photo by: Josie Heimsoth/Journal-World

People in support and opposition of a tenants right to counsel program attend the Douglas County Commission meeting on Wednesday, March 25, 2026.

The Douglas County Commission meeting room erupted in cheers on Wednesday night after commissioners approved a tenant eviction defense pilot program.

A majority of those cheers came from local advocacy group Lawrence Tenants – which has been urging county commissioners to develop a tenants right to counsel program in Douglas County since last year. While commissioners did not quite approve such a program on Wednesday, they took one potential step in that direction.

The vote for a tenant eviction defense pilot program was 3-2 with Commissioners Erica Anderson and Gene Dorsey opposed. The program would involve contracting with nonprofit legal providers for seven months, from June through December 2026, to provide legal advice, limited representation, or full representation to up to 80 low- and moderate-income residents facing landlord-tenant disputes.

County staff will work to develop a contracted rate to reimburse eligible providers utilizing a fee for service model for individuals that are screened and deemed eligible.

The program comes after the County Commission has had three previous conversations surrounding the development of a tenants right to counsel program – which would guarantee legal representation to any renter facing eviction – after Lawrence Tenants brought its own proposal forward, as the Journal-World reported.

photo by: Josie Heimsoth/Journal-World

Douglas County commissioners met on Wednesday, March 25, 2026.

While a majority of commissioners initially seemed interested in the development of a program in the county, during the last conversation the County Commission had in December 2025, commissioners were split on what they wanted to happen next and decided to table the idea.

County Administrator Sarah Plinsky told commissioners on Wednesday that while staff didn’t have a lot to go off of following the December meeting, staff was able to craft a proposal for the pilot. It would be funded using $40,000 already included in the County Commission’s 2026 budget for eviction prevention activities.

There were over two hours of public comment on Wednesday from supporters of a tenants right to counsel program – who encouraged commissioners to approve the pilot and wanted to have further discussions on expanding it once the seven months are up. Landlords also shared their opposition to the program.

Commissioner Shannon Reid has been in support of a tenants right to counsel program, and she urged commissioners to join her in supporting the pilot. She said the pilot is a relatively small amount of money, and it will provide data the county doesn’t currently have.

“I just really urge this Commission to please support me in moving forward with directing staff to develop something here because I think there’s a real sense of urgency,” Reid said.

Plinsky said the pilot would help staff determine a cost analysis for 2027 as they see how many people start to utilize these legal services during those several months. Then, it would help develop a cost and final proposal for a program to put before the County Commission.

The county’s District Court Self-Help Center would act as a primary referral hub for the program. The center already works with community partners and operates an eviction resolution program that educates tenants and landlords about the court process, the agenda said.

photo by: Josie Heimsoth/Journal-World

Advocacy group Lawrence Tenants attended the Douglas County Commission meeting on Wednesday, March 25, 2026.

Dorsey said he was in support of the money being used for rental assistance to get the money to people who need it now. But Commissioner Patrick Kelly said that would only be a temporary solution.

“We can just give you money, and hopefully you’ll make it to next month,” Kelly said, adding that he agreed with Reid on how this pilot will give commissioners more information and understand the “upstream issues” with how evictions are handled and decide how to address them in the future.

The idea for a tenants right to counsel program was first introduced in the city-county “A Place for Everyone” plan, and it is listed as a strategy for Douglas County to help reach its affordable housing goals.

County staff are also currently reviewing Johnson County’s mediation program and working with the nonprofit Building Peace to explore ways to use mediation to prevent evictions in Douglas County. Some of those ways include tenant education, incentives for pre- and post-filing mediation, and potential policy changes including but not limited to court mandated pre-file mediation or post-file eviction mediation as seen in Johnson County.