Columbus, Georgia

Georgia's First Consolidated Government

Post Office Box 1340
Columbus, Georgia, 31902-1340
(706) 653-4013
fax (706) 653-4016

Council Members

Agenda Item # 1



Columbus Consolidated Government

Council Meeting

July 03, 2008



Agenda Report # 290





TO: Mayor and Councilors



SUBJECT: FY09 Public Defender Contract



INITIATED BY: Finance Department





Recommendation: Approval is requested to enter into an agreement for Indigent

Defense Services between Circuit Public Defender Office of the Chattahoochee

Judicial Circuit and Muscogee County in the amount of $1,170,217 from July 2008

to June 2009; authorize the Mayor to have signature authority.



Background: The Circuit Public Defender will provide public defender personnel

in Superior and Juvenile Court in consideration of an administrative fee of 5%

($34,396). These services include payroll, fringe benefits, training, travel,

computer hardware, computer software and legal research software. Additional

support staff and operational expenses are funded in the FY09 budget. In the

contract, the prorated share of costs are outlined as follows: Muscogee -

$1,067,236; Chattahoochee - $3,511; Harris - $66,703; Marion - $9,362; Talbot -

$10,532; Taylor - $12,873 for a total of $1,170,217. Muscogee County acts as

the fiscal agent for the Circuit Public Defender.



Analysis: The Circuit Public Defender, City Attorney?s Office and the Finance

Department have reviewed this contract.



Financial Considerations: The agreement is budgeted in the FY09 Adopted

Budget.



Legal Considerations: The Columbus Consolidated Government is eligible to

enter into this contract.



Recommendations/Actions: Approve an agreement for Indigent Defense Services

between Circuit Public Defender Office of the Chattahoochee Judicial Circuit

and Muscogee County in the amount of $1,170,217 from July 2008 to June 2009 and

authorize the Mayor to have signature authority.







GEORGIA INDIGENT DEFENSE SERVICES AGREEMENT







THIS AGREEMENT is entered into this___ day of July, 2008, between the

Circuit Public Defender Office of the Chattahoochee Judicial Circuit (herein

referred to as ?the Public Defender Office?) and the governing authority of

Columbus-Muscogee County, a body politic and a subdivision of the State of

Georgia (herein referred to as ?the County?) and is effective July 1, 2008.





WITNESSETH:



WHEREAS, the Public Defender Office and the County enter into this

agreement to implement the provisions of the Georgia Indigent Defense Act of

2003, as amended;



WHEREAS, the County is a body politic, existing and operating under the laws

and Constitution of the State of Georgia with full power to enter into

contracts and agreements with other political entities; and



WHEREAS, the Public Defender Office is existing under the laws of the

State of Georgia and operating under the laws and Constitution of the State of

Georgia with full power to enter into contracts and agreements with other

entities; and



WHEREAS, it is the intent of the parties to this agreement to provide

for the operation of an indigent defense system to assure that adequate and

effective legal representation is provided, independent of political

considerations or private interests, to indigent defendants in criminal cases

consistent with the standards adopted by the Georgia Public Defender Standards

Council. This system and this agreement include the following:



(1) The provision by the Public Defender Office of the statutorily required

services to the County;



(2) The payment for and the provision of additional personnel and services by

the County;



(3) The provision by the County of its pro rata share of the costs of

appropriate offices, utilities, telephone expenses, materials, and supplies as

may be necessary to equip, maintain, and furnish the office or offices of the

circuit public defender in an orderly and efficient manner;



(4) Travel and reimbursement of expenses; and



(5) The provision for other matters necessary to carry out this agreement.



NOW THEREFORE, in consideration of the mutual covenants and promises

contained in the agreement and for Ten Dollars ($10) and other good and

valuable consideration, IT IS AGREED AS FOLLOWS:



ARTICLE 1



STATUTORY PERSONNEL





Section 1.01 Statutory Staffing. The Public Defender Office agrees to provide

for the Chattahoochee Judicial Circuit full-time staff for a circuit public

defender office or offices consisting of a circuit public defender; an

assistant public defender for each superior court judge authorized for the

circuit, excluding the chief judge and senior judges; an investigator; and 2

additional persons to perform administrative, clerical or paraprofessional

services.





