S-3701.1  _______________________________________________

                         SENATE BILL 6386

          _______________________________________________

State of Washington      56th Legislature     2000 Regular Session

By Senators Haugen, Hargrove, Swecker, Brown, Patterson, Sheahan, Morton, Long, Costa and Rasmussen

Read first time 01/14/2000.  Referred to Committee on Human Services & Corrections.

Administering funds for representation of indigent parents and children.

    AN ACT Relating to funds appropriated for representation of indigent parents and children; and amending RCW 2.70.020.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

    Sec. 1.  RCW 2.70.020 and 1996 c 221 s 3 are each amended to read as follows:

    The director, under the supervision and direction of the advisory committee, shall:

    (1) Administer all criminal appellate indigent defense services;

    (2) Submit a biennial budget for all costs related to state appellate indigent defense;

    (3) Establish administrative procedures, standards, and guidelines for the program including a cost-efficient system that provides for recovery of costs;

    (4) Recommend criteria and standards for determining and verifying indigency.  In recommending criteria for determining indigency, the director shall compile and review the indigency standards used by other state agencies and shall periodically submit the compilation and report to the legislature on the appropriateness and consistency of such standards;

    (5) Collect information regarding indigency cases funded by the state and report annually to the legislature and the supreme court;

    (6) Coordinate with the supreme court and the judges of each division of the court of appeals to determine how attorney services should be provided;

(7) Administer and distribute funds appropriated for representation of indigent parents and children.  Spending priorities shall include:

(a) Development of uniform tracking of indigent parent and children cases and funding amounts state-wide;

(b) Efforts to reduce delays and continuances in dependency and termination cases;

(c) Ensuring parents, guardians and legal custodians are screened for indigency pursuant to chapter 10.101 RCW;

(d) Methods for establishing paternity among possible fathers at the earliest possible date when paternity is an issue;

(e) Setting salary levels for dependency and termination defense counsel that attracts competent, skilled counsel;

(f) Retention of sufficient counsel to maintain reasonable caseloads;

(g) Making funds available for necessary support staff, defense experts, dependency and termination defense counsel, and investigators;

(h) Development and enforcement of standards of practice for defense counsel; and

(i) Training for dependency and termination defense counsel.

    The office of public defense shall not provide direct representation of clients.

                            --- END ---