O.C.G.A.
O.C.G.A.

O.C.G.A. § 17-12-30 (2019)

Classification of personnel; responsibilities; compensation; local supplements

✓ O.C.G.A. (archive.org 2024 item): print volumes of 2004-2024, per-volume vintage; older volumes partly replaced by 2019 Release 73 text; no 2025 or 2026 Acts
Code text and O.C.G.A. statutory annotations on this page reflect the 2019 Official Code of Georgia Annotated (Public.Resource.Org Release 73, 2019-08-21; public domain per Georgia v. Public.Resource.Org, 2020). The Syfert case-law annotations in Notes of Decisions, below, are current.
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(a) All state paid personnel employed by the circuit public defenders pursuant to this article shall be employees of the executive branch of state government and shall be in the unclassified service as defined by Code Section 45-20-2.

(b) Personnel employed by the circuit public defenders pursuant to this article shall have the authority, duties, powers, and responsibilities as are authorized by law or as assigned by the circuit public defender and shall serve at the pleasure of the circuit public defender.

(c) (1) The council shall establish salary ranges for each state paid position authorized by this article or any other provision of law. Salary ranges shall be similar to the state-wide and senior executive ranges adopted pursuant to the rules of the State Personnel Board and shall provide for minimum, midpoint, and maximum salaries not to exceed the maximum allowable salary. In establishing the salary ranges, all amounts will be rounded off to the nearest whole dollar. The council may, from time to time, revise the salary ranges to include across-the-board increases which the General Assembly may from time to time authorize in the General Appropriations Act.

(2) The circuit public defender shall fix the compensation of each state paid employee appointed pursuant to this article in accordance with the job to which the person is appointed and the appropriate salary range.

(3) All salary advancements shall be based on quality of work, training, and performance. The salary of state paid personnel appointed pursuant to this article may be increased at the first of the calendar month following the annual anniversary of the person's appointment. No employee's salary shall be advanced beyond the maximum established in the applicable pay range.

(4) Any reduction in salary shall be made in accordance with the salary range for the position and the policies adopted by the council.

(5) The compensation of state paid personnel appointed pursuant to this article shall be paid in equal installments by the council as provided by this subsection from funds appropriated for such purpose. The council may authorize employees compensated pursuant to this Code section to participate in voluntary salary deductions as provided by Article 3 of Chapter 7 of Title 45.

(6) The governing authority of the county or counties comprising a judicial circuit may supplement the salary or fringe benefits of any state paid position appointed pursuant to this article.

(7) The governing authority of any municipality within the judicial circuit may, with the approval of the circuit public defender, supplement the salary or fringe benefits of any state paid position appointed pursuant to this article.

History

(Code 1981, § 17-12-30, enacted by Ga. L. 2003, p. 191, § 1; Ga. L. 2004, p. ES3, § 23/HB 1EX; Ga. L. 2007, p. 65, § 4/SB 139; Ga. L. 2009, p. 745, § 2/SB 97; Ga. L. 2011, p. 91, § 13/HB 238; Ga. L. 2012, p. 446, § 2-20/HB 642.)

Annotations

Cross references. - Constitutional guarantee of access to courts, Ga. Const. 1983, Art. I, Sec. I, Para. XII. Constitutional guarantee of benefit of counsel, Ga. Const. 1983, Art. I, Sec. I, Para. XIV.

Administrative rules and regulations. - Grants of Georgia Indigent Defense Council, Official Compilation of the Rules and Regulations of the State of Georgia, Title 294.

Article 5 Office of Multicounty Public Defender Article 6 Georgia Capital Defender 17-12-120 through 17-12-128. [Repealed].

RESEARCH REFERENCES ALR. - Right of indigent defendant in state criminal case to assistance of fingerprint expert, 72 A.L.R.4th 874.

Right of indigent defendant in state criminal case to assistance of expert in social attitudes, 74 A.L.R.4th 330.

