Powered by broad public support and tenacious advocacy, Appleseed justice centers have a strong track record of winning ambitious legislation, even in tough political environments.
Below are some examples of legislative victories that Appleseed Centers have helped to secure in the last year:
Nebraska Appleseed advocated successfully to bring an end to privatized foster care through legislation. This followed years of advocacy by Nebraska Appleseed, including litigation challenging the constitutionality of the privatized system. In addition, they were able to require notice before the state can collect a child's social security payments to offset the costs of foster care and implementation of treatment foster care, a critical mental health intervention.
In 2022, due to Missouri Appleseed's research, public education, and advocacy, the Missouri state legislature passed Senate Bill 638, which includes language establishing a prison nursery in one of Missouri's state prisons for women.
DC Appleseed co-led advocacy for the Nurse Education Enhancement Act, which created training programs for direct care health workers. The Act specifically targets the University of the District of Columbia to enlarge the community college’s capacity to graduate more workers and to provide free training, education, and a monthly stipend to DC residents.
Working with the Governor's office, Louisiana Appleseed secured the largest civil legal aid appropriation in the state's history. Additionally, they partnered with bipartisan representatives to introduce legislation that delays the automatic suspension of driver's licenses for non-moving violations.
Massachusetts Appleseed helped successfully advocate for $500,000 to expand language access at the Registry of Motor Vehicles, an agency that thousands of Bay Staters rely on to get to work, attend doctors’ appointments, and care for their children. This is a significant milestone in the organization’s larger campaign to ensure equal access for immigrant and limited English proficient families at all state agencies.
Massachusetts Appleseed secured an unprecedented $165.5 million investment in the Massachusetts’ court system that will help working families solve their civil legal problems and achieve a fair outcome in court. The legislation will fund long-overdue technological improvements, such as creating an “Access to Justice Portal” that lets court users prepare for their hearing at home and find self-help resources, instituting a remote video interpreting system for limited English proficient residents, and establishing wifi in courthouses so litigants can look up legal information without racking up cellular data charges.
In the 2022 legislative session, Alabama Appleseed introduced and helped secure passage of HB95, giving people leaving prison a grace period of 180 days post-release before they have to pay back court-imposed fines and fees. Alabama is now the second southern state to pass such a bill.
Hawai'i Appleseed advocated successfully to raise the minimum wage to $18 by 2028, which is projected to generate $1 billion in additional wages to over 200,000 workers each year, increasing the annual income of minimum wage workers by $16,400 (up from the $21,000 they currently earn). Additionally, they expanded and made permanent Hawaiʻi’s Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC), a wage supplement that will reach some 100,000 households each year, providing a total of $40 million, annually, targeted toward struggling working families with children.
Kansas Appleseed worked with Governor Laura Kelly to create a Division of the Child Advocate in 2021 to improve the state’s child welfare system and protect Kansas kids.
