IMPROVING GUARDIANSHIP IN KENTUCKY
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Kentucky Legislation 2010
 
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4/2/2010 UPDATE
Unfortunately House Bill 86, the Uniform Adult Guardianship bill (UAGPPJA), sponsored by Rep. Mary Lou Marzian did not pass during the 2010 Legislative session.  The bill did pass in the House and was posted to the Senate Judiciary Committee but never was moved from the Committee to the full Senate for vote.  Tweleve other states have passed this legislation with another tweleve jurisdictions cosidering itthis year.  KGA will  continue to educate Kentukian's about UAGPPJA and potential benefit of the bill for individuals under guardianship and their guardians.

Why States Should Adopt the...
Uniform Adult Guardianship and Protective Proceedings Jurisdiction Act
 
The National Guardianship Association and other prominent organizations involved with guardianship and elder law support the enactment of this uniform law. As the summary indicates, the legislation addresses issues relating to jurisdiction, transfer and enforcement of guardianships and protective proceedings. A law of this sort works best when it is uniformly adopted in all the states.  

A draft of the law (in both Word and PDF versions) and more information is available at the Uniform Law Commission's web site: 
http://www.nccusl.org/Update/  

 

Summary:
The Uniform Adult Guardianship and Protective Proceedings Jurisdiction Act (UAGPPJA) received its final approval at the National Conference of Commissioners for Uniform State Laws’ (NCCUSL) 2007 annual meeting. The UAGPPJA deals primarily with jurisdictional, transfer and enforcement issues relating to adult guardianships and protective proceedings. To date UAGPPJA has been adopted by 14 jurisdictions. There are a number of reasons why every state should adopt the Uniform Adult Guardianship and Protective Proceedings Jurisdiction Act.
•Provides procedures to resolve interstate jurisdiction controversies. The UAGPPJA creates a process for determining which state will have jurisdiction to appoint a guardian or conservator if there is a conflict by designating that the individual’s “home state” has primary jurisdiction, followed by a state in which the individual has a “significant-connection.” Under certain prescribed circumstances, another state may be chosen if it is the more appropriate forum.
• Facilitates transfers of guardianship cases among jurisdictions. The UAGPPJA specifies a procedure for transferring a guardianship or conservatorship to another state and for accepting a transfer, helping to reduce expenses and save time while protecting persons and their property from potential abuse.
• Provides for recognition and enforcement of a guardianship or protective proceeding order. The UAGPPJA helps to facilitate enforcement of guardianship and protective orders in other states by authorizing a guardian or conservator to register these orders in other states.
• Facilitates communication and cooperation between Courts of different jurisdictions. Permits communication between courts and parties of other states, records of the communications, and jurisdiction to respond to requests for assistance from courts in other states.
• Addresses emergency situations and other special cases. A court in the state where the individual is physically present can appoint a guardian in the case of an emergency. Also, if the individual has real or tangible property located in a certain state, the court in that jurisdiction can appoint a conservator for the property located there.
• Authorized guardians to exercise the powers authorized in the order and addresses international orders. UNIFORMITY This Act will provide uniformity and reduce conflicts among the states.
The UAGPPJA will also help save time for those who are serving as guardians and conservators, allowing them to make important decisions for their loved ones as quickly as possible. Every state should act quickly to adopt the Uniform Adult Guardianship and Protective Proceeding Act.


  
 

 FEDERAL LEGISLATION

  The following information was provided by : The Elder Justice Coalition

A National Advocacy Voice for Elder Justice in America
John B. Breaux, Honorary Chair Robert B. Blancato, National Coordinator
 

The following is a news release from the Elder Justice Coalition dated 3/23/2010:

 

The Elder Justice Act and the Patient Safety and Abuse Prevention Act were signed into law by President Obama this morning. The 622 member non-partisan Elder Justice Coalition hailed President Obama's actions calling them, "A new day in the fight against elder abuse, neglect and explotation."  Bob Blancato, National Coordinator of the Coalition said about the Elder Justice Act,  "With the stroke of a pen,  President Obama ended a more than 7 year legislative journey to make Elder Justice the law of the land."

 

A number of EJC Leaders were invited to attend a ceremony where President Obama gave remarks on the Health Insurance Reform bill this afternoon.



 
1612 K Street, NW Suite 400 Washington, D.C. 20006
Phone: 202-682-4140 Fax: 202-223-2099
 

__________________________________________________________________________

 

The main provisions of the Elder Justice Act include:

  • Adult Protective Services (APS) funding.  Provides $400 million ($100 million per year) in first-time dedicated funding for adult protective services.  Provides $100 million over 4 years for state demonstration grants to test a variety of methods to improve APS.
  • Provides $32.5 million (over 4 years) in grants to support the Long Term Care Ombudsman Program and an additional $40 mllion in traiing programs for national organizations and State long-tm care ombudsman programs
  • Establishes an Elder Justice Coordinating Council to make recommendations to the Secretary of HHS on the coordinationof acities of federal, state,local and private agencies and enities relating t elder abuse, neglect and exploitation.  Recommendations contained in report are due in 2 years.

The Patient Safety and Abuse Prevention Act creates a national program of criminal background checks for rsons seeking employment in nursing homes and other long-term care facilities. Blancato said, “The Elder Justice Coalition is pleased that Congress has recognized and responded to the growing national problem of elder abuse
with the passage of these bills. With estimates as high as 5 million cases and with victims of elder financial abuse losing $2.5 billion a year, it was long overdue to act."