REPORT/RECOMMENDATION TO THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS
OF SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY
AND RECORD OF ACTION
August 5, 2025
FROM
LUTHER SNOKE, Chief Executive Officer, County Administrative Office
SUBJECT
Title
Amendment to Contract with Inland Juvenile Panel Attorneys, Inc. for Appointed Legal Representation Services
End
RECOMMENDATION(S)
Recommendation
Approve Amendment No. 1 to Contract No. 24-411 with Inland Juvenile Panel Attorneys, Inc., to provide continued court appointed delinquency legal representation services, increasing the contract amount by $400,000 from $2,869,000 to a total not-to-exceed amount of $3,269,000, with no change to the contract term of July 1, 2024, through June 30, 2029.
(Presenter: Matthew Erickson, County Chief Financial Officer, 387-5423)
Body
COUNTY AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER GOALS & OBJECTIVES
Improve County Government Operations.
Operate in a Fiscally-Responsible and Business-Like Manner.
FINANCIAL IMPACT
Approval of this item may result in the use of additional Discretionary General Funding (Net County Cost). The total cost of the Contract will be funded with existing Discretionary General Fund allocated for these services. Expenditures under the Contract will not exceed $555,000 for the first fiscal year (2024-25), $650,000 per year for the next two fiscal years (2025-26 through 2026-27) and $706,000 for the last two fiscal years (2027-28 through 2028-29). Adequate appropriations for this contract were included in the 2025-26 budget (Cost Center 1250001000) and will be included in future recommended budgets.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
San Bernardino County (County) administers the Indigent Defense Program (Program) for the Superior Court of California, County of San Bernardino (Court). The Program provides Court-appointed legal representation services for indigent persons, including persons involved in the juvenile delinquency system. The recommended amendment will accommodate an unforeseen increase in monthly court appointments.
California Welfare and Institutions Code Section 634 authorizes the Court, to appoint counsel for minors and/or their parents, in Juvenile Court delinquency proceedings where the Public Defender is unable to provide representation and specifies that the costs for such appointments are an obligation of the County.
On May 21, 2024 (Item No. 25), as the result of Request for Proposals No. CAO123-CA05-5199, the Board approved Contract No. 24-411 with Inland Juvenile Panel Attorneys, Inc. (IJPA) to provide legal representation services for juvenile delinquency cases appointed by the Court for a total not-to-exceed amount of $2,869,000, for the period of July 1, 2024, through June 30, 2029.
If cases appointed by the Superior Court exceed the projection used to determine the contract amount, an amendment to increase expense authority may be presented to the Board of Supervisors (Board) for approval.
PROCUREMENT
Not Applicable.
REVIEW BY OTHERS
This item has been reviewed by County Counsel (Julie Surber, Principal Assistant County Counsel, 387-5455) on June 23, 2025; Purchasing (Ariel Gill, Supervising Buyer, 387-2070) on July 18, 2025; and CAO Finance and Administration (Celia McDonald, Administrative Analyst, 387-4286) on July 21, 2025.