2023-11-14T10:48:10-06:00 2022-12-31 882533599 WERSEN NONPROFIT CPAS LLC 4513 Lakeway Drive Bellingham WA 98229 990 2022-01-01 863134470 Skagit Legal Aid SKAG 3602308101 PO Box 2463 Mount Vernon WA 98273 Andrew Dugan Executive Director 3602308101 2023-11-14 1 Andrew Dugan 999009999 0 Keaton Wersen CPA P01957642 3607709369 X 0 AAL1 IAL1 2022 2023-04-26 12:10:37Z Andrew Dugan PO Box 2463 Mount Vernon WA 98273 530375 0 X www.skagitlegalaid.org X 2021 WA To provide access to justice for low income and historically marginalized individuals. 9 9 5 36 0 0 267954 530342 0 0 7 33 16557 -3144 284518 527231 0 0 0 0 119899 423587 0 0 42552 34482 104562 154381 528149 130137 -918 134771 277954 4634 133538 130137 144416 X To provide access to justice for low income and historically marginalized individuals through 1) providing free legal services to those persons who by reason of poverty and unable to effectively access the legal system, 2) promoting, and facilitating the provision of pro bono legal services, and 3) providing community education and instruction on legal issues affecting low income and marginalized communities. 0 0 164815 General Civil Legal Services: Skagit Legal Aid (SLA) expands access to the civil justice system for historically underserved communities and seeks to identify and eliminate barriers that perpetuate injustice, poverty and racism. We maximize our impact with limited resources through the delivery of effective and economical civil legal services affecting housing, family, health and financial security, and immigration. We believe that resolving unmet civil legal needs makes our community a more equitable, happier, healthier, and safer place to live and work. SLA provides services in the Skagit Valley which is a vast expanse of land stretching from the North Cascades Mountains to the Salish Sea. It is located on the lands of the Coast Salish peoples whose land and resources were involuntarily ceded to the United States government. The valley is also home to a vibrant agricultural economy that relies upon a large base of indigenous immigrants without citizenship. SLA prioritizes its services to historically underrepresented communities in the Skagit Valley including tenants at risk of homelessness, people without lawful immigration status, indigenous or native people, and justice involved individuals. In addition to celebrating our one year anniversary as an independent organization in 2022, SLA served more clients in more service areas for the first time in decades while also creating a more anti-racist. equitable, and sustainable organization. For the first time in our program's history, almost two-thirds of our clients identify as black, indigenous, or people of color, nearly 40% are immigrants without lawful status, and over 25% prefer to speak either Spanish or Mixteco. Through our direct in-person outreach, we shared information about civil legal services to over 2,500 low income people in our community the past year, the majority of whom are Hispanic or indigenous. More attorneys volunteered more pro bono hours as compared to the two previous years, and law students, paralegals, and interpreters also contributed more volunteer time than ever before. Our accomplishments are thanks to the passion of our community-focused staff, board, volunteers, donors, and local, state, national, and international partners. 164814 Representing Tenants: SLA solidified its status as a leading tenant defense provider in northwest Washington representing at least 279 tenants at various stages of an eviction with the support of LFW, the Office of Civil Legal Aid (OCLA), and the Skagit County Public Health Department (Public Health Department) during 2022. Prior to the change in law guaranteeing tenants the right to an attorney, the vast majority of tenants facing eviction were unrepresented by counsel. Thanks to the dedication of our staff and the rules enacted by our local landlord/tenant workgroup, we represented half of all tenants facing a court eviction in our community and nearly every tenant who appeared in a case. We also represented dozens of tenants seeking the assistance of an attorney to negotiate with their landlords during the pre-filing Eviction Resolution Pilot Program (ERPP). We are the only civil legal aid provider in Washington who can directly help tenants apply for rent assistance, forgoing the need to go through a third party thanks to our partnership with the Skagit County Public Health Department. In 2022, we helped 110 tenants collectively receive $695,044.49 in rent assistance. With the addition of a Housing Advocate to our team who also speaks Spanish and Mixteco, we are poised to support more families in the coming year. We also recognize that the reforms protecting tenants are illusory for many in our community, particularly for those without lawful status or reside in employer owned housing. Through our staff and community partnerships, we consistently represent tenants whose landlords attempt to take advantage of their linguistic or citizenship barriers to subvert their legal rights. 92972 Serving Immigrants: As a result of our highly valued partnership with the CCS Farmworker Center (FWC) and our staff from the local Hispanic and indigenous communities, SLA provided a more diverse range of services to more immigrants at any time since the announcement of the Deferred Program for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) over a decade ago. Throughout the year, we met with over 100 people at the FWC affecting their housing, families, consumer debt, estate planning, and identification documents. SLA and FWC nurtured an ongoing relationship with El Consulado de Mexico en Seattle (Consulate) which led to our Outreach Coordinator assisting nearly 100 Mexican immigrants obtain identification documents. SLA and FWC capitalized upon their experience with an online application portal and their reputation among the local indigenous community to help nearly 700 local immigrants apply for the Washington Immigrant Relief Fund and obtain a collective amount of $700,000 in direct financial assistance for families. 422601 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 2 0 1 5 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 X 9 9 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 X Andrew Dugan 3602308044 325 Pine Street Suite A Mount Vernon WA 98273 Gail Smith Chairperson 3.00 X X 0 0 0 Heather Webb Chairperson 1.00 X X 0 0 0 Annalise Martucci Vice-Chairperson 3.00 X X 0 0 0 Sarah Aguero Secretary 2.00 X X 0 0 0 Andrew Schuh Treasurer 1.00 X X 0 0 0 Josefina Ramirez Board Member 1.00 X 0 0 0 Heather Shand Board Member 1.00 X 0 0 0 Scott Thomas Board Member 1.00 X 0 0 0 Eva Wescott Board Member 1.00 X 0 0 0 Wendy Wall Board Member 1.00 X 0 0 0 Andrew Dugan Executive Director 40.00 X 81938 0 7163 81938 0 7163 0 0 0 0 0 21573 322645 186124 6240 530342 33 33 0 21573 3144 -3144 -3144 527231 0 0 -3111 89102 30084 29509 29509 288906 288906 1023 1023 12976 12976 31580 26576 2502 2502 9163 9163 17495 17495 360 360 4571 4571 14879 11473 2416 990 13289 11333 978 978 16431 14013 1209 1209 8397 7161 618 618 2959 2523 218 218 649 553 48 48 1670 894 776 Program expenses 8170 3170 5000 Miscellaneous 4161 25 2227 1909 Taxes and licenses 2368 2368 528149 422601 62996 42552 53987 67361 80784 35816 72917 1800 3918 728 0 3190 0 96870 134771 277954 4634 36187 0 97351 4634 133538 X 130137 144416 130137 144416 134771 277954 -918 15197 0 X X 1 X 0 1 0 X 267954 530342 798296 267954 530342 798296 798296 7 33 40 798336 X RESTRICTED RESTRICTED RESTRICTED RESTRICTED RESTRICTED RESTRICTED RESTRICTED RESTRICTED 3918 728 3190 3190 ROU asset 95070 Lease deposit 1800 96870 Lease liability 97351 97351 Holiday Gala 8490 8490 2962 810 House Party 13083 13083 75 21573 21573 2962 885 3847 -3847 Form 990, Part VI, Section B, line 11b The Form 990 is reviewed and approved by the entire board before filing with the IRS. Form 990, Part VI, Section B, line 15a The Board of Directors determines the Executive Director's compensation based upon available financial resources and conducting a salary comparision of other legal service providers. Form 990, Part VI, Section C, line 19 These documents are available upon request.