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F I S C A L I M P A C T R E P O R T

SPONSOR García, M.J.

ORIGINAL DATE

LAST UPDATED

1/21/06

HB

SHORT TITLE Death Penalty Case Contract Attorney Rates

SB 82

ANALYST Medina

APPROPRIATION (dollars in thousands)

Appropriation

Recurring

or Non-Rec

Fund

Affected

FY06

FY07

$800.0

Recurring

General Fund

(Parenthesis ( ) Indicate Expenditure Decreases)

Duplicates Appropriation in the General Appropriation Act

Duplicates House Bill 18

SOURCES OF INFORMATION

LFC Files

Public Defender Department (PDD)

Responses Not Received From

General Services Department (GSD)

SUMMARY

Synopsis of Bill

Senate Bill 82 appropriates $800.0 from the general fund to the Public Defender Department

(PDD) for the purpose of increasing the rate at which attorneys that enter into contracts with the

department for the representation of defendants in death penalty cases. The bill also proposes

that the attorney fee rates for contract public defenders in death penalty cases be based on the

attorney fee schedule set by the Risk Management Division of the General Services Department.

FISCAL IMPLICATIONS

The appropriation of $800.0 contained in this bill is a recurring expense to the general fund. Any

unexpended or unencumbered balance remaining at the end of fiscal year 2007 shall revert to the

general fund.

Seante Bill 82 – Page 2

SIGNIFICANT ISSUES

The PDD flat fee for first chair contract attorneys representing indigent clients in death penalty

cases is $11.5, with an additional $5.0 upon notice of the death penalty and another $8.5 when

the case goes to trial, for a maximum of $24.5. For second chair contract attorneys, the maximum

fee is $12.5.

DUPLICATION

This bill duplicates recommendations for the General Appropriation Act from the LFC’s and the

Executive for PDD. The Executive appropriation recommendation of $10 million in the contrac-

tual services category includes $9.8 million to provide for contract attorney fees. The LFC rec-

ommends $11 million for contractual services, including $10.7 million for contract attorney fees.

In FY05, PDD expended $8.6 million in contract attorney fees and in FY06 the department is

budgeted to expend $9.6 million.

This bill also duplicates House Bill 18.

OTHER SUBSTANTIVE ISSUES

The General Appropriation Act of 2005 appropriated $300.0 to PDD to provide for a fee struc-

ture for contracting representation of defendants in death penalty cases. PDD has requested that

the period of time for expending this $300.0 appropriation and a 2004 appropriation of $870.0

for the Santa Rosa prison riot defense be extended through FY07.

DXM/yr