Title
a. Amend the FY 2021-22 Public Defender’s Adopted Budget (001-2270-8168-PUB001) to temporarily reallocate one (1) .50 Account Clerk to one (1) 1.0 FTE Account Clerk retroactive from November 15, 2021, through February 11, 2022, as indicated in Attachment A; and
b. Authorize and direct the County Administrative Office and the Auditor-Controller to incorporate the position changes in the FY 2021-22 Adopted Budget.
Report
RECOMMENDATION:
It is recommended that the Board of Supervisors:
a. Amend the FY 2021-22 Public Defender’s Adopted Budget (001-2270-8168-PUB001) to temporarily reallocate one (1) .50 Account Clerk to one (1) 1.0 FTE Account Clerk retroactive from November 15, 2021, through February 11, 2022, as indicated in Attachment A; and
b. Authorize and direct the County Administrative Office and the Auditor-Controller to incorporate the position changes in the FY 2021-22 Adopted Budget.
SUMMARY:
The Alternate Defender Unit (ADO) is a division of the Public Defender Office that handles conflict matters to reduce the cost of legal services and representation for indigent defense, juvenile matters, and PC 4750 State Prison cases. The ADO Unit is requesting retroactively a temporary reallocation of one (1) .50 to a one (1) 1.0FTE to address the emergency need presented from November 15, 2021, through February 11, 2022. The recommended change provided the unit the appropriate level of resources to efficiently manage the increased workload volume and backlog of State Prison claims for A/P processing and submittal to the State for reimbursement of costs incurred by the County. Claims submitted for reimbursement after the six-month deadline is denied by the State Controller therefore causing an impact to the department.
DISCUSSION:
The Alternate Defender (ADO), Unit 8168, is composed of (2) two employees: (1) 1.0 FTE Management Analyst and (1) .50 Account Clerk. The ADO’s .5 Account Clerk is responsible for reviewing and processing A/P, county “new” vendor registrations, data entry in the case management system Defender by Karpel, and secretarial duties. Tasks also included in this position is the processing of state (PC 4750) claims for reimbursement of incurred costs.
Upon the rise of the pandemic in 2020, filings for State Prison cases began to decrease and ultimately came to a halt for approximately a year. This created a backlog of over 350 cases for the courts, Department of Corrections, Alternate Defender & District Attorney. In late 2021, after a discussion between the agencies, the Courts implemented an “Early Resolution Court” to start handling the backlog of these matters. Due to the rise in filings, the ADO unit was experiencing difficulties sustaining the flood of incoming cases with a part-time schedule for the Account Clerk.
After consulting with Human Resources, the .50 Account Clerk was approved to work a schedule of 32 hours per week for a temporary period of November 15, 2021, through February 11, 2022. It was not anticipated, the additional twelve (12) to twenty-four (24) hours worked per pay period affected the employee’s benefits and accruals.
The Public Defender Office respectfully requests authorization from the Budget Committee and Board of Supervisors to implement the changes accordingly, authorize and direct the Human Resource department and the Public Defender Office to process any necessary Advantage HRM modifications to compensate the employee’s benefits and leave accruals for the period November 15, 2021 through February 11, 2022.
OTHER AGENCY INVOLVEMENT:
The Budget Committee supported approval of this recommendation on April 25, 2022. The Human Resources Department has reviewed and concurs with the recommendation.
FINANCING:
The recommended action results in an increase of $3,741 to the Public Defender’s FY 2021-22 Adopted Budget, which will be absorbed within the Public Defender’s budget.
BOARD OF SUPERVISORS STRATEGIC INITIATIVES:
This recommendation meets the Board’s strategic initiatives by promoting an organization that practices efficient and effective resource management and is recognized for responsiveness, strong customer orientation, accountability and transparency.
Mark a check to the related Board of Supervisors Strategic Initiatives
__Economic Development
X_Administration
__Health & Human Services
__Infrastructure
__Public Safety
Prepared by: Becky Avila, Management Analyst, ext. 3048
Approved by: Susan E. Chapman, Public Defender, ext.5806
Attachments:
Board Report
Attachment A