Opinion No.

The Honorable Stephen W. Luelf State Senator 521 W. Wade, P.O. Drawer 447 Mountain Home, AR 72653

Dear Senator Luelf:

This is in response to your request for an opinion on the following question:

If a county adopts an ordinance pursuant to A.C.A. 14-20-102 and the funds generated thereby are insufficient to cover the costs of defending indigents, is the county still authorized to appropriate money from the general fund, pursuant to A.C.A. 16-92-108 or otherwise, to pay the costs of court appointed attorneys for indigents?

Although the existing statutes and case law do not offer clear guidance in…