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Attorney general's office outlines budget priorities including equity pay, crime-lab staff and litigation pool
Summary
Chief Deputy Attorney General Claire Ness told the Senate Appropriations Government Ops Division the office seeks funding to continue pay increases, add crime-lab and investigative staff, replace aging IT and evidence systems and preserve a litigation pool the office has largely drawn on to defend state statutes.
The Attorney General’s Office presented a detailed budget request to the Senate Appropriations Government Operations Division, asking lawmakers to fund equity pay increases, fill key forensic and attorney vacancies and cover rising technology and maintenance costs.
Chief Deputy Attorney General Claire Ness opened the presentation and described staffing and program outcomes the office attributes to prior appropriations. “My name is Claire Ness. I’m the Chief Deputy Attorney General,” Ness said, and she highlighted results from FTEs the legislature approved in the last session: expanded Bureau of Criminal Investigation (BCI) coverage on tribal lands, new cybercrime capacity and restored crime‑lab units for latent print and firearms work.
The office listed several optional requests that it said were not included in the House budget package. Major items included an attorney‑equity package ($291,777), additional crime‑lab personnel (an evidence technician and a full‑time quality assurance manager), a proposed attorney for the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, replacement and maintenance funding for e‑prosecutor and jail systems, and upgrades to the victim…
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