RES 288 Draft 01 2010-2012 - Laserfiche WebLink

Home

EXHIBIT A THE .B. NO. TWENTY- LEGISLATURE, 2013 STATE OF HAWAII A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO THE DEFINITION OF INDIGENT AND PARTIALLY INDIGENT. BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII: SECTION 1. Section 802-4, Hawai`i Revised Statutes, is amended to read as follows: 1802-4 Determination of indigency. Laj Unless otherwise ordered by the court, the determination of indigency shall be made by [: . . . • • • . • • • • court] an independent board, agency, or committee, or by judges not directly involved in the case and shall be known as the verification officers. Such determination shall be based upon an appropriate and thorough inquiry into the financial circumstances of the person seeking legal representation and an affidavit or a certificate signed by such person demonstrating the person's financial inability to obtain legal counsel. A person shall waive the person's right to counsel by refusing to furnish any information pertinent to the determination of indigency. Lbj The definition of"indigent" shall be based on an objective determination of annual income and other resources, and shall comply with the following: a. For misdemeanor cases, criminal defendants must earn less than one hundred twenty-five percent(125%) of the Federal Poverty Guidelines in order to qualify as indigent. b. For felony cases, criminal defendants must earn less than one hundred fifty percent(150%) of the Federal Poverty Guidelines in order to qualify as indigent. Lcj Financial Standards for Determining Indigence. f The financial standards set forth below shall be used to determine whether a defendant is indigent and shall be applied equally to each defendant in the county. In determining whether a defendant is indigent, the verification officers may consider the defendant's income, assets, property owned,