ARTICLE 1 GEORGIA PUBLIC DEFENDER COUNCIL

Cross references. - Provision of legal services to indigents by law students, T. 15, C. 20. Application and appointment of counsel, Uniform State Court Rules, Rule 29.2. Editor’s notes. - Ga. L. 2003, p. 191, § 1, effective December 31, 2003, repealed the Code sections formerly codified as this article, and enacted the current article. The former article consisted of Code Sections §§ 17-12-1 through 17-12-14, relating to local indigent defense programs, and was based on Ga. L. 1968, p. 999, §§ 1 - 13; Ga. L. 1974, p. 1100, § 1; Ga. L. 1982, p. 1181, §§ 1, 2.

U.S. Code. - Right to and assignment of counsel, Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure, Rule 44.

Law reviews. - For article, ‘‘The Indigent Defendant in Georgia Prior to

Gideon v. Wainwright,’’ see 2 Ga. St. B.J. 207 (1965). For article discussing legal representation for indigents under the Georgia Criminal Justice Defense Act, proposed in Georgia in 1977, see 13 Ga. St. B.J. 141 (1977). For article, ‘‘Raising the Bar: Indigent Defense and the Right to a Partisan Lawyer,’’ see 69 Mercer L. Rev. 697 (2018). For article, ‘‘Privileging Public Defense Research,’’ see 69 Mercer L. Rev. 771 (2018). For note on the 2003 enactment of this article, see 20 Ga. St. U.L. Rev. 105 (2003). For comment on Argersinger v. Hamlin, 407 U.S. 25, 92 S. Ct. 2006, 32 L. Ed. 2d 530 (1972), establishing an indigent’s right to appointed counsel in nonfelony criminal cases, see 22 J. of Pub. L. 191 (1973).

JUDICIAL DECISIONS Editor’s notes. - In light of the similarity of the issues dealt with, decisions under former Ga. L. 1968, p. 999, and T. 17, C. 12, Art. 1 are included in the annotations for this article. Article not exclusive method for providing indigents right to counsel. - While the former Georgia Criminal Justice Act should have provided effective means of affording counsel to indigent defendants, it was not the exclusive method for accomplishing that end. Perry v. State, 120 Ga. App. 304, 170 S.E.2d 350 (1969) (decided under former Ga. L. 1968, p. 999). Inadequacy of ‘‘Declaration of Indigency’’ form as indirectly denying defendant right to appointed counsel. - See Stapp v. State, 249 Ga. 289, 290 S.E.2d 439 (1982) (decided under former Ga. L. 1968, p. 999). Remand was required since the record did not show how it was determined

that the defendant did not qualify for appointed legal assistance and revealed that the trial court failed to exercise the court’s affirmative duty of determining whether the defendant exercised reasonable diligence in attempting to retain counsel. McQueen v. State, 228 Ga. App. 732, 492 S.E.2d 720 (1997) (decided under former O.C.G.A. T. 17, C. 12, Art. 1). Insufficiency of record on appeal. - Since it was not clear from the record that when the defendant received the court’s order the defendant was required to provide proof of indigency, whether the court considered the defendant’s proof of indigency, or whether the court found that the court could not determine indigency due to the defendant’s failure or refusal to provide the necessary proof of indigency, the case was remanded for a hearing to determine whether or not the defendant was indigent. Mapp v. State, 199 Ga. App. 47, 403 S.E.2d 833 (1991) (decided under former O.C.G.A. T. 17, C. 12, Art. 1).

RESEARCH REFERENCES Am. Jur. 2d. - 21 Am. Jur. 2d, Criminal Law, §§ 357 et seq., 375 et seq. C.J.S. - 7A C.J.S., Attorney and Client, §§ 441 et seq. 22A C.J.S., Criminal Procedure and Rights of the Accused, § 725 et seq. ALR. - Duty to advise accused as to right to assistance of counsel, 3 A.L.R.2d 1003. Constitutionally protected right of indigent accused to appointment of counsel in state court prosecution, 93 A.L.R.2d 747.

