FISCAL NOTE
Date Requested: January 14, 2026
Time Requested: 07:43 PM |
| Agency: |
Public Defender Services |
|---|
| CBD Number: |
Version: |
Bill Number: |
Resolution Number: |
| 1334 |
Introduced |
SB145 |
|
|---|
| CBD Subject: |
Boards and Commissions |
|---|
|
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 title to the bill proposes an increase in compensation for panel attorneys, but an increase is not provided in the body of the bill.
With respect to an increase in compensation, every $5 increase in the hourly rate requires an additional appropriation from general revenue in the amount of $2,500,000.
The legislation also imposes annual reporting requirements on the agency regarding the work of, and the results obtained by, guardians ad litem. At this time, the agency does not distinguish between the services of a guardian ad litem and other counsel, and the agency does not collect disposition information from any counsel. The agency would incur development costs to upgrade its electronic billing system, therefore.
The agency would require an additional appropriation of $35,000 to program the agency's electronic billing system to generare the required report.
Fiscal Note Detail
| Effect of Proposal |
Fiscal Year |
2026
Increase/Decrease
(use"-") |
2027
Increase/Decrease
(use"-") |
Fiscal Year
(Upon Full
Implementation) |
| 1. Estmated Total Cost |
35,000 |
0 |
0 |
| Personal Services |
0 |
0 |
0 |
| Current Expenses |
35,000 |
0 |
0 |
| 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.
For the past three fiscal years, the following are the hours of services billed by court-appointed counsel: FY2023 - 481,538.3; FY2024 - 496,482.8; and FY2025 - 480,573.3. For purposes of this fiscal note, the assumption is made that 500,000 hours of services will be billed.
The proposed legislation does not specify an increase in the rate of compensation. Notably, each $5 increase in the hourly rate would require an additional expenditure of general revenue in the amount of $2,500,000.
The agency does not collect the information required by the legislation to be included in an annual report. The agency's electronic system is not programmed to obtain this information. In a discussion with the software developer of the agency's current electronic system, the estimated cost for programming the system to generate the required report is $35,000.
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.
Person submitting Fiscal Note: Dana F. Eddy
Email Address: Dana.F.Eddy@wv.gov