Snyder asked for $61.3M for public defenders, $25 million less than counties say they need

LANSING - Michigan counties and other local governments say they need about $87 million to meet tough new state standards for public defense attorneys.

Gov. Rick Snyder only asked for $61.3 million in his 2019 budget request to lawmakers on Wednesday, $25 million less than local governments say they need. 

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The final cost of Michigan's indigent defense reforms isn't immediately clear. Thus far, the Michigan Indigent Defense Commission has only approved about $6 million in local governments' grant requests, but an MIDC official said the rejected requests need mostly minor changes and most requests would likely be approved when governments resubmit their grant requests. 

“The MIDC is pleased with the commitment to indigent defense demonstrated in Governor Snyder’s budget recommendations," MIDC Chair Michael Puerner said in an email to the State Journal when asked about the governor's budget request. "We will continue to review plans from local systems and determine the cost of compliance. The MIDC is looking forward to working with the governor and legislators to ensure fair justice and uniform standards in Michigan’s indigent defense system.”

The Legislature created in the MIDC in 2013 following a damning report that ranked Michigan's system for providing a criminal defense for the poor — a right guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution — among the worst in the country.

Contact Justin A. Hinkley at (517) 377-1195 or jhinkley@lsj.com. Follow him on Twitter @JustinHinkley. Sign up for his email newsletter, SoM Weekly, at on.lsj.com/somsignup.