Note: This version of section effective 7-1-2025. See also preceding version of this section, effective until 7-1-2025.

     Sec. 11. (a) For purposes of this section, the term “county auditor” includes a person who:

(1) is the auditor of a county that is a member of a multicounty public defender‘s office described in section 3.5 of this chapter; and

(2) is responsible for the receipt, disbursement, and accounting of all monies distributed to the multicounty public defender’s office.

     (b) A county public defender board or the joint board of a multicounty public defender’s office shall submit a written request for reimbursement to the county auditor. The request must set forth the total of the county’s or multicounty public defender’s office’s expenditures for indigent defense services to the county auditor and may be limited in a county described in section 1(5) of this chapter to expenditures for indigent defense services provided by a particular division of a court. The county auditor shall review the request and certify the total of the county’s or multicounty’s expenditures for indigent defense services to the Indiana commission on court appointed attorneys.

     (c) Except as provided in subsection (d), upon certification by the Indiana commission on court appointed attorneys that the county’s or multicounty public defender’s office’s indigent defense services meet the commission’s standards, the state comptroller shall issue a warrant to the treasurer of state for disbursement to the county of a sum equal to forty percent (40%) of the county’s or multicounty public defender’s office’s certified expenditures for indigent defense services provided in noncapital cases except misdemeanors.

     (d) This subsection applies to a county that is one (1) of up to twelve (12) counties that shall be selected by the Indiana commission on court appointed attorneys based on population and geographic diversity. Upon certification by the Indiana commission on court appointed attorneys that the county’s or multicounty public defender’s office’s indigent defense services meet the commission’s standards, the state comptroller shall issue a warrant to the treasurer of state for disbursement to the county of a sum that is up to forty percent (40%) of the county’s or multicounty public defender’s office’s certified expenditures for indigent defense services provided for misdemeanor cases. This subsection expires June 30, 2029.

     (e) If a county’s indigent defense services fail to meet the standards adopted by the Indiana commission on court appointed attorneys, the Indiana commission on court appointed attorneys shall notify the county public defender board or the joint board of a multicounty public defender’s office and the county fiscal body of the failure to comply with the commission’s standards. Unless the county or multicounty public defender board corrects the deficiencies to comply with the standards not more than ninety (90) days after the date of the notice, the county’s or multicounty’s eligibility for reimbursement from the public defense fund terminates at the close of that fiscal year.

     (f) A county or multicounty public defender’s office shall submit to the Indiana commission on court appointed attorneys information to be included in the annual report under IC 33-40-5-4(a)(5) regarding expenses reported to the county auditor for reimbursement by the Indiana commission on court appointed attorneys.

[Pre-2004 Recodification Citation: 33-9-15-10.5.]

As added by P.L.98-2004, SEC.19. Amended by P.L.69-2019, SEC.9; P.L.104-2022, SEC.140; P.L.9-2024, SEC.523; P.L.111-2024, SEC.15.