Civil legal providers serving residents in St. Lawrence county will be the recipients of more than half a million dollars in state grant funding.

Grants are being distributed across the state to not-for-profit providers of civil legal services to low-income New Yorkers.

For legal representation of low-income people in St. Lawrence County, a total of $553,694 is being distributed to Legal Services of Central New York, $499,354; The Rural Law Center of New York, $36,000; the Workers Justice Center of New York, $17,500; and Pro Bono Net, $840.

This state program, now in its fifth year, has provided thousands of residents with effective legal assistance in civil matters, helping them to escape domestic violence, cope with family-related legal problems, avert homelessness and receive critical services and benefits relating to health care, education and subsistence income, according to a press release from the office of Assemblywoman Addie Russell, who announced the grants.

The Chief Judge's Permanent Commission on Access to Justice is promoting a series of measures aimed at assisting civil legal service providers reach New Yorkers living in poverty to make the courts accessible and navigable by all regardless of their income.

"This is welcome news. It is a valuable program for areas like ours with high levels of poverty to ensure those with the highest level of need have a voice in matters involving the essentials of life, including safe housing and family matters," Assemblywoman Russell said.

"But this is just one piece in the puzzle. It is also important for the state to pick up the full costs of providing indigent defense to all New Yorkers in place of the current system that has a patchwork of programs that differ from county to county and place the greatest burden on our poorest counties," said Russell.

An indigent defense bill approved by the state Senate and Assembly in the spring would expand criminal defense coverage to all New York counties over a seven-year period with incremental increases. That bill would require the state to cover expenses for indigent defense beginning in 2017. The funding would be gradually phased in to 100 percent by 2023.