Section 1.02 Statutory Services. The Public Defender Office agrees to provide

representation to indigent defendants in the following cases:



(1) Cases prosecuted in the Superior Court of Muscogee County under the laws of

the State of Georgia in which there is a possibility that a sentence of

imprisonment or probation or suspension of sentence of imprisonment may be

adjudged;



(2) Hearings in the Superior Court of Muscogee County on a revocation of

probation;



(3) Cases prosecuted in the Juvenile Court of Muscogee County in which a child

may face a disposition in a delinquency case of confinement, commitment or

probation; and



(4) Direct appeals from a decision in cases described in items (1), (2), and

(3) above.





Section 1.03 Conflicts. The Public Defender Office agrees to provide through

the Standards Council for legal representation by an attorney who is not an

employee of the Public Defender Office in cases described in Section 1.02 in

which the Public Defender Office has a conflict of interest.



ARTICLE 2



ADDITIONAL PERSONNEL AND SERVICES



Section 2.01 Additional Personnel and Services. The Public Defender Office

agrees to provide and the County agrees to pay for the services and personnel

described in Attachment A. The parties agree to the terms in Attachment A.

Attachment A is incorporated into this agreement by reference. The amount to be

paid includes a 5% administrative services fee. Any changes to Attachment A

shall be made in accordance with Section 5.07 of this agreement. Any

additional personnel employed by the Public Defender Office pursuant to this

section are full-time state employees of the Public Defender Office in the

unclassified service of the State Merit System of Personnel Administration with

all the benefits provided by law to state employees in the unclassified

service. These additional employees serve at the pleasure of the Chattahoochee

Judicial Circuit Public Defender. The parties agree that the employment of

these additional personnel employed by the Public Defender Office pursuant to

this section may be terminated by the Public Defender Office if the County does

not pay for the cost of these personnel in advance in accordance with this

agreement.



Section 2.02 Additional County Employees. The County agrees to provide to the

Public Defender Office employees who remain employees of the County. The

County is the employer for these employees for all purposes, including, without

limitation, compensation and employee benefits, but the employees are under the

supervision of the circuit public defender. The circuit public defender may

utilize the duties and the title of these employees found in the County Merit

System. These employees include investigators and administrative personnel who

are currently being paid $381,879 in salary and benefits.





ARTICLE 3



PROVISION BY THE COUNTY OF ITS PRO RATA SHARE OF THE COSTS OF APPROPRIATE

OFFICES, UTILITIES, TELEPHONE EXPENSES, MATERIALS, AND SUPPLIES AS MAY BE

NECESSARY TO EQUIP, MAINTAIN, AND FURNISH THE OFFICES OF THE CIRCUIT PUBLIC

DEFENDER.



Section 3.01 Office Expenses. The County agrees to pay the operational

expenses in the amount of $66,032, which includes, but not limited to,

appropriate offices, utilities, telephone expenses, materials, and supplies to

equip, maintain, and furnish the office or offices of the Public Defender

Office. The parties to this agreement acknowledge that part of the costs of the

total budget of the public defender office is to be reimbursed to the County by

the following counties in the following amounts: Chattahoochee County, $3,511;

Harris County, $66,703; Marion County, $9,362; Talbot County, $10,532; and

Taylor County, $12,783. The amount of each county?s contribution to this

budget including the contribution of Columbus-Muscogee County is based on the

county?s pro rata share of the budget based on population.





ARTICLE 4



Travel and Reimbursement of Expenses



Section 4.01 Travel And Expense Reimbursement. The County agrees to provide

travel advances and to reimburse expenses which may be incurred in the

performance of the employee?s official duties under this agreement by an

employee of the Public Defender Office to the extent the expenses are not

reimbursed by the State and to the extent the expenses are authorized by the

circuit public defender and the County. The County shall provide the Public

Defender Office with the information concerning the travel advances and

expenses reimbursements required by the State Auditor. The County agrees to

reimburse employees? travel at the rate of $.505 per mile, subject to the

budget amount set forth in Article 3.



