Senate Judiciary panel agrees to combine H.98 and S.95, advances changes to standby-guardianship rules for children of parents facing immigration action

Members of the Senate Judiciary Committee on April 3 agreed, without objection, to combine two bills — H.98 and S.95 — that would create a statutory process for standby guardianship when a child’s custodial parent is subject to an adverse immigration action.

Committee participants spent the meeting moving through draft language and suggested technical and substantive edits. Key changes discussed included removing language that might suggest state or local law enforcement can enforce federal immigration law; clarifying that a standby guardianship order should be issued within 45 days but may be extended for "good cause shown"; specifying what notice a guardian must provide to a detained or otherwise unavailable custodial parent and to that parent’s attorney (the draft calls for notice to the parent’s last known email address and to the attorney at the attorney’s last known address); and permitting a court to accept filings that do not meet format or signature requirements if good cause is shown.

Why it matters: the bills are intended to create a clearer, faster mechanism for family members or friends to obtain temporary guardianship over children when a parent is detained, denied reentry, or otherwise subject to an adverse…