1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to public defense; correcting, updating, and 
  1.3             clarifying the public defender law; amending Minnesota 
  1.4             Statutes 1996, sections 611.14; 611.20, subdivision 3; 
  1.5             611.216, subdivision 1a; 611.26, subdivisions 2, 3, 
  1.6             and 9; and 611.27, subdivisions 1, 2, and 7; Minnesota 
  1.7             Statutes 1997 Supplement, sections 611.25, subdivision 
  1.8             3; and 611.27, subdivision 4. 
  1.9   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.10     Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 1996, section 611.14, is 
  1.11  amended to read: 
  1.12     611.14 [RIGHT TO REPRESENTATION BY PUBLIC DEFENDER.] 
  1.13     The following persons who are financially unable to obtain 
  1.14  counsel are entitled to be represented by a public defender: 
  1.15     (1) a person charged with a felony or, gross misdemeanor, 
  1.16  or misdemeanor including a person charged under sections 629.01 
  1.17  to 629.29; 
  1.18     (2) a person appealing from a conviction of a felony or 
  1.19  gross misdemeanor, or a person convicted of a felony or gross 
  1.20  misdemeanor, who is pursuing a postconviction proceeding and who 
  1.21  has not already had a direct appeal of the conviction; 
  1.22     (3) a person who is entitled to be represented by counsel 
  1.23  under section 609.14, subdivision 2; or 
  1.24     (4) a minor who is entitled to be represented by counsel 
  1.25  under section 260.155, subdivision 2, if the judge of the 
  1.26  juvenile court concerned has requested and received the approval 
  1.27  of a majority of the district court judges of the judicial 
  2.1   district to utilize the services of the public defender in such 
  2.2   cases, and approval of the compensation on a monthly, hourly, or 
  2.3   per diem basis to be paid for such services under section 
  2.4   260.251, subdivision 2, clause (e); or 
  2.5      (5) a person, entitled by law to be represented by counsel, 
  2.6   charged with an offense within the trial jurisdiction of a 
  2.7   district court, if the trial judge or a majority of the trial 
  2.8   judges of the court concerned have requested and received 
  2.9   approval of a majority of the district court judges of the 
  2.10  judicial district to utilize the services of the public defender 
  2.11  in such cases and approval of the compensation on a monthly, 
  2.12  hourly, or per diem basis to be paid for such services by the 
  2.13  county within the court's jurisdiction. 
  2.14     Sec. 2.  Minnesota Statutes 1996, section 611.20, 
  2.15  subdivision 3, is amended to read: 
  2.16     Subd. 3.  [REIMBURSEMENT.] In each fiscal year, the state 
  2.17  treasurer shall deposit the first $180,000 in the general fund. 
  2.18  payments in excess of $180,000 shall be deposited in the general 
  2.19  fund and credited credit them to a separate account with the 
  2.20  board of public defense.  The amount credited to this account is 
  2.21  appropriated to the board of public defense. 
  2.22     The balance of this account does not cancel but is 
  2.23  available until expended.  Expenditures by the board from this 
  2.24  account for each judicial district public defense office must be 
  2.25  based on the amount of the payments received by the state from 
  2.26  the courts in each judicial district. 
  2.27     Sec. 3.  Minnesota Statutes 1996, section 611.216, 
  2.28  subdivision 1a, is amended to read: 
  2.29     Subd. 1a.  [INDIAN CHILD WELFARE DEFENSE CORPORATION 
  2.30  GRANTS.] (a) The board of public defense shall establish 
  2.31  procedures for accepting applications for funding from an Indian 
  2.32  child welfare defense corporation located in the American Indian 
  2.33  community.  The board must consult with the Minnesota Indian 
  2.34  affairs council before making a grant under this subdivision.  
  2.35     (b) An "Indian child welfare defense corporation" refers to 
  2.36  an American Indian nonprofit law corporation, having an American 
  3.1   Indian majority on its board of directors, specializing 
  3.2   primarily in providing culturally appropriate legal services to 
  3.3   indigent clients or tribal representatives involved in a case 
  3.4   governed by the Indian Child Welfare Act, United States Code, 
  3.5   title 25, section 1901 et seq., or the Minnesota Indian family 
  3.6   preservation act, sections 257.35 to 257.3579. 
  3.7      (c) An Indian child welfare defense corporation is a 
  3.8   "public defense corporation" for the purposes of sections 611.14 
  3.9   to 611.271. 