Section 4.02 Training. The County agrees to reimburse the State for training

county paid employees, subject to the budget amount set forth in Article 3.



Section 4.03 Computers. The County agrees to provide computer equipment for

the county employees covered under Section 2.02, subject to the budget amount

set forth in Article 3.



Section 4.04 Legal Research. The County agrees to reimburse the State for the

actual cost, subject to the budget amount set forth in Article 3.



ARTICLE 5



MISCELLANEOUS



Section 5.01 Term. The term of this agreement is 12 months beginning July 1,

2008, and ending June 30, 2009.



Section 5.02 Maintenance of Effort. The County agrees that it will continue to

fund indigent defense for the term of this agreement, at a minimum, at the

level of its most recent budgeted level of funding (the current fiscal year or

the planned budget for the next fiscal year if that budget has already been

developed) for indigent defense and as part of this support each county agrees

to provide the space, equipment and operating expenses necessary to effectively

operate the circuit public defender office.



Section 5.03 Severability. Any section, subsection, paragraph, term,

condition, provision or other part (hereinafter collectively referred to as

?part?) of this agreement that is judged, held, found, or declared to be

voidable, void, invalid, illegal or otherwise not fully enforceable shall not

affect any other part of this agreement, and the remainder of this agreement

shall continue to be of full force and effect. Any agreement of the parties to

amend, modify, eliminate, or otherwise change any part of this agreement shall

not affect any other part of this agreement, and the remainder of this

agreement shall continue to be of full force and effect.



Section 5.04 Cooperation, Dispute Resolution And Jurisdiction. (a) The Public

Defender Office and the County acknowledge that this agreement may need to be

revised periodically to address new or unforeseen matters.



(b) Each party to this agreement agrees to cooperate with the other party to

effectuate and carry out the intent of this agreement.



(c) This agreement, and the rights and obligations of the parties, are governed

by, and subject to and interpreted in accordance with the laws of the State of

Georgia. The parties acknowledge and agree that by law, the exclusive

jurisdiction for contract actions against the state, departments and agencies

of the state, and state authorities is the Superior Court of Fulton County,

Georgia. The Parties further acknowledge that the Fulton Superior Court has a

Court sponsored Arbitration and Mediation Program in which the Parties agree to

fully participate.



Section 5.05 Notice. A notice to a party to this agreement shall be made in

writing and shall be delivered by first class mail or personally to the person

and at the address indicated below:

Office of Chattahoochee Judicial Circuit:



Robert L. Wadkins, Circuit Public Defender

Circuit Public Defender

420 ? 10th Street

Columbus GA 31901-2856



Governing Authority of Columbus-Muscogee County, GA:



William J. Wetherington, Mayor

100 ? 10th Street

P. O. Box 1340

Columbus GA 31902-1340





Georgia Public Defender Standards Council:



Mack Crawford, Director

104 Marietta Street, Suite 200

Atlanta GA 30303



Section 5.06 Reallocation of Funds. Funds budgeted as operational expenses may

be reallocated by the circuit public defender for personnel costs as so long as

the amount to be reallocated does not exceed the total amount of the budget,

subject to the express approval of the Columbus Council.



Section 5.07 Agreement Modification. This agreement, including all attachments

hereto, constitutes the entire agreement between the parties with respect to

the subject matter of this agreement and may be altered or amended only by a

subsequent amendment approved by the Columbus Council, Circuit Public Defender,

and the Director of the Georgia Public Defender Standards Council. This

agreement supersedes all prior agreements, negotiations and communications of

whatever type, whether written or oral, between the parties hereto with respect

to the subject matter of this agreement. After the agreement has been approved

by the Director of the Georgia Public Defender Standards Council, no

modifications may be made without prior notice to the Director of the council.