Construction and effect of statutes providing for office of public defender, 36 A.L.R.3d 1403. Accused’s right to represent himself in state criminal proceedings - modern state cases, 98 A.L.R.3d 13. Relief available for violation of right to counsel at sentencing in state criminal trial, 65 A.L.R.4th 183. Recovery under state law of attorney’s fees by lay pro se litigant, 14 A.L.R.5th 947.

Notes of Decisions
Cited in 9 cases (1 in the last 5 years), 1989–2025 · leading case: Sacandy v. Walther, 413 S.E.2d 727 (Ga. 1992).
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Sacandy v. Walther, 413 S.E.2d 727 (Ga. 1992). · cites it 12× “, the Georgia Indigent Defense Act, OCGA § 17-12-30 et seq. and the Guidelines for Local Indigent Defense Programs approved by this court at 246 Ga.”
Amadeo v. State, 384 S.E.2d 181 (Ga. 1989). · cites it 2× “Indigent Defense Act, OCGA § 17-12-30 et seq. Since, however, we reverse on other grounds, we do not decide whether the failure to appoint counsel with previous death penalty experience is, in itself, an abuse of the trial court’s discretion.”
Birt v. State, 387 S.E.2d 879 (Ga. 1990). · cites it 2× “367; OCGA § 17-12-30 et seq., declaring: t is the policy of this state to provide the constitutional guarantees of the right to counsel and equal access to the courts to all its citizens in criminal cases and to provide: .”
Foster v. Fulton Cnty., 223 F. Supp. 2d 1301 (N.D. Ga. 2002). · cites it 2× “Not only is there no legal impediment to Fulton County’s establishing such a system, but the Georgia Indigent Defense Act, O.C.G.A. § 17-12-30 et seq., and Fulton County’s contract with the Georgia Indigent Defense Council require Fulton County to provide such a system.”
In re Straughan, 400 S.E.2d 906 (Ga. 1991). · cites it 2× “The amicus curiae brief filed by Johnson County indicates that although Johnson County is a participant under the Georgia Indigent Defense Act, OCGA § 17-12-30 et seq., the fee in this case was not set pursuant to the provisions of that act.”
DeKalb Cnty. v. Adams, 529 S.E.2d 610 (Ga. 2000). · cites it 2× “) OCGA § 17-12-44 comes within Article 2 of Chapter 12, Volume 17, known as the “Georgia Indigent Defense Act,” OCGA § 17-12-30, which was promulgated to provide the constitutional guarantees of the right to counsel and equal access to the courts “to all its citizens in criminal…”
McCorkle v. Bignault, 399 S.E.2d 916 (Ga. 1991). · cites it 2× “367; OCGA § 17-12-30 et seq. In September of 1989, the Chatham County Board of Commissioners (the “board”) adopted a resolution expressing its intent to participate in the program and thereby receive state funding to assist the county in the provision of adequate defense…”
Miller v. Georgia Pub. Def. Standards Council, No. 4:25-cv-00096 (M.D. Ga. Oct. 7, 2025). · cites it 2× “O.C.G.A. § 17-12-30(c)(2) (providing that the “circuit public defender shall fix the compensation of each state paid employee appointed pursuant to this article”); id.”
In re Echols, 475 S.E.2d 658 (Ga. Ct. App. 1996). · cites it 2× “In accordance with the Georgia Indigent Defense Act (OCGA § 17-12-30 et seq.) and the Guidelines of the Georgia Indigent Defense Council for the Operation of Local Indigent Defense Programs, the Judges of Superior and Juvenile Courts of the Flint Judicial Circuit elected to…”
17-12-30(c)(2): 1 case
Miller v. Georgia Pub. Def. Standards Council, No. 4:25-cv-00096 (M.D. Ga. Oct. 7, 2025). “O.C.G.A. § 17-12-30(c)(2) (providing that the “circuit public defender shall fix the compensation of each state paid employee appointed pursuant to this article”); id.”
Annotations are extracted automatically from the opinions in the Syfert caselaw corpus and ranked by authority, recency, and treatment. Dots show Syfertize treatment of the citing case itself.