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AN ACT relating to the public advocate. 1
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Kentucky: 2
Section 1. KRS 31.020 is amended to read as follows: 3
(1) The Department of Public Advocacy shall consist of the public advocate, deputy 4
public advocate, general counsel, such assistant public advocates as the public 5
advocate shall deem necessary, and such secretarial and other personnel as the 6
public advocate shall deem necessary. 7
(2) The public advocate shall be appointed by the [Governor from a list of three (3) 8
attorneys submitted to him or her by the ]Public Advocacy Commission; shall be an 9
attorney licensed to practice law in Kentucky with at least five (5) years experience 10
in the practice of law; shall be excepted from the classified service; shall be the 11
chief administrator of the Department of Public Advocacy and an appointing 12
authority as that term is defined in KRS 18A.005; and shall serve a term of four (4) 13
years, which is renewable, unless removed by the Public Advocacy 14
Commission[Governor]. The incumbent public advocate shall serve until a 15
successor is appointed by the Public Advocacy Commission[nominated by the 16
commission and approved by the Governor]. The compensation of the public 17
advocate shall be set by the provisions of KRS 64.640. 18
(3) The deputy public advocate shall be an attorney and shall be appointed by the public 19
advocate and shall serve at his or her pleasure. 20
(4) The general counsel shall be an attorney and shall be appointed by the public 21
advocate and shall serve at his or her pleasure. The general counsel shall represent 22
the interests of the department as directed by the public advocate. 23
(5) The assistant public advocates shall be attorneys, shall be appointed by the public 24
advocate, shall be covered by the merit system, and shall not be subject to the 25
provisions of KRS 12.210. 26
(6) Secretarial, clerical, and other personnel shall be appointed by the public advocate 27 UNOFFICIAL COPY 22 RS BR 352
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and shall be covered by the merit system. 1
Section 2. KRS 31.015 is amended to read as follows: 2
(1) (a) The Public Advocacy Commission shall consist of the following members, 3
none of whom shall be a prosecutor, law enforcement official, or judge, who 4
shall serve terms of four (4) years, except the initial terms shall be established 5
as hereafter provided: 6
1. Two (2) members appointed by the Governor; 7
2. One (1) member appointed by the Governor. This member shall be a 8
child advocate or a person with substantial experience in the 9
representation of children; 10
3. Two (2) members appointed by the Kentucky Supreme Court; 11
4. Three (3) members, who are licensed to practice law in Kentucky and 12
have substantial experience in the representation of persons accused of 13
crime, appointed by the Governor from a list of three (3) persons 14
submitted to him or her for each individual vacancy by the board of 15
governors of the Kentucky Bar Association; 16
5. The dean, ex officio, of each of the law schools in Kentucky or his or her 17
designee; and 18
6. One (1) member appointed by the Governor from a list of three (3) 19
persons submitted to him or her by the joint advisory boards of the 20
Protection and Advocacy Division of the Department of Public 21
Advocacy. 22
(b) Any member of the commission serving prior to July 15, 2002, shall serve 23
until the expiration of his or her current term of office. Subsequent 24
appointments shall be for a term of four (4) years from the date of expiration 25
of the term for which his or her predecessor was appointed. 26
(2) At the first meeting of the commission, a drawing by lot shall be conducted to 27 UNOFFICIAL COPY 22 RS BR 352
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determine the length of each original member's term. Initially there shall be four (4) 1
two (2) year terms, four (4) three (3) year terms, and four (4) four (4) year terms. 2
Vacancies in the membership of the commission shall be filled in the same manner 3
as original appointments. Appointments to fill vacancies occurring before the 4
expiration of a term shall be for the remainder of the unexpired term. 5
(3) The commission shall first meet at the call of the Governor and thereafter as the 6
commission shall determine on a regular basis, but at least quarterly, and shall be 7
presided over by a chairperson elected by its members for a one (1) year term. A 8
majority of commission members shall constitute a quorum, and decisions shall 9
require the majority vote of those present; except that [a recommendation to the 10
Governor pertaining to ]the appointment, renewal of the appointment, or removal of 11
the public advocate shall require a majority vote of the commission. Each member 12
of the commission shall have one (1) vote, and voting by proxy shall be prohibited. 13
(4) The public advocate shall, upon appointment or renewal, be an ex officio member 14
of the commission without the power to vote, shall serve as secretary of the 15
commission, and shall be entitled to attend and participate in all meetings of the 16
commission except discussions relating to renewal of his or her term or his or her 17
removal. 18
(5) Commission members shall be reimbursed for reasonable and necessary expenses 19
incurred while engaged in carrying out the duties of the commission and shall 20
receive one hundred dollars ($100) per day for each meeting attended unless 21
prohibited by law from receiving such compensation. 22
(6) The commission shall: 23
(a) Receive applications, interview, and recommend to the Governor three (3) 24
attorneys as nominees for appointment as the public advocate; 25
(b) Assist the public advocate in drawing up procedures for the selection of his or 26
her staff; 27 UNOFFICIAL COPY 22 RS BR 352
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(c) Review the performance of the public advocacy system and provide general 1
supervision of the public advocate; 2
(d) Assist the Department of Public Advocacy in ensuring its independence 3
through public education regarding the purposes of the public advocacy 4
system; and 5
(e) Review and adopt an annual budget prepared by the public advocate for the 6
system and provide support for budgetary requests to the General Assembly. 7
(7) In no event shall the commission or its members interfere with the discretion, 8
judgment, or advocacy of employees of the Department of Public Advocacy in their 9
handling of individual cases. 10