of the federal poverty level) before administrative agencies, the state legislature and state & federal courts primarily to ensure that they can meet basic needs, including food, housing, utilities, health care, and to protect and advance their rights as consumers. MEJ handled 644 individual cases in 2023, as well as 40 systemic cases and rulemakings affecting programs that serve over 345,000 people, and our 15 trainings reached 773 people. Individual and systemic cases focused on health care (primarily Medicaid related), food assistance and income supports, employment issues, housing and utility matters, consumer protections, and education or family issues.

Increasing Opportunity/Income Support: MEJ performs legal research and public policy analysis, and develops strategies to improve Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) and other anti-poverty programs that provide income support to low-income families. Activities include improving administrative processes, increasing access to economic support programs and providing support to qualifying households through our Build HOPE program and Next Step projects. MEJ is also a partner in the Peer Workforce Navigator pilot program.

Health Care: MEJ performs legal research, public policy analysis, and develops strategies to improve access to health care for people with low income at the state level. Specific state activities included providing education on the benefits of Medicaid and how to access health coverage as pandemic-era benefits end, and advocating to preserve and increase access to Medicaid to close gaps in health care coverage for people with low income.

Accomplishments in 2023 include policy changes: to increase TANF monthly benefit by 20% and to increase the asset limit for participants; to create a rent relief pilot program funded by $18 million in state funds; to eliminate application fees for rental housing and to provide other protections for renters; and to prohibit debt collectors from suing low-income consumers for medical debt.