Lawmakers approve $32.4 million package and multiple supplementals for new State Public Defender office

The Joint Finance-Appropriations Committee on March 24 approved multiple supplemental appropriations for the Office of the State Public Defender and a larger FY2026 enhancement package to fund personnel, contractor rates and court-ordered transcript costs.

The committee approved one-time supplementals including $2,500,000 from the Public Defense Fund to align Child Protective Act (CPA) appropriations with statutory transfers, $390,200 from the general fund for transcript costs ordered by the Idaho Supreme Court in State v. Blasek, and $3,799,900 from the general fund to increase state employee salaries and raise the contracted-attorney rate to $125 per hour for the remainder of fiscal year 2025.

Those votes cleared the committee in separate motions. The CPA alignment supplemental passed 15 ayes, 5 nays (combined Senate and House committee totals). The transcript-cost supplemental passed unanimously (20 ayes, 0 nays). The $3.8 million supplemental to cover personnel and contracting costs passed 13 ayes, 7 nays.

Why it matters: the office is new under Title 19, Chapter 60, Section 3 of Idaho Code and must staff offices, set oversight procedures and establish uniform contract rates while absorbing obligations previously handled by counties. Committee members said the appropriations address immediate gaps in representation capacity and court-ordered obligations.

Christopher LaHosette, budget and policy analyst with the Legislative Services Office, told the committee the transcript-cost supplemental implements the Idaho Supreme Court ruling that the state is responsible for all transcript costs effective in the current fiscal year.

Representative Manwaring, sponsor of several motions, said raising the contract rate to $125 an hour is intended to re-attract experienced contract attorneys and reduce the backlog of unassigned cases. "The request was for $150 an hour and this brings that down to $125 an hour," Manwaring said, describing the compromise built into the supplemental.

Committee members debated transition problems tied to the statewide shift from county-provided public defense to the new state office. Representative Miller and others raised concerns about communication with counties, availability of facilities and case assignment consistency during the transition; several members said those operational issues informed votes against some funding items.

In its final action on the agency, the committee approved a FY2026 enhancement package encompassing a broad set of ongoing costs: $31,082,100 from the general fund and $1,300,000 from dedicated funds for a combined enhancement total of $32,382,100 and 17.96 full-time-equivalent positions. The motion included funding for ongoing transcript costs, personnel for new institutional offices, and an ongoing increase to contracted attorney rates to $125 per hour. That FY2026 package passed 12 ayes, 8 nays.

The committee record shows some votes were split along concerns about rollout and county coordination; proponents argued the funding was necessary to maintain constitutionally required public defense services while the state completes organizational and policy adjustments.

Looking ahead: representatives said related policy language (including reporting and transition requirements) is pending in the Legislature and may affect how long-term costs are managed. The committee noted ongoing oversight needs as the office and counties continue the transition.