Advocates are pushing Bexar County’s Commissioners Court to fully fund a county office that provides legal representation for low-income people accused of crimes.
The request comes as the county grapples a $145 million deficit, falling property values and the expiration of pandemic relief funds. The county’s budget office has proposed leaving the tax rate unchanged, but also dipping into reserves and cutting spending.
The office in question is the Managed Assigned Counsel, which the county created in 2021 to improve legal representation for low-income defendants. Budget writers have proposed funding the office next year below the level its leaders say it needs…