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Iowa chief justice calls for increases in judicial and indigent defense pay, magistrate system modernization
Susan Christensen delivers her sixth Condition of the Judiciary address to Iowa Legislature
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DES MOINES — Modernizing Iowa’s magistrate system and increasing judicial and indigent defense pay were issues highlighted by Iowa Supreme Court Chief Justice Susan Christensen during the annual Condition of the Judiciary address.
In her sixth address to the Iowa Legislature on Wednesday, Christensen asked state lawmakers to tackle issues similar to those she brought to them last year, continuing her push to raise judicial salaries as Iowa faces a judicial recruitment cliff and adjust state magistrate judge requirements to save taxpayer dollars.
Christensen was appointed to the Iowa Supreme Court in 2018 by Gov. Kim Reynolds and became chief justice in 2020.
This year, Christensen focused her speech on the theme of leadership, recognizing the work of other justices in the state as well as her conversations with members of Iowa’s executive and judicial branches.
Judicial pay increases
As Iowa continues to struggle with recruiting judges, Christensen said the consequences for the judicial system will be dire if salary increases for these positions are not established.
Last year, she expressed similar concerns and proposed that Iowa adopt the Kansas Plan, which would set the salary of a state district court judge at 75 percent of a federal district court judge’s salary, compared to the current rate of 68 percent.
This year, she instead proposed an increase of 4.3 percent, or $2.95 million, for the judicial branch in the fiscal 2027 budget, to cover cost-of-living growth and make judicial wages competitive compared to higher-paying jobs in other government positions and the private sector.
Iowa ranked 41st nationally in judicial compensation in 2025 and trails surrounding states.
“Today, I must also ask, ‘Can we even hold on to the judges we have?’ When experienced judges leave the bench for other public-sector jobs that pay better, we no longer have a recruitment problem — it’s a retention problem,” Christensen said. “I stand here today and say out loud: The sky is falling on judicial pay for Iowa’s judges.”
Modernizing Iowa’s magistrate system
Iowa has more magistrate judges than it needs, Christensen said, proposing a system modernization that would save Iowa taxpayers $2.5 million.
Christensen said an Iowa law that requires 206 magistrate judges statewide is “unsustainable” and does not align with current caseloads in counties and judicial districts.
Under a legislative proposal introduced by the judicial branch, the requirement to have at least one magistrate judge in every county would be struck down. Magistrates would instead be assigned to judicial districts based on caseload in different areas of the state.
“This plan brings alignment between workload and compensation. We would be paying magistrates on the same principle as judges: equal responsibility, equal expectations,” Christensen said. “This is not an effort to minimize rural counties. I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: Those are fighting words to me, not to mention absolutely untrue.”
In Iowa, magistrate judges serve primarily in their county of residence. They have jurisdiction over simple misdemeanors and have the authority to issue search warrants and conduct preliminary hearings. Magistrates don’t have to be attorneys, but most are.
Magistrate pay in the state is based on the expectation that they will spend approximately 31 percent of their professional time performing magistrate responsibilities. Christensen said the $65,000 spent on salary and benefits for magistrate judges, who on average devote 13 hours a week to the position, is concerning.
Republican Rep. Brian Lohse, of Bondurant, who chairs the House Justice Systems Budget Subcommittee, said Christensen’s proposal aligns with efforts by Reynolds and other state officials to find ways to make state government more efficient.
“Back in the day, having a magistrate in every county, and this predates me by a long time, made a lot more sense,” Lohse told reporters after the address. “But in today's technological world and the way other things are working, it's just the way we need to move. And I'm hopeful that this year we can get that done.”
Increasing pay for indigent defense
As she has for her last few addresses to the Iowa Legislature, Christensen urged lawmakers to increase pay for indigent defense as Iowa continues to grapple with a public defender shortage.
Christensen said she has heard from public defenders in criminal and juvenile practice — some in tears — that they can’t afford to continue in the field.
“I understand that criminal defendants are not always the most sympathetic bunch. It might be easier if contract attorneys represented only our most vulnerable children and families,” Christensen said. “But keep this in mind: If we fail to meet our constitutional obligation to provide counsel to all who qualify — including criminal defendants — we cannot keep our communities safe.”
Christensen highlighted a case in Davenport where a charge of operating a vehicle while intoxicated was dismissed roughly two-and-a-half months after being filed, due to the lack of court-appointed attorneys available in Scott County to represent the defendant.
The Iowa Judicial Branch did not request any funding to increase court-appointed attorney pay, but Christensen asked lawmakers to address the issue.
In 2024, Iowa lawmakers passed pay increases for private attorneys who took on cases for indigent defendants for a third straight year by $3 and transferred $2 million from the state’s indigent defense fund to hire 12 new attorneys in parts of the state lacking representation for indigent defendants, including in Scott County.
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