FISCAL NOTE
Date Requested: December 11, 2023
Time Requested: 03:22 PM |
| Agency: |
Public Defender Services |
|---|
| CBD Number: |
Version: |
Bill Number: |
Resolution Number: |
| 2598 |
Introduced |
HB |
|
|---|
| CBD Subject: |
|
|---|
|
FUND(S):
0226
Sources of Revenue:
General Fund
Legislation creates:
Increases Existing Expenses
Fiscal Note Summary
Effect this measure will have on costs and revenues of state government.
Summarize in a clear and concise manner what impact this measure will have on costs and revenues of state government.
The proposed legislation (i) adds “multi-disciplinary team (‘MDT’) meetings” to the definition of “eligible proceedings” and (ii) increases the rate of compensation for the legal services of court-appointed attorneys serving as “guardians ad litem” by twenty dollars ($20) an hour.
The addition of MDT meetings to the definition of eligible proceedings has no impact on the costs and revenues of state government because Public Defender Services presently compensates court-appointed counsel for attendance at MDT meetings.
The increase in the rate of compensation for legal services as guardians ad litem will increase the expenditures of general revenue by one million and nine hundred thousand dollars ($1,900,000) annually.
Fiscal Note Detail
| Effect of Proposal |
Fiscal Year |
2023
Increase/Decrease
(use"-") |
2024
Increase/Decrease
(use"-") |
Fiscal Year
(Upon Full
Implementation) |
| 1. Estmated Total Cost |
1,900,000 |
1,900,000 |
1,900,000 |
| Personal Services |
0 |
0 |
0 |
| Current Expenses |
190,000 |
190,000 |
190,000 |
| Repairs and Alterations |
0 |
0 |
0 |
| Assets |
0 |
0 |
0 |
| Other |
0 |
0 |
0 |
| 2. Estimated Total Revenues |
0 |
0 |
0 |
Explanation of above estimates (including long-range effect):
Please explain increases and decreases in personal services, current expenses, repairs and alterations, assets, other costs and revenues, including assumptions and data sources and delineation between start-up and ongoing costs. Please also include a long-range schedule of costs and revenues if fiscal impact is expected to vary in future years.
West Virginia Interactive used data from the Online Voucher System utilized by Public Defender Services for the payment of legal services of court-appointed attorneys to determine the hours of services provided by “guardians ad litem” during the period of July 1, 2020, to June 30, 2023. For this period, 284,311.43 hours of such services were compensated by the agency.
The annual average of billing for services as “guardians ad litem” was, therefore, 94,770 hours. An increase of twenty dollars ($20) an hour annually would be $1,895,406, which is rounded to $1,900,000.
Memorandum
Please identify any areas of vagueness, technical defects, reasons a bill would not have a fiscal impact, and/or any special issues not captured elsewhere on this form.
A concern caused by the increase in rates for “guardians ad litem” is the potential drain of the pool of attorneys for other legal services that will not be compensated as highly. In addition to the paucity of guardians ad litem, judges throughout the state are also struggling to find attorneys willing to take appointments in criminal or post-conviction proceedings or to represent parents in child abuse and neglect proceedings.
Person submitting Fiscal Note: Dana F. Eddy
Email Address: Dana.F.Eddy@wv.gov