By Gil Halsted, Wisconsin Public Radio 

MADISON (WPR) The State Bar Association and the Wisconsin Public Defenders office are pushing for a $30 an hour increase in the rate paid to private attorneys who volunteer to defend people who can't afford a lawyer.

Nick Chiarkis has been the state public defender for two decades. And for the past ten years, he and other lawyers have been pushing for boosting the state rate for lawyers who defend poor people. He says the current $40.00 an hour rate won’t cover the overhead at even a small law firm.  Chiarkis adds that means the constitutional mandate to provide equal justice under the law isn't being fulfilled.

But Republicans say increasing lawyer's salaries isn't a priority during a recession. Pewaukee Republican Rich Zipperer says there are other people who serve the poor who also need help. 

“Why should this be a higher priority than improving the dental care for children, providing tax relief to families who are trying to get by and pay their bills, so they don't become indigent?” asks Zipperer.  “You know, helping job creators create businesses."

The bill to raise the hourly rate from $40.00 to $70.00 is currently in the Assembly Committee on Judiciary and Ethics.

The market rate for the average law practice in the state today is about $150.00 an hour.

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Information from Wisconsin Public Radio, www.wpr.org