Section 5.08 Termination. (a) Due To Non-Availability Of Funds. In the event

that either of the sources of reimbursement for services under this agreement

(appropriations from the General Assembly of the State of Georgia, or

appropriations from the governing authority of the County) is reduced during

the term of this agreement, the Public Defender Office may make financial and

other adjustments to this agreement and notify the County accordingly. An

adjustment may be an agreement amendment or may be the termination of the

agreement. The certification by the director of the Georgia Public Defender

Standards Council of the occurrence of reduction in State funds is conclusive.

The certification of the occurrence of the reduction in county funds by the

person named in Section 5.05 by the County to receive notices is conclusive.

The County shall promptly notify the Public Defender Office in writing on the

non-existence or insufficiency of funds and the date of termination. The

Public Defender Office shall then immediately cease providing the services

required hereunder except for any necessary winding down and transition

services required under Section 5.09. In lieu of terminating this agreement,

the County and the Public Defender Office may make financial and other

adjustments to this agreement by amending it pursuant to Section 5.07.



(b) For Cause. This agreement may be terminated for cause, in whole or in part,

at any time by either party for failure by the other party to substantially

perform any of its duties under this agreement. ?Cause? means a breach or

default of any material obligation hereunder which default is incapable of

cure, or which, being capable of cure, has not been cured within 30 days after

receipt of notice of such default (or such additional cure period as the

non-defaulting party may authorize). Should a party exercise its right to

terminate this agreement under this subsection, the termination shall be

accomplished in writing and specify the reason and the termination date. In the

event of termination under this subsection the Public Defender Office shall

submit a final agreement expenditure report containing all charges incurred

through and including the termination date to the County no later than 30 days

after the effective date of written notice of termination and the County shall

pay the amount due within 15 days of the receipt of the final agreement

expenditure report. Upon termination of this agreement, the Public Defender

Office shall not incur any new obligations after the effective date of the

termination, except as required under Section 5.09. The above remedies

contained in this subsection are in addition to any other remedies provided by

law or the terms of this agreement.



(c) For Convenience. This agreement may be cancelled or terminated by either

of the parties without cause; however, the party seeking to terminate or cancel

this agreement shall give written notice of its intention to do so to the other

party at least 60 days prior to the effective date of cancellation or

termination.



(d) Post-termination Obligations. After termination of this agreement pursuant

to this Section, the Public Defender Office and the County agree to comply with

the provisions of Section 5.09 (a).



Section 5.09 Cooperation In Transition Of Services. (a) During Or At The End

Of The Agreement. The Public Defender Office agrees upon termination or

expiration of this agreement, in whole or in part, for any reason to cooperate

as requested by the County to effectuate the smooth and reasonable transition

of services for existing clients. This includes but is not limited to the

continuation of representation by Public Defender Office where appropriate or

required by law, court rule or the State Bar of Georgia ethical standards or

the facilitation of the timely transfer to the County of the client records.

The County shall compensate the Public Defender for all post-termination or

post-expiration services under this subsection. The Public Defender Office

shall submit a monthly expenditure report containing all charges incurred

during the preceding month on or before the 5th day of each month. The County

shall pay the amount due within 15 days of the receipt of the monthly

expenditure report. This subsection survives the termination or expiration of

the agreement.



( b) Statutory Responsibility Continuation. The Public Defender Office and the

County acknowledge that both have responsibilities for indigent defense costs

under the Georgia Indigent Defense Act of 2003, as amended and that the

termination or expiration of this agreement does not relieve either party of

their responsibility under the law.



Section 5.10 Advance of Funds. The parties agree that advances of funds cannot

remain outstanding following agreement termination or expiration and will be

reclaimed. The parties agree that upon termination of this agreement, for any

reason, all unexpended and unobligated funds held by the parties revert to the

party entitled to the funds. The parties agree to reconcile expenditures

against advances of funds within 30 days of termination of this agreement.



Section 5.11 Time. Time is of the essence.



IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties have each here unto affixed their signatures

the day and year first written above.



