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Senate committee advances guardianship bill with amendments that cap emergency orders and tighten protections
Summary
Senate Bill 190 (Uniform Guardianship/Conservatorship) was amended and moved out of the Judiciary Committee; sponsor amendments limit emergency guardianships to 60 days, install a clear-and-convincing evidence standard, adjust notice rules for rural Alaska, and change periodic review from three to five years.
The Alaska Senate Judiciary Committee on May 13 adopted seven sponsor amendments to Senate Bill 190, the Uniform Guardianship and Conservatorship Act, and moved the bill out of committee as amended.
Senator Kiel, the bill sponsor, said the amendments strengthen protections and adapt the model act to Alaska conditions. Key changes adopted by the committee include:
- Limiting emergency guardianships or conservatorships to 60 days, with the possibility of one renewal before a full hearing; requiring a clear-and-convincing-evidence standard to show imminent danger to health, safety, or welfare; and requiring appointment of a court visitor or guardian ad litem and counsel as appropriate.
- Removing an overly broad model-act provision that would have allowed certain third parties to override decisions of a guardian or conservator, instead requiring those who believe a guardian or conservator is acting improperly to seek court oversight.
- Preserving Alaska's stronger protections for financial protective orders rather than adopting a weaker model-act standard.
- Allowing alternative methods of notice where personal service is impracticable, an accommodation intended for rural Alaska communities, while not changing who receives notice or the timing of notice.
- Clarifying who is entitled to appointed counsel, retaining current court determinations about whether a respondent has resources to pay, and allowing the court to assign costs to petitioners who bring malicious or frivolous petitions.
- Making periodic review of guardianships and conservatorships mandatory and changing the minimum regular review interval from every three years to at least once every five years, with court visitors required to report whether the arrangement remains appropriately tailored.
Senator Kiel brought Aurora Hawk, a staff member, to explain that a guardian ad litem "acts in the best interests" of the individual and is provided through the Office of Public Advocacy; the chair clarified a guardian ad litem is not necessarily the individual's attorney.
After the sponsor's closing remarks and no objections from committee members, Senator Tobin moved to report the bill as amended with fiscal notes attached. The chair said, "Hearing and seeing no objections, Senate Bill 190 moves from committee." Committee members stayed after adjournment to sign paperwork.
Next steps: SB 190 will proceed to the full Senate (or the next legislative step) as amended and with attached fiscal notes for further consideration.
