Two North Country politicians say there are disappointed by the governor's decision to veto legislation that would have brought equity to indigent defense funding in St. Lawrence County.

North Country Assemblywoman Addie A.E. Jenne, D-Theresa, says, "I will join with my colleagues in the state Assembly and the state Senate to fight to ensure this legislation is a priority in the 2017-18 budget deliberations. I have been a strong supporter of this legislation from day one. The cost of indigent defense is most onerous on our state's poorest counties, including St. Lawrence and Jefferson counties."

North County Senator Patty Ritchie, R-Heuvelton, said, “I am extremely disappointed in the Governor’s veto of legislation, passed unanimously by both the Senate and Assembly that would have provided sorely needed mandate relief to taxpayers in Central and Northern New York, as well as across the state,” said.

With this measure (S.8114) -- which Ritchie was a prime sponsor of -- the state would have been required to absorb the full cost of state mandated legal services for the poor over the course of the next seven years, saving Jefferson, Oswego and St. Lawrence Counties $5.6 million a year, when fully effective.

“As a strong supporter of this measure, I am committed to redoubling my efforts, alongside my colleagues in both houses of the Legislature and with the Governor, to make enactment of this reform a top priority in the new session about to get underway in Albany,” Ritchie said.

"The governor has missed an opportunity to sign legislation that had strong bipartisan support in both houses of the state legislature. This veto once again keeps the heaviest burden on counties like those in the North Country with the least resources," Jenne, formerly known as Russell, said.

"State funding of the indigent defense program would have ensured defendants from all economic backgrounds had effective representation. This is an issue of fairness. It would also have put all counties in the state on the same footing and provided important mandate relief for taxpayers in St. Lawrence and Jefferson counties," Jenne said.

St. Lawrence County spent $2.3 million to fund its indigent defense program in 2014. The cost for indigent defense in Jefferson County is just under $2 million.

While the U.S. and New York State constitutions mandate that those unable to afford counsel be provided with legal representation, counties have struggled to properly fund and operate consistent, quality public defense programs. From providing health care services to maintaining local roads and keeping residents safe, counties simply don’t have enough money to also adequately pick up the tab for indigent legal services.

A recent settlement between the state and five counties (Onondaga, Ontario, Schuyler, Suffolk and Washington) brought this issue to light and called for the state Office of Indigent Legal Services to reform the system of legal representation for defendants who cannot afford counsel in those counties.

By having the state pay to improve indigent defense in just those counties, though, an unequal system was created in which people in some parts of the state have better access to quality representation than those in other areas.

"That’s why the Assembly passed this legislation – so that all New Yorkers, regardless of where they live, have access to quality legal representation. The governor’s veto of this bill doesn’t make sense," Jenne said.