By JIMMY LAWTON

CANTON -- A bill that could save the St. Lawrence County millions of dollars annually by transferring costs associated with indigent defense to the state is expected to hit the floor of the Assembly and Senate soon.

St. Lawrence County Attorney Stephen Button has helped lead a movement that would force the state to fund public defense for those who can’t afford it. He said state officials were hoping to move on the legislation soon, possibly even this evening.

Button says the state has always had an obligation to fund indigent defense, but rather than paying the tab, New York has been passing most of the cost along to counties, causing severe strain on local budgets.

The bills, sponsored by Sen. John DeFrancisco R-Syracuse and Assemblywoman Patricia Fahy D-Albany, are backed by a 1963 Supreme Court ruling that requires governments to pay for attorneys for defendants who cannot afford to hire their own.

In 2014, a lawsuit alleging that New York State has been derelict in its responsibilities for funding indigent defense appropriately resulted in a settlement between the plaintiffs, the State of New York and the five named counties (Schuyler, Washington, Ontario, Onondaga and Suffolk).

Terms of the settlement outlined an increase in funding from the state for the five counties, but stagnant growth for the remaining 57 counties.

This indigent defense bill would expand that precedent to all New York counties over a seven-year period with incremental increases. The most current legislation would require the state to cover expenses gradually phased in to 100 percent by 2021.

The legislation will have a large impact on the county budget, if it becomes law. In the 2016 budget St. Lawrence County has allocated $2.34 million to fund indigent defense.

County officials and North Country representatives in the Assembly and Senate have supported the push with bills sponsored in both houses.