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2025 Session

Budget Amendments - SB800 (Member Request)

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Chief Patron: Boysko
Court-Appointed Counsel at First Appearance (SB 1227)

Item 28 #1s

Item 28 #1s

First Year - FY2025 Second Year - FY2026
Judicial Department
Supreme Court FY2025 $0 FY2026 $4,000,000 GF

Language
Page 31, line 3, strike "$16,544,935" and insert "$20,544,935".


Explanation

(This amendment provides $4.0 million GF the second year to cover court-appointed counsel payments at defendants' first appearance and related needs. This amendment and a companion amendment in Item 40 compliment Senate Bill 1227, which implements counsel at first appearance in non-public defender localities. The amount assumes $2.2 million for court-appointed counsel payments, based on 2019 data collected by the Virginia State Crime Commission, and $1.8 million for associated costs such as court improvements. Grants shall be given to localities that have demonstrated efforts or intentions to implement counsel at first appearance, and priority shall be given to courts in localities that are identified as “high” on the Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development fiscal stress index.)