  3.10     Sec. 4.  Minnesota Statutes 1997 Supplement, section 
  3.11  611.25, subdivision 3, is amended to read: 
  3.12     Subd. 3.  [DUTIES.] The state public defender shall prepare 
  3.13  a biennial report to the board and a report to the governor and 
  3.14  the supreme court on the operation of the state public 
  3.15  defender's office, district defender systems, and public defense 
  3.16  corporations.  The biennial report is due on or before the 
  3.17  beginning of the legislative session following the end of the 
  3.18  biennium.  The state public defender may require the reporting 
  3.19  of statistical data, budget information, and other cost factors 
  3.20  by the chief district public defenders and appointed counsel 
  3.21  systems.  The state public defender shall design and conduct 
  3.22  programs for the training of all state and district public 
  3.23  defenders, appointed counsel, and attorneys for public defense 
  3.24  corporations funded under section 611.26.  The state public 
  3.25  defender shall establish policies and procedures to administer 
  3.26  the district public defender system, consistent with standards 
  3.27  adopted by the state board of public defense. 
  3.28     Sec. 5.  Minnesota Statutes 1996, section 611.26, 
  3.29  subdivision 2, is amended to read: 
  3.30     Subd. 2.  [APPOINTMENT; TERMS.] The state board of public 
  3.31  defense shall appoint a chief district public defender for each 
  3.32  judicial district.  When appointing a chief district public 
  3.33  defender, the state board of public defense membership shall be 
  3.34  increased to include two residents of the district appointed by 
  3.35  the chief judge of the district to reflect the characteristics 
  3.36  of the population served by the public defender in that 
  4.1   district. The additional members shall serve only in the 
  4.2   capacity of selecting the district public defender.  The ad hoc 
  4.3   state board of public defense shall appoint a chief district 
  4.4   public defender only after requesting and giving reasonable time 
  4.5   to receive any recommendations from the public, the local bar 
  4.6   association, and the judges of the district, and the county 
  4.7   commissioners within the district.  Each chief district public 
  4.8   defender shall be a qualified attorney, licensed to practice law 
  4.9   in this state.  The chief district public defender shall be 
  4.10  appointed for a term of four years, beginning January 1, 
  4.11  pursuant to the following staggered term schedule:  (1) in 1992 
  4.12  2000, the second and eighth districts; (2) in 1993 2001, the 
  4.13  first, third, fourth, and tenth districts; (3) in 1994 2002, the 
  4.14  fifth and ninth districts; and (4) in 1995 1999, the sixth and 
  4.15  seventh districts.  The chief district public defenders shall 
  4.16  serve for four-year terms and may be removed for cause upon the 
  4.17  order of the state board of public defense.  Vacancies in the 
  4.18  office shall be filled by the appointing authority for the 
  4.19  unexpired term. 
  4.20     Sec. 6.  Minnesota Statutes 1996, section 611.26, 
  4.21  subdivision 3, is amended to read: 
  4.22     Subd. 3.  [COMPENSATION.] (a) The compensation of the chief 
  4.23  district public defender shall be set by the board of public 
  4.24  defense. and the compensation of each assistant district public 
  4.25  defender shall be set by the chief district public defender with 
  4.26  the approval of the board of public defense.  To assist the 
  4.27  board of public defense in determining compensation under this 
  4.28  subdivision, counties shall provide to the board information on 
  4.29  the compensation of county attorneys, including salaries and 
  4.30  benefits, rent, secretarial staff, and other pertinent budget 
  4.31  data.  For purposes of this subdivision, compensation means 
  4.32  salaries, cash payments, and employee benefits including paid 
  4.33  time off and group insurance benefits, and other direct and 
  4.34  indirect items of compensation including the value of office 
  4.35  space provided by the employer.  
  4.36     (b) This subdivision does not limit the rights of public 
  5.1   defenders to collectively bargain with their employers. 
  5.2      Sec. 7.  Minnesota Statutes 1996, section 611.26, 
  5.3   subdivision 9, is amended to read: 
  5.4      Subd. 9.  [INSURANCE.] Notwithstanding any other law to the 
  5.5   contrary, district public defenders and assistant district 
  5.6   public defenders, and their employees and their dependents, may 
  5.7   elect to enroll in the appropriate life insurance, hospital, 
  5.8   medical and dental benefits, and optional coverages of their 
  5.9   respective host county, as designated by the state board of 
  5.10  public defense under section 611.27, subdivision 2, at the time, 
  5.11  in the manner, and under conditions of eligibility as 
  5.12  established by the host county for its employees.  The host 
  5.13  county must provide for payroll deductions to be made in the 
  5.14  same manner and under the same conditions as provided for an 
  5.15  eligible county employee and the employee's dependents.  Nothing 
  5.16  in this subdivision obligates the state or county to payments in 
  5.17  the absence of an appropriation for those purposes. 
  5.18     Sec. 8.  Minnesota Statutes 1996, section 611.27, 
  5.19  subdivision 1, is amended to read: 
  5.20     Subdivision 1.  [COUNTY PAYMENT RESPONSIBILITY.] (a) The 
  5.21  total compensation and expenses, including office equipment and 
  5.22  supplies, of the district public defender are to be paid by the 
  5.23  county or counties comprising the judicial district. 
  5.24     (b) A chief district public defender shall annually submit 
  5.25  a comprehensive budget to the state board of public defense.  
