As the end of the session is within a few days, almost all of the committee work has been completed. Some bills have been sent to the Governor for review, some have already been approved by the Governor. However, for bills that come out of the legislature in these last few days, the Governor will have 30 days to review, with the option to approve, amend or veto.
Here is the status of the remaining guardianship bills that we have been following:
Supported Decision Making
SB 585 (Dunnavant) contains some amendments to the guardianship laws in Virginia, including strengthening requirements that courts must consider less restrictive alternatives before imposing a guardianship and that guardians must encourage the person to participate in their own decision making. The bill also requires a guardian ad litem to review the IEP for a 17-21 year old when available. The bill charges the Department of Behavioral Health with convening a work group to study Supported Decision Making. The bill was approved by the House. The amendments have also been approved by the Senate.
Other Guardianship legislation still active:
SB 1072 (Mason) prohibits a court from appointing a lawyer or firm as guardian if that firm also represents the petitioner seeking guardianship or in any other matter. This bill is in response to media articles describing questionable practices by hospitals, particularly VCU Health Systems, seeking to discharge patients against their will to nursing homes. The Senate Judiciary Committee amended the bill to allow a court to appoint a guardian from the same firm as the petitioning attorney only “for good cause shown.” The bill was approved by the Senate and the House Courts of Justice committee. It is before the full House for its final vote there today, and then will return to the Senate for approval of the amendments.
SB 214 (Sutterlien) requires a guardian ad litem to review an IEP when the person in the guardianship proceeding is between 17 and 21. The bill has been approved by the full Senate and by the House, but has not yet been sent to the Governor.
HB 1166 (Wampler) and SB 361 (Chafin) make it a civil perjury offense for a guardian or conservator to file a knowingly false statement with the court. Both have been approved by their respective houses and by the other house, but neither have been sent to the Governor yet. Both bills began with much more serious penalties for false filings.
The mission of the disAbility Law Center of Virginia is to advance independence, choice and self-determination; protect legal, human and civil rights; and eliminate abuse, neglect and discrimination of people with disabilities through zealous and uncompromising legal advocacy and representation. With respect to guardianship issues, we promote options and tools that increase an individual’s ability to retain choices and decisions about their own lives to the fullest extent possible.