BILL ANALYSIS
SB 1116
Page 1
Date of Hearing: August 9, 2006
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Judy Chu, Chair
SB 1116 (Scott) - As Amended: August 7, 2006
Policy Committee: JudiciaryVote:6-0
Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program:
Yes Reimbursable: No
SUMMARY
This bill establishes a presumption regarding the residence of a
ward or conservatee and increases requirements regarding
changing the residence of a ward or conservatee and selling a
conservatee's residence. Specifically, this bill:
1)Requires a guardian or conservator to file a notice with the
court, and serve notice on specified individuals, within 30
days of a change of the ward's or conservatee's residence.
The conservator is to include in the notice a declaration that
the change in residence is the least restrictive alternative
available and that the change is in the best interests of the
conservatee.
2)Requires the Judicial Council to develop, by January 1, 2008,
a form for reporting a change of address for a ward or
conservatee.
3)Requires a guardian or conservator to mail a notice of intent,
to specified individuals, 15 days prior to the date proposed
for removing a ward or conservatee from their personal
residence, and to file proof of service of the notice with the
court.
4)Creates a presumption that the personal residence of the
conservatee at the time of commencement of the proceeding is
the least restrictive appropriate setting for the conservatee,
absent the conservator's showing by a preponderance of
evidence to the contrary.
5)Requires a conservator, upon appointment, to determine the
appropriate level