,,ii #aafth ,,congress #ast ,session ,s4 #acgg ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of ,,the ,,united ,,states ,may #h1 #bjai,ms4 ,harris introduced the following bill2 which was read twice and referred to the ,committee on the ,judiciary ,a ,,bill ,to incentivize ,states and localities to improve access to justice1 and for other purposes4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,ensuring ,quality ,access to ,legal ,defense ,act of #bjai or the ,,equal ,defense ,act of #bjai4 #b4 ,purpose ,the purpose of this ,act is-- 7#a7 to protect the rights of defendants in criminal cases to due process and a fair trial under the ,fifth1 ,sixth1 and ,fourteenth ,amendments to the ,constitution of the ,united ,states1 including the right to counsel in ,state criminal trials1 as articulated by the ,united ,states ,supreme ,court in ,gideon v4 ,wainwright1 #cgb ,u4,s4 #cce 7#aifc72 7#b7 to collect data related to public defense in order to facilitate the development of evidence-based workload limits1 and for other purposes2 and 7#c7 to ensure that public defender compensation reflects the constitutional imperative of the work and adequately incentivizes attorneys at all levels to pursue a career in public defense4 #c4 ,definitions ,in this ,act1 except as otherwise provided in section #f3 7#a7 ,applicable court ,the term applicable court1 with respect to an eligible entity that is-- 7,a7 a ,state or unit of local government1 means-- 7i7 a court of the eligible entity2 and 7ii7 a court of a unit of local government within the eligible entity2 and 7,b7 a ,tribal organization1 means a court of the ,indian ,tribe4 7#b7 ,applicable public defender's office ,the term applicable public defender's office1 with respect to an eligible entity that is-- 7,a7 a public defender's office1 means the eligible entity2 7,b7 a ,state or unit of local government1 means-- 7i7 the public defender's office of the eligible entity2 and 7ii7 a public defender's office of a unit of local government within the eligible entity2 and 7,c7 a ,tribal organization1 means the public defender's office of the ,tribal organization4 7#c7 ,basis of compensation ,the term basis of compensation means the classification of the compensation of an employee into #a of the following categories3 7,a7 ,hourly4 7,b7 ,flat rate4 7,c7 ,per case4 7,d7 ,salary4 7#d7 ,case 7,a7 ,in general ,the term case includes all charges involved in a single incident of alleged criminal or delinquent conduct4 7,b7 ,multiple defendants ,if a charging document states that multiple defendants were involved in a single incident of alleged criminal or delinquent conduct1 each defendant shall be counted as a separate case4 7#e7 ,case type 7,a7 ,in general ,the term case type means the classification of a client's case into #a of the following categories1 as defined under ,state law3 7i7 ,juvenile4 7ii7 ,misdemeanor4 7iii7 ,felony4 7iv7 ,life without parole4 7v7 ,capital or death penalty4 7,b7 ,multiple charges ,if a case involves multiple charges1 the case type shall be determined according to the dominant charge4 7#f7 ,chief prosecutor ,the term chief prosecutor1 with respect to-- 7,a7 a ,state1 means the attorney general of the ,state2 7,b7 a unit of local government1 means the district attorney of the unit of local government2 and 7,c7 a ,tribal organization1 means the lead prosecutor of the ,tribal organization4 7#g7 ,chief public defender ,the term chief public defender1 with respect to a ,state1 unit of local government1 or ,tribal organization1 means the head of the public defender's office of the ,state1 unit of local government1 or ,tribal organization1 respectively4 7#h7 ,corresponding prosecutor's office ,the term corresponding prosecutor's office1 with respect to a public defender's office1 means the prosecutorial unit that appears adverse to the public defender's office in criminal proceedings4 7#i7 ,covered grant ,the term covered grant means a grant awarded under section #d4 7#aj7 ,dominant charge ,the term dominant charge1 with respect to a case that involves multiple charges1 means the charge that carries the most severe or lengthy maximum penalty4 7#aa7 ,eligible entity ,the term eligible entity means a ,state1 