The John R. Justice Prosecutors and Defenders Incentive Act of 2007

Floor Speech

THE JOHN R. JUSTICE PROSECUTORS AND DEFENDERS INCENTIVE ACT OF 2007 -- (Extensions of Remarks - May 23, 2007)

* Ms. LINDA T. SÁNCHEZ of California. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to join my colleagues in supporting the John R. Justice Prosecutors and Defenders Incentive Act, a bill that will help local governments to recruit and retain talented young people to their district attorney and public defender offices.

* Tuition has been rising steeply at law schools across the country, increasing more than 130 percent at private law schools since 1990. Unfortunately, scholarships and pay at part-time jobs have simply not kept up. As a result, students have been forced to take on additional debt in order to afford a legal education. By 2006, the average law student graduated with nearly $80,000 of debt. Eighty thousand dollars would have bought a nice big house in Los Angeles in my parents' day!

* But this debt load affects more than just the credit scores and disposable incomes of recent graduates. It affects their career choices. Young people bearing the burden of eighty and hundred thousand dollar debts must seek jobs that will provide enough income to allow them to make their loan payments as well as pay for transportation, rent, food, clothing, healthcare, and other necessities.

* However, many government and public service jobs do not provide this level of pay to starting lawyers. Some locales can only afford to pay starting attorneys $36,000 a year (even while the top New York law firms pay their starting attorneys $140,000 or more). It's no surprise, then, that an entire generation of bright young people can't afford to consider the possibility of becoming a district attorney or a public defender.

* That is why I am pleased to join the American Bar Association, the National District Attorneys Association, and the National Legal Aid and Defender Association in support of this important bill, which will provide student loan repayment assistance to borrowers who remain employed for at least 3 years as state or local criminal prosecutors or state, local, or federal public defenders.

* We want and need the best and brightest to join these professions. Indeed, public trust in the justice system requires trust in the attorneys tasked with prosecuting and defending the accused. I am proud to support local and state attorneys in enforcing their laws and proud to support this bill.

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