06/16/2025 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 06/16/2025 13:58
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 16, 2025
Media Contacts:
Rebecca Johnson
Public Affairs Director, State Bar of Texas
512-427-1714, rebecca.johnson@texasbar.com
Samantha Rucobo
Public Relations Manager, Texas RioGrande Legal Aid
(915) 241-6923; srucobo@trla.org
Free legal assistance available to South Texas survivors impacted by March storms
SOUTH TEXAS - Free legal resources are available from Texas RioGrande Legal Aid (TRLA) to low-income individuals affected by the March 24-26 storms and flooding in four Texas counties included in the federal disaster declaration May 21. These counties include Cameron, Hidalgo, Starr, and Willacy.
Eligible survivors who sustained disaster-caused damage may qualify for FEMA assistance, including assistance with displacement, temporary housing, basic home repair costs, personal property loss, or other disaster-caused needs.
Survivors can seek help from TRLA for applying for FEMA assistance or appeals, landlord-tenant matters, disaster unemployment, replacing lost documents, and issues related to public benefits.
TRLA will also be available in person on Mondays, Wednesdays, and/or Fridays (depending on location) at the various FEMA Disaster Relief Centers (DRCs) across the Rio Grande Valley. The temporary schedule is as follows and will vary:
Weslaco DRC: Weslaco EDC
Pharr DRC: Pharr Development and Research Center
Harlingen DRC: Harlingen Convention Center
San Benito DRC: San Benito Parks and Recreation Building
If you need legal assistance and were impacted by the South Texas storms and floods in the listed counties, please call TRLA's toll-free hotlines at (956) 996-8752 or (833) 329-8752 or visit their website at trla.org/disaster. TRLA's phone line remains open on weekdays from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m. (Central Time).
Following a disaster, the State Bar of Texas reminds the public that, in many cases, it is a crime in Texas for a lawyer or someone representing a lawyer to contact a person for purposes of paid legal representation if the person has not first requested the call or personal visit. If you encounter such conduct, please get the person's name and phone number and report it to local law enforcement or the State Bar Chief Disciplinary Counsel's Office via email at CDCinfo@texasbar.com or toll-free at 866-224-5999.
Additional disaster recovery resources are available at texaslawhelp.org and texasbar.com/disaster.
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The State Bar of Texas is a public corporation and an administrative agency of the judicial branch of state government that provides educational programs for the legal profession and the public, administers the minimum continuing legal education program for attorneys, and manages the attorney discipline system. For more information, follow us on X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram @statebaroftexas, like us on Facebook at facebook.com/statebaroftexas, or visit texasbar.com.
Texas RioGrande Legal Aid provides free legal services to people who cannot afford an attorney in 68 southwestern counties, including the entire Texas-Mexico border. TRLA attorneys specialize in more than 45 areas of law, including disaster assistance, family, employment, landlord-tenant, housing, education, farmworker, and civil rights. The hotline is open from 9 a.m. - 5 p.m. (CST) Monday-Friday: (956)-996-TRLA (8752) or toll-free at (833) 329-TRLA (8752).