| Account | Description | FY2009 Spending |
FY2010 GAA |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0321-1500 | Committee for Public Counsel Services For the operation of the committee for public counsel services, as authorized by chapter 211D of the General Laws; provided, that the committee shall submit a report to the clerks of the house of representatives and senate and the house and senate committees on ways and means, not later than February 1, 2010, that shall include, but not be limited to, the following: (a) the number of clients assisted by the committee in the prior fiscal year; (b) any proposed expansion of legal services delineated by type of service, target population and cost; (c) the total number of persons who received legal services by the committee, by type of case and geographic location; (d) the costs for services rendered per client, by type of case and geographic location; (e) the amount paid, if any, to the committee by clients for services rendered by type of case and geographic location; (f) the average cost for services rendered by the committee by type of case; and (g) the average number of hours spent per attorney or staff per type of case; provided further, that the committee shall submit a report to the house and senate committees on ways and means not later than February 1, 2010, on the progress of the public defender division; provided further, that said report shall include the following: (a) the number of offices that are in operation; (b) the number of staff hired to work in the district offices; and (c) the estimated savings the commonwealth has realized from having cases assigned to public defenders as opposed to being assigned to private bar advocates; provided further, that the committee shall submit a report to the house and senate committees on ways and means not later than February 1, 2010, projecting the cost of a possible expansion of the public defender division to handle 50 per cent of all indigent cases assigned to the committee; and provided further, that said report shall include, but not be limited to, the following: (a) the number of additional attorneys necessary to handle 50 per cent of all indigent cases; (b) the initial costs associated with the possible expansion; (c) the projected annualized cost of operating the expanded public defender division; and (d) the estimated savings the commonwealth would realize by having these cases assigned to public defenders as opposed to private bar advocates |
28,794,432 | 28,645,024 |