TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Kansas officials say the state may have to start looking outside its borders to find attorneys who will take the cases of indigent defendants.

The Lawrence Journal-World reports that not enough experienced, qualified people in some counties are willing to work for the state rate.

Kansas Board of Indigents’ Defense Services executive director Patricia Scalia told a legislative committee Monday that the problem is especially severe in some of the state’s smaller counties.

Kansas statutes authorize the board to pay up to $80 per hour for private attorneys who agree to take appointed cases. But in 2010, budget problems led the board to cut the actual rate it pays to $62 per hour.

Now, the board is seeking to raise the rate by $3 to $65 per hour.