Brief⁽¹⁾

S.B. 456, as amended, relates to court appointed attorneys for indigent persons. The bill would require court appointed attorneys to present claims for compensation to the court and the defendant prior to sentencing or at the time of sentencing and allow supplemental claims to be presented to the court at a later time. Supplemental claims for reimbursement would be submitted when an attorney undertakes additional legal services for the indigent person after the sentencing. Currently, attorneys submit their claims to the judge after their services have terminated in the case.

The Senate Committee amendment would allow attorneys to present claims for compensation to the court prior to sentencing.

Background

The 1996 Legislature requested the Kansas Judicial Council to undertake a study of the interaction between the Judicial Branch and the Board of Indigents' Defense Services. The Legislature identified a number of areas for study, specifically requesting a study of "whether judges should order defendants to reimburse costs at the time of sentencing." The Judicial Council committee appointed to conduct the study concluded that judges should order defendants to reimburse costs at the time of sentencing.

S.B. 456 would have no fiscal effect.

1. *Supplemental notes are prepared by the Legislative Research Department and do not express legislative intent. The supplemental note and fiscal note for this bill may be accessed on the Internet at http://www.ink.org/public/legislative/fulltext-bill.html.