  5.26  The budget shall be in compliance with standards and forms 
  5.27  required by the board and must, at a minimum, include detailed 
  5.28  substantiation as to all revenues and expenditures.  The chief 
  5.29  district public defender shall, at times and in the form 
  5.30  required by the board, submit reports to the board concerning 
  5.31  its operations, including the number of cases handled and funds 
  5.32  expended for these services. 
  5.33     Within ten days after an assistant district public defender 
  5.34  is appointed, the district public defender shall certify to the 
  5.35  state board of public defense the compensation that has been 
  5.36  recommended for the assistant.  
  6.1      (c) The state board of public defense shall transmit the 
  6.2   proposed budget of each district public defender to the 
  6.3   respective district court administrators and county budget 
  6.4   officers for comment before the board's final approval of the 
  6.5   budget.  The board shall determine and certify to the respective 
  6.6   county boards a final comprehensive budget for the office of the 
  6.7   district public defender that includes all expenses.  After the 
  6.8   board determines the allocation of the state funds authorized 
  6.9   pursuant to paragraph (e), the board shall apportion the 
  6.10  expenses of the district public defenders among the several 
  6.11  counties and each county shall pay its share in monthly 
  6.12  installments.  The county share is the proportion of the total 
  6.13  expenses that the population in the county bears to the total 
  6.14  population in the district as determined by the last federal 
  6.15  census.  If the district public defender or an assistant 
  6.16  district public defender is temporarily transferred to a county 
  6.17  not situated in that public defender's judicial district, said 
  6.18  county shall pay the proportionate part of that public 
  6.19  defender's expenses for the services performed in said county.  
  6.20     (d) Reimbursement for actual and necessary travel expenses 
  6.21  in the conduct of the office of the district public defender 
  6.22  shall be charged to either (1) the general expenses of the 
  6.23  office, (2) the general expenses of the district for which the 
  6.24  expenses were incurred if outside the district, or (3) the 
  6.25  office of the state public defender if the services were 
  6.26  rendered for that office. 
  6.27     (e) (b) Money appropriated to the state board of public 
  6.28  defense for the board's administration, for the state public 
  6.29  defender, for the judicial district public defenders, and for 
  6.30  the public defense corporations shall be expended as determined 
  6.31  by the board.  In distributing funds to district public 
  6.32  defenders, the board shall consider the geographic distribution 
  6.33  of public defenders, the equity of compensation among the 
  6.34  judicial districts, public defender case loads, and the results 
  6.35  of the weighted case load study. 
  6.36     Sec. 9.  Minnesota Statutes 1996, section 611.27, 
  7.1   subdivision 2, is amended to read: 
  7.2      Subd. 2.  [STATE BOARD OF PUBLIC DEFENSE; DESIGNATION OF 
  7.3   HOST COUNTY.] The state board of public defense, after receiving 
  7.4   an appropriation from the legislature for payment of district 
  7.5   public defender costs, shall designate the county officials of 
  7.6   one county within the district as a host county to reimburse the 
  7.7   expenses of the district public defender.  A county selected by 
  7.8   the board must serve as the designee.  The county share assessed 
  7.9   under subdivision 1 against each county of the district must be 
  7.10  paid to the county treasurer of the designated county.  The 
  7.11  board may reimburse the designated county for extra costs 
  7.12  incurred. 
  7.13     Sec. 10.  Minnesota Statutes 1997 Supplement, section 
  7.14  611.27, subdivision 4, is amended to read: 
  7.15     Subd. 4.  [COUNTY PORTION OF COSTS.] That portion of 
  7.16  subdivision 1 directing counties to pay the costs of public 
  7.17  defense service shall not be in effect after January 1, 1995.  
  7.18  This subdivision only relates to costs associated with felony, 
  7.19  gross misdemeanor, juvenile, and misdemeanor public defense 
  7.20  services.  Notwithstanding the provisions of this subdivision, 
  7.21  in the first, fifth, seventh, ninth, and tenth judicial 
  7.22  districts, the cost of juvenile and misdemeanor public defense 
  7.23  services for cases opened prior to January 1, 1995, shall remain 
  7.24  the responsibility of the respective counties in those 
  7.25  districts, even though the cost of these services may occur 
  7.26  after January 1, 1995. 
  7.27     Sec. 11.  Minnesota Statutes 1996, section 611.27, 
  7.28  subdivision 7, is amended to read: 
  7.29     Subd. 7.  [PUBLIC DEFENDER SERVICES; RESPONSIBILITY.] 
  7.30  Notwithstanding subdivision 4, The state's obligation for the 
  7.31  costs of the public defender services is limited to the 
  7.32  appropriations made to the board of public defense.  Services 
  7.33  and expenses in cases where adequate representation cannot be 
  7.34  provided by the district public defender shall be the 
  7.35  responsibility of the state board of public defense. 
  7.36     Sec. 12.  [EFFECTIVE DATE.] 
  8.1      Section 2 is effective July 1, 1999.