unit of local government1 ,tribal organization1 or public defender's office that1 as of the date of enactment of this ,act and without regard to the deadlines under section #d7;b7-- 7,a7 has not developed and implemented a data collection process that meets the requirements under paragraph 7#a7 of that section2 7,b7 has not developed workload limits that meet the requirements under paragraph 7#b7 of that section1 or has developed such limits but is not in compliance with the limits2 or 7,c7 does not meet the compensation requirements under paragraph 7#c7 of that section4 7#ab7 ,full-time ,the term full-time1 with respect to an employee of a prosecutor's office or public defender's office1 means an employee who works not less than #dj hours per week for that office4 7#ac7 ,peripheral charge ,the term peripheral charge1 with respect to a case that involves multiple charges1 means any charge that is not the dominant charge4 7#ad7 ,prosecutor ,the term prosecutor-- 7,a7 has the meaning given the term in section #cjja7;b7 of title ,i of the ,omnibus ,crime ,control and ,safe ,streets ,act of #aifh 7#cd ,u4,s4,c4 #ajfga7;b772 and 7,b7 includes a full-time employee of a ,tribal organization who-- 7i7 is continually licensed to practice law2 and 7ii7 carries out activities equivalent to those of a prosecutor referred to in subparagraph 7,a74 7#ae7 ,prosecutor's office2 public defender's office ,the terms prosecutor's office and public defender's office mean an agency or office of a ,state1 unit of local government1 or ,tribal organization that employs prosecutors or public defenders1 respectively4 7#af7 ,public defender ,the term public defender-- 7,a7 has the meaning given the term in section #cjja7;b7 of title ,i of the ,omnibus ,crime ,control and ,safe ,streets ,act of #aifh 7#cd ,u4,s4,c4 #ajfga7;b772 and 7,b7 includes an attorney employed by a ,tribal organization who-- 7i7 is continually licensed to practice law2 and 7ii7 carries out activities equivalent to those of a public defender referred to in subparagraph 7,a74 7#ag7 ,staff attorney ,the term staff attorney1 with respect to a prosecutor's office or public defender's office1 means a prosecutor or public defender who is not the chief prosecutor or chief public defender1 respectively4 7#ah7 ,state ,the term ,state has the meaning given the term in section #ija of title ,i of the ,omnibus ,crime ,control and ,safe ,streets ,act of #aifh 7#cd ,u4,s4,c4 #ajbea74 7#ai7 ,tribal organization ,the term ,tribal organization has the meaning given the term tribal organization in section #d7l7 of the ,indian ,self-,determination and ,education ,assistance ,act 7#be ,u4,s4,c4 #ecjd7l774 7#bj7 ,unit of local government ,the term unit of local government has the meaning given the term in section #ija of title ,i of the ,omnibus ,crime ,control and ,safe ,streets ,act of #aifh 7#cd ,u4,s4,c4 #ajbea74 #d4 ,public defense grant program 7a7 ,grant authority 7#a7 ,in general 7,a7 ,initial grants ,during the first #e fiscal years beginning after the date of enactment of this ,act1 the ,attorney ,general shall award a grant1 to be used for public defense1 to any eligible entity that commits to satisfying the requirements under subsection 7b7 and section #e4 7,b7 ,continuing grants ,during the sixth fiscal year beginning after the date of enactment of this ,act1 and each fiscal year thereafter1 the ,attorney ,general shall award a grant to any eligible entity that-- 7i7 commits to satisfying the requirements under section #e2 7ii7 certifies that the eligible entity is in compliance with-- 7,i7 the workload limits developed by the eligible entity under subsection 7b77#b7 of this section2 and 7,,ii7 the requirements under subsection 7b77#c7 of this section2 and 7iii7 commits to using the grant funds for public defense4 7#b7 ,amount ,in applying for a grant under paragraph 7#a71 an eligible entity shall request a grant amount that takes into account-- 7,a7 any technology and training required to meet the requirements under subsection 7b77#a72 and 7,b7 the size of the justice system-- 7i7 that the entity administers or in which the entity participates1 as applicable1 relative to the size of other justice systems in-- 7,i7 the ,united ,states1 