Senate Bill S8114

Vetoed By Governor
2015-2016 Legislative Session

Requires state reimbursement to counties the full amount of expenditures for indigent legal services

download bill text pdf

Sponsored By

Archive: Last Bill Status - Vetoed by Governor


  • Introduced
    • In Committee Assembly
    • In Committee Senate
    • On Floor Calendar Assembly
    • On Floor Calendar Senate
    • Passed Assembly
    • Passed Senate
  • Vetoed By Governor
  • Signed By Governor

Do you support this bill?

Please enter your contact information

Home address is used to determine the senate district in which you reside. Your support or opposition to this bill is then shared immediately with the senator who represents you.

Optional services from the NY State Senate:

Create an account. An account allows you to officially support or oppose key legislation, sign petitions with a single click, and follow issues, committees, and bills that matter to you. When you create an account, you agree to this platform's terms of participation.

Include a custom message for your Senator? (Optional)

Enter a message to your senator. Many New Yorkers use this to share the reasoning behind their support or opposition to the bill. Others might share a personal anecdote about how the bill would affect them or people they care about.
Actions

co-Sponsors

2015-S8114 (ACTIVE) - Details

See Assembly Version of this Bill:
A10706
Law Section:
County Law
Laws Affected:
Amd §722-e, County L; amd §832, Exec L; amd §98-b, St Fin L
Versions Introduced in 2017-2018 Legislative Session:
A1903

2015-S8114 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Requires state reimbursement to counties and cities in which a county is located of the full amount of expenditures for indigent legal services.

2015-S8114 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2015-S8114 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                            
                    S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________

                                  8114

                            I N  S E N A T E

                              June 13, 2016
                               ___________

Introduced  by  Sen.  DeFRANCISCO -- read twice and ordered printed, and
  when printed to be committed to the Committee on Rules

AN ACT to amend the county law, the executive law and the state  finance
  law, in relation to indigent defense services

  THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  Section 1. Legislative findings and declaration. It is  a  fundamental
right  of  all persons in the United States to be represented by counsel
in all criminal prosecutions. In the case of GIDEON V.  WAINWRIGHT,  372
U.S.  335,  the  United States Supreme Court ruled that indigent persons
accused in state felony cases who were unable to afford  counsel  had  a
constitutional right to be defended by an appointed attorney paid by the
state.  Subsequently, the Supreme Court determined that indigent persons
accused of any criminal charge that could result in imprisonment, wheth-
er a felony or misdemeanor, are entitled to counsel at  the  expense  of
the state.
  New  York state has chosen to fulfill its obligation to provide repre-
sentation to indigent persons accused of a crime by requiring each coun-
ty outside New York city and New York city to implement and fund a  plan
to  provide such representation. In 2006 the Commission on the Future of
Indigent Legal Services concluded that a system of county  operated  and
funded  indigent  defense  services failed to satisfy the constitutional
obligation to protect the rights of indigent persons accused of a crime.
Such Commission recommended that funding  for  indigent  legal  services
come from the State's general fund rather than from the counties.
  New  York state has entered into an agreement to settle a class action
lawsuit that alleged deprivation of the right to counsel in  five  coun-
ties.  The  agreement  acknowledges  that  the  Office of Indigent Legal
Services and the Indigent Legal Services Board are authorized "to  moni-
tor  and  study indigent legal services in the state, to recommend meas-
ures to improve those services, to award grant  monies  to  counties  to
support  their  indigent  representation  capability,  and  to establish
criteria for the distribution  of  such  funds."  While  the  settlement

 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                      [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                           LBD15873-01-6
              

Comments

Open Legislation is a forum for New York State legislation. All comments are subject to review and community moderation is encouraged.

Comments deemed off-topic, commercial, campaign-related, self-promotional; or that contain profanity, hate or toxic speech; or that link to sites outside of the nysenate.gov domain are not permitted, and will not be published. Attempts to intimidate and silence contributors or deliberately deceive the public, including excessive or extraneous posting/posts, or coordinated activity, are prohibited and may result in the temporary or permanent banning of the user. Comment moderation is generally performed Monday through Friday. By contributing or voting you agree to the Terms of Participation and verify you are over 13.

Create an account. An account allows you to sign petitions with a single click, officially support or oppose key legislation, and follow issues, committees, and bills that matter to you. When you create an account, you agree to this platform's terms of participation.