ATTEST:

Governing Authority of

Columbus-Muscogee County, GA



_________________________

(SEAL)

BY: _________________________

William J. Wetherington, Mayor





ATTEST:

Chattahoochee Judicial Circuit Office of the Public

Defender





__________________________

(SEAL)

BY: ________________________

Robert L. Wadkins

Circuit Public Defender









APPROVED AND CONSENTED TO:

ATTEST:



GEORGIA PUBLIC DEFENDER

STANDARDS COUNCIL



____________________(SEAL)

BY:______________________

Mack Crawford

Director

Chattahoochee Judicial Circuit

Attachment a

July 1, 2008 ? June 30, 2009



The County agrees to pay the Public Defender Office $722,306 in 12 monthly

installments. Installments will be paid in advance directly to the Georgia

Public Defender Standards Council by the 15th day of each preceding month

beginning on July 15, 2008.



Invoices will be sent to the following address:



Finance Director

Columbus Consolidated Government

P. O. Box 1340

Columbus GA 31902-1340



Installments will be paid directly to the GPDSC at the following address:



Georgia Public Defender Standards Council

ATTN: Jason Ring

104 Marietta Street, Suite 200

Atlanta GA 30303-2743



The Public Defender Office agrees to use these funds for the purpose of paying

the salary and benefits for the following positions or individuals in the

amounts indicated as follows:





Annual Total salary 5% Admin. Total

salaries and benefits Fee Amount

$483,462 $687,910 $34,396 $722,306



The pro-rata share of costs throughout the Chattahoochee Judicial Circuit is as

follows:



County Amount

Chattahoochee $ 3,511

Harris 66,703

Marion 9,362

Muscogee 1,067,236

Talbot 10,532

Taylor 12,873

Total $1,170,230



Columbus-Muscogee County is acting as fiscal agent to collect the monies from

Chattahoochee, Harris, Marion, Talbot, and Taylor Counties. Installments from

Chattahoochee, Harris, Marion, Talbot and Taylor Counties shall be paid to

Columbus Consolidated Government and forwarded to the Finance Director,

Columbus Consolidated Government, P.O. Box 1340, Columbus GA 31902-1340.



A RESOLUTION



NO____



A RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING TO ENTER INTO AN AGREEMENT FOR INDIGENT DEFENSE

SERVICES BETWEEN CIRCUIT PUBLIC DEFENDER OFFICE OF THE CHATTAHOOCHEE JUDICIAL

CIRCUIT AND MUSCOGEE COUNTY IN THE AMOUNT OF $1,135,821 FROM JULY 2008 TO JUNE

2009 AND THE ADMINISTRATIVE FEE OF $34,396 PAID TO THE ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICE OF

THE COURTS (AOC);



WHEREAS, the Circuit Public Defender Office of the Chattahoochee Judicial

Circuit was created in January 2005 by the Georgia Indigent Defense Act of 2003

and provides that a consolidated government may contract with the circuit

public defender for the provision of criminal defense for indigent persons in

Superior and Juvenile courts; and,



WHEREAS, the contract specifies the amount of $1,170,217 for personnel and

operating costs for the period of July 2008 to June 2009 and Muscogee County?s

prorated share of expenses to be $1,067,236.



NOW, THEREFORE, THE COUNCIL OF COLUMBUS, GEORGIA, HEREBY RESOLVES AS FOLLOWS:



That the Mayor and/or the City Manager is hereby authorized to enter into an

agreement for Indigent Defense Services between Circuit Public Defender Office

of the Chattahoochee Judicial Circuit and Muscogee County in the amount of

$1,135,821 from July 2008 to June 2009 and the administrative fee of $34,396 to

the AOC, of which the prorated share for Muscogee County to be $1,067,236; and

authorize the Mayor to have signature authority.



Introduced at a regular meeting of the Council of Columbus, Georgia held on

the____ day of _____, 2007 and adopted at said meeting by the affirmative vote

of ____ members of said

Council.



Councilor Allen voting _____

Councilor Anthony voting _____

Councilor Baker voting _____

Councilor Barnes voting _____

Councilor Davis voting _____

Councilor Henderson voting _____

Councilor Hunter voting _____

Councilor McDaniel voting _____

Councilor Turner Pugh voting _____

Councilor Woodson voting _____







_____________________ ___________________

Tiny B. Washington, Jim Wetherington,

Clerk of Council Mayor





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