if the entity is a ,state or a public defender's office of a ,state2 or 7,,ii7 the ,state in which the entity is located1 if the entity is a unit of local government or a public defender's office of a unit of local government2 or 7ii7 of the ,indian ,tribe1 if the entity is a ,tribal organization or a public defender's office of a ,tribal organization4 7b7 ,requirements ,the requirements for an eligible entity under this subsection are as follows3 7#a7 ,data collection 7,a7 ,process ,during the first fiscal year for which the eligible entity receives a covered grant1 the eligible entity shall develop and implement a process for collecting the following data for full-time attorneys employed by each applicable public defender's office during the fiscal year3 7i7 ,the mean and median number of hours per month worked per attorney4 7ii7 ,the mean and median percentage of hours per month spent with clients per attorney1 excluding court appearances4 7iii7 ,the mean and median percentage of hours per month spent in court proceedings per attorney4 7iv7 ,the mean and median percentage of hours spent per month by a attorney on-- 7,i7 investigation2 7,,ii7 research2 7,,iii7 writing2 and 7,,iv7 preparation4 7v7 ,the amount of attorney turnover1 broken down by the level of experience and length of employment of the attorney4 7vi7 ,the number of open cases as of the last day of the fiscal year1 broken down by-- 7,i7 case type1 including by-- 7aa7 the dominant charge2 and 7bb7 each peripheral charge2 7,,ii7 the attorney1 who shall be identified using an anonymized unique identifier2 7,,iii7 the date on which the attorney was appointed to the case2 and 7,,iv7 the date on which the attorney first met with the client4 7vii7 ,the number of cases closed during the fiscal year1 broken down by-- 7,i7 case type1 including by-- 7aa7 the dominant charge2 and 7bb7 each peripheral charge2 7,,ii7 the attorney1 who shall be identified using an anonymized unique identifier2 7,,iii7 the date on which the case was referred to the public defender's office2 7,,iv7 the date on which the attorney was appointed to the case2 and 7,v7 the date on which the case was closed4 7,b7 ,collection and submission requirement ,for the second fiscal year1 and each subsequent fiscal year1 for which an eligible entity receives a covered grant1 the eligible entity shall-- 7i7 collect the data described in subparagraph 7,a7 with respect to that fiscal year2 and 7ii7 submit the data to the ,attorney ,general4 7#b7 ,workload limits 7,a7 ,development of workload limits ,during the second fiscal year for which the eligible entity receives a covered grant1 the eligible entity shall develop workload limits1 based on the data collected under paragraph 7#a71 that provide each full-time public defender employed by an applicable public defender's office with sufficient time to provide-- 7i7 reasonably effective assistance of counsel pursuant to prevailing professional norms2 and 7ii7 competent representation pursuant to applicable rules of professional responsibility4 7,b7 ,periodic updates ,if the eligible entity receives covered grants under subsection 7a77#a77;,b71 the eligible entity shall review and1 as necessary1 update the limits developed under subparagraph 7,a7 of this paragraph not less frequently than once every #aj fiscal years4 7#c7 ,public defender compensation ,during the sixth fiscal year1 and each subsequent fiscal year1 for which the eligible entity receives a covered grant1 the eligible entity shall satisfy the following requirements with respect to employees of each applicable public defender's office 7or1 in the case of subparagraph 7,d71 with respect to each private attorney appointed by an applicable court73 7,a7 ,the rate and basis of compensation of the chief public defender shall be equivalent to the rate and basis of compensation of the corresponding chief prosecutor4 7,b7 ,the rate and basis of compensation of an entry-level full-time staff attorney shall be equivalent to the rate and basis of compensation of an entry-level full-time staff attorney employed by the corresponding prosecutor's office4 7,c7 ,the rate and basis of compensation of a non-entry-level full-time staff attorney shall be equivalent to the greater of-- 7i7 the rate and basis of compensation of a full-time staff attorney employed by the corresponding prosecutor's office who has the same number of years of experience working as a criminal attorney2 or 7ii7 the rate and basis of compensation of a full-time staff attorney employed by the corresponding prosecutor's office who has an equivalent supervisory or managerial role4 7,d7 ,in the case of an eligible entity that is not a public defender's office1 the rate of compensation of a private attorney appointed by an applicable court to represent a defendant shall be equivalent to the rate of compensation of an attorney appointed under section #cjjf;,a of title #ah1 ,united ,states ,code1 by the ,united ,states district court for the ,federal judicial district in which the applicable court is located1 for the same or a similar type of case4 7,e7 ,the rate and basis of compensation of a full-time investigator shall be equivalent to the rate and basis of compensation of a full-time investigator employed by the corresponding prosecutor's office who has the same number of years of experience working as an investigator4 7,f7 ,the rate and basis of compensation of a full-time paralegal shall be equivalent to the rate and basis of compensation of a full-time paralegal employed by the corresponding prosecutor's office who has the same number of years of experience working as a paralegal4 7c7 ,authorization of appropriations ,there are authorized to be appropriated to the ,attorney ,general to carry out this section-- 7#a7 #bej1jjj1jjj for each of the first #e fiscal years beginning after the date of enactment of this ,act2 and 7#b7 such sums as may be necessary for each fiscal year thereafter4 #e4 ,progress reports2 certifications 7a7 ,progress reports ,for each of the first #e fiscal years for which a ,state or ,tribal organization receives a covered grant1 the ,state or ,tribal organization shall submit a report to the ,attorney ,general that-- 7#a7 documents the progress of the ,state or ,tribal organization in meeting the requirements under section #d7;b77#c72 7#b7 provides a formal accounting of total amounts expended on public defense during the fiscal year by the-- 7,a7 ,state1 including each unit of local government in the ,state2 or 7,b7 ,tribal organization2 7#c7 provides a formal accounting of total amounts expended on prosecution during the fiscal year by the-- 7,a7 ,state1 including each unit of local government in the ,state2 or 7,b7 ,tribal organization2 and 7#d7 documents the progress of the ,state1 including each unit of local government in the ,state1 or ,tribal organization in achieving overall resource parity between prosecution and public defense4 7b7 ,certifications 7#a7 ,data collection process ,for the first fiscal year for which an eligible entity receives a covered grant1 the eligible entity shall submit to the ,attorney ,general a certification that the eligible entity has developed and implemented a data collection process in accordance with section #d7;b77#a77;,a74 7#b7 ,workload limits 7,a7 ,compliance ,subject to subparagraph 7,b71 for the third fiscal year for which an eligible entity receives a covered grant1 and each fiscal year thereafter1 the eligible entity shall submit to the ,attorney ,general a certification that the eligible entity has complied with the workload limits developed under section #d7;b77#b74 7,b7 ,requirement ,if an eligible entity is unable to certify under subparagraph 7,a7 that the eligible entity has complied with the workload limits developed under section #d7;b77#b7-- 7i7 the eligible entity shall report to the ,attorney ,general the number of additional public defenders and the amount of additional funding needed to ensure compliance with the limits developed under that section2 and 7ii7 the ,attorney ,general shall factor the information provided under clause 7i7 into the amount of the covered grant awarded to the eligible entity for the following fiscal year4 7#c7 ,compensation parity ,for the sixth fiscal year1 and each subsequent fiscal year1 for which an eligible entity receives a covered grant1 the eligible entity shall submit to the ,attorney ,general a certification that the eligible entity is in compliance with section #d7;b77#c74 #f4 ,requirements for ,states receiving ,byrne ,,jag funds 7a7 ,data collection 7#a7 ,in general ,for any fiscal year beginning after the date of enactment of this ,act1 a ,state that receives funds under subpart #a of part ,e of title ,i of the ,omnibus ,crime ,control and ,safe ,streets ,act of #aifh 7#cd ,u4,s4,c4 #ajeja et seq47 shall submit to the ,attorney ,general data on the following with respect to criminal cases heard by a court of the ,state or of a unit of local government in the ,state during that fiscal year3 7,a7 ,the number of cases for which a defendant waived his or her right to counsel1 and the number of charges in each case1 broken down by race1 ethnicity1 and gender of the defendant4 7,b7 ,the number of cases for which a defendant was represented in court by counsel who was publicly appointed1 broken down by-- 7i7 public defender1 court-appointed private attorney1 or contract attorney1 and the number of charges in each case2 and 7ii7 race1 ethnicity1 and gender of the defendant4 7,c7 ,the number of cases for which a defendant was represented in court by counsel who was not publicly appointed1 and the number of charges in each case1 broken down by race1 ethnicity1 and gender of the defendant4 7#b7 ,applicable criminal offenses ,a ,state shall submit data under paragraph 7#a7 with respect to-- 7,a7 criminal offenses for which a term of imprisonment of more than #a year may be imposed2 7,b7 criminal offenses for which a term of imprisonment of #a year or less may be imposed1 including misdemeanors1 traffic violations1 and violations of municipal ordinances2 and 7,c7 acts of juvenile delinquency or juvenile status offenses for which any term of detention may be imposed4 7#c7 ,withholding of funds ,if a ,state does not comply with paragraph 7#a7 or 7#b7 for a fiscal year1 the ,attorney ,general shall withhold from the ,state #bj percent of the funds that would otherwise be allocated to the ,state for the following fiscal year under subpart #a of part ,e of title ,i of the ,omnibus ,crime ,control and ,safe ,streets ,act of #aifh 7#cd ,u4,s4,c4 #ajeja et seq474 #g4 ,funding to train public defenders 7a7 ,definition ,in this section1 the term eligible entity means an entity that-- 7#a7 is-- 7,a7 an organization-- 7i7 described in paragraph 7#c7 or 7#f7 of section #eja7;c7 of the ,internal ,revenue ,code of #aihf and exempt from taxation under section #eja7;a7 of such ,code2 or 7ii7 funded by a ,state or unit of local government2 or 7,b7 a ,state1 unit of local government1 ,indian ,tribal government1 or political subdivision of an ,indian ,tribe2 and 7#b7 has a comprehensive educational program specific to public defenders that offers-- 7,a7 ongoing training and support2 and 7,b7 programming that includes-- 7i7 skills training1 including pretrial practice1 negotiation skills1 and trial skills2 7ii7 client-centered values2 7iii7 implicit bias training2 7iv7 leadership development2 and 7v7 ongoing support to reinforce the training curriculum4 7b7 ,grants ,the ,attorney ,general shall award grants to eligible organizations to be used to train public defenders1 court-appointed private attorneys1 and contract attorneys4 7c7 ,authorization of appropriations ,there are authorized to be appropriated to the ,attorney ,general to carry out this section #e1jjj1jjj for each of the first #e fiscal years beginning after the date of enactment of this ,act4 #h4 ,enhancement of student loan repayment program 7a7 ,reauthorization ,section #cjja7;j7 of title ,i of the ,omnibus ,crime ,control and ,safe ,streets ,act of #aifh 7#cd ,u4,s4,c4 #ajfga7;j77 is amended-- 7#a7 by striking this section #be1jjj1jjj and inserting the following3 this section-- 7#a7 #be1jjj1jjj 2 and 7#b7 by striking the period at the end and inserting the following3 2 and 7#b7 #ge1jjj1jjj for each of fiscal years #bjai through #bjbb4 4 7b7 ,increasing limits on repayment amount ,section #cjja7;d77#c77;,a7 of title ,i of the ,omnibus ,crime ,control and ,safe ,streets ,act of #aifh 7#cd ,u4,s4,c4 #ajfga7;d77#c77;,a77 is amended-- 7#a7 in clause 7i71 by striking #aj1jjj and inserting #ce1jjj2 and 7#b7 in clause 7ii71 by striking #fj1jjj and inserting #bjj1jjj4