LEGISLATIVE SERVICES AGENCY
OFFICE OF FISCAL AND MANAGEMENT ANALYSIS
200 W. Washington St., Suite 301
Indianapolis, IN 46204
(317) 233-0696
iga.in.gov
FISCAL IMPACT STATEMENT
LS 6789 NOTE PREPARED: Feb 27, 2024
BILL NUMBER: SB 179 BILL AMENDED: Feb 27, 2024
SUBJECT: Commission on Court Appointed Attorneys.
FIRST AUTHOR: Sen. Koch BILL STATUS: CR Adopted - 2
nd
House
FIRST SPONSOR: Rep. McNamara
FUNDS AFFECTED:XGENERAL IMPACT: State & Local
XDEDICATED
FEDERAL
Summary of Legislation: (Amended) This bill has the following provisions:
A. It requires the Justice Reinvestment Advisory Council (JRAC) to conduct a study on criminal
indigency determinations by all Indiana trial courts. It requires the JRAC to submit a report
containing recommendations on specified topics to the Legislative Council before July 1, 2025. It
also provides that money in the Public Defense Fund may be used to pay the expenses incurred by
the JRAC.
B. It changes the name of the Indiana Public Defender Commission (Commission) to the Indiana
Commission on Court Appointed Attorneys (CCAA).
C. This bill requires the Office of Judicial Administration (OJA) to create and make available a uniform
form to assist a court in making an indigency determination.
D. It requires, by January 31 of each year, every clerk of a circuit to provide a report to the Commission
on court appointed attorneys concerning the fees the clerk deposited and transferred for the previous
calendar year.
E. It establishes a statewide program that allows the Commission to reimburse county misdemeanor
public defense expenses at an amount not to exceed 25% of costs. It provides that the misdemeanor
reimbursement is subject to the Commission's available funding, and if the Commission does not
have sufficient funds, the misdemeanor reimbursement fund must be reduced first before reducing
reimbursements for felony public defense expenses.
SB 179 1 F. It requires the Commission to make a report not later than December 1, 2029, to the Legislative
Council and the Budget Committee concerning the up to 25% reimbursement from the Public
Defense Fund for indigent defense services for misdemeanor cases. It provides that the Commission
must provide data concerning how the reimbursement has impacted attorney appointment rates, jail
population, trial rates, and case outcomes.
Effective Date: (Amended) Upon passage; July 1, 2024; July 1, 2025.
Explanation of State Expenditures: (Revised) Public Defense Fund - Beginning July 1, 2025, the bill
provides that counties may begin requesting reimbursement up to 25% of the county’s or multi-county public
defender’s office’s expenditures for indigent defense services in misdemeanor cases. If additional claims are
approved, OFMA estimates the bill could potentially increase state expenditures from the Public Defense
Fund by approximately $1.08 M to $1.47 M annually beginning in FY 2026. It also provides that the
expenses of conducting the statewide survey may be paid from the Public Defense Fund. Any increase in
state expenditures from the fund would depend upon authorization by the Commission.
This estimate includes reimbursement at a rate of 25%, and the additional fee revenue collected from the
County Supplemental Public Defender Services Fund. The Commission reimburses counties for the
following costs of providing indigent defense services: attorney fees, investigations, expert witnesses,
paralegal, transcript costs, and costs of direct appeals.
Office of Judicial Administration (OJA): The bill requires the OJA to create and make available a uniform
indigency determination form for all trial courts for the purposes of appointing counsel in criminal cases.
However, the bill is silent on the type of format required for the indigency determination form. The bill will
likely increase the workload and/or expenditures of the OJA. Costs will depend upon administrative
decisions. If the form is in a paper format, the cost will likely be minimal to create and distribute the paper
form statewide. If the indigency determination form is built into the Court’s Incite Application or Odyssey
Case Management System, it could cost an estimated $50,000 to $100,000 to develop and implement. After
the initial implementation, it is likely this process can be fully-automated and costs are anticipated to be
minimal over the long-term.
Justice Reinvestment Advisory Council (JRAC): The bill requires the JRAC to conduct a comprehensive
survey of all trial courts that make indigency determinations for criminal cases. It also requires the JRAC to
submit comprehensive report to the Legislative Council before July 1, 2025. Under current law, the OJA
provides staff support to the JRAC. As a result, this will increase the workload of the OJA and the JRAC to
implement the bill’s requirements.
(Revised) Additional Information - Indiana Commission on Court Appointed Attorneys (CCAA): The bill will
increase the workload of the CCAA to fulfill the bill’s requirements. The CCAA shall submit a report
concerning how the misdemeanor reimbursement project has impacted attorney rates, jail population, trial
rates, and case outcomes in reimbursement counties. The report must be submitted no later than December
1, 2029, to the Legislative Council and the Indiana Budget Committee.
Name Change: This provision will have no fiscal impact on the Commission.
Explanation of State Revenues: County Supplemental Public Defender Services Fund: The bill requires
SB 179 2 the clerk of the court to transfer 50% of the County Supplemental Public Defender Services Fee revenue to
the Public Defense Fund. It also increases the county public defense fee. As a result, the bill will increase
revenue to the fund by at least $1.63 M annually. The actual revenue increase will depend on the county
public defense fee collections. This estimate is based on a five-year average of revenue collected from the
fee.
The following table shows the amount of revenue deposited in the fund.
Revenue Deposited in the County Supplemental Public Defender Services Fund 2017 - 2022
Year CY 2017 CY 2018 CY 2019 CY 2020 CY 2021 CY 2022
Revenue $3.21 M $ 3.34 M $3.38 M $2.85 M $3.59 M $3.30 M
(Revised) Potential Savings: The additional revenue to the Public Defense Fund could offset the cost of
misdemeanor reimbursement. If the Commission approves reimbursement at a rate less than 25%, the
additional fee will result in a revenue increase to the fund.
Explanation of Local Expenditures: (Revised) The bill could reduce local expenditures to the extent
certified counties are eligible to recoup cost incurred for misdemeanor defense services. If the Commission
reimburses misdemeanor expenses at a rate of 25%, OFMA estimates that local expenditure could potentially
be reduced by approximately $2.72 M to $3.10 M annually. However, the actual fiscal impact will depend
on the Commission’s approval and reimbursement rate.
A county auditor shall quarterly report to the CCAA regarding reimbursements requested and received from
the fund for the county’s expenditures for indigent defense services. This provision will increase the
workload of the Commission counties.
(Revised) Uniform Indigency Determination Form: If a county does not review indigency determinations
before issuing a final determination, the bill could potentially increase the workload of a county to review
the submitted indigency form in a timely manner. Any increase will likely be minimal.
Also, it is very unlikely that the bill will delay proceedings or attorney appointments while the defendant is
awaiting for the court to make an indigency determination. Under current law, the court may review
indigency determinations throughout the case to determine a defendants ability to pay for their own defense
services.
Explanation of Local Revenues: The bill will reduce county and municipal revenue from the County
Supplemental Public Defender Services Fund. It will also increase the public defense fee in misdemeanor
cases from $50 to $100 and in felony cases from $100 to $200. Therefore, any reduction in revenue will
likely be offset to the extent additional revenue is collected from the increased public defense fee.(See
Explanation of State Revenues.)
The clerk of the court shall deposit the first $100 in a felony case and the first $50 in a misdemeanor case
of the fees collected in the County’s Supplemental Public Defender Services Fund.
State Agencies Affected: Public Defender Commission; Legislative Council; Budget Committee; Office of
SB 179 3 Judicial Administration; Justice Reinvestment Advisory Council.
Local Agencies Affected: County public defenders; county auditors; trial courts.
Information Sources: Indiana Supreme Court, Office of Judicial Administration; Indiana Public Defender
Commission, Funding and Reimbursement History,
https://www.in.gov/publicdefender/funding-and-reimbursement-history/; Indiana Supreme Court, Reports
& Statistics, https://www.in.gov/courts/publications/reports/.
Fiscal Analyst: Corrin Harvey, 317-234-9438.
SB 179 4