Public-defender board warns county it could lose $150,000 in state reimbursements without more attorneys

Gary Smith, chair of the Fayette County Public Defender Board, told the board that the county’s current indigent-defense plan is at risk because the county cannot fill seven state-approved contract positions.

"I'm Gary Smith and I'm here as chair of the Fayette County Public Defender Board," Smith said as he described the 1993 plan that secures a 40% state reimbursement for indigent-defense costs. He told commissioners the county currently has four of the seven required attorneys and that falling below seven would likely trigger a state reduction of the reimbursement, which amounted to about $150,000 last year. "We have to provide indigent defense," he added, invoking the Sixth Amendment and the state's responsibility to ensure counsel for those who cannot afford one.

Smith outlined rough cost figures: the plan contemplates seven attorneys contracting at about $50,000 each; after reimbursements he said the county could face a net additional expense "about $18,000 a year." He also told commissioners the county may need to budget for an office and IT setup — figures he described from correspondence and local IT estimates, including an item he cited as roughly $67,000 for IT and setup, and asked the board to coordinate with the county council before the council's budget hearings.

Commissioners acknowledged the shortfall and said funding or a solution would need to be negotiated with the county council. Smith said he will meet the following week with the council and asked commissioners to confirm they had been informed so he could report back. No formal budget appropriation was made by the board at the meeting; Smith asked commissioners to consider whether the county should transition to a public-defender office model or increase appropriations to preserve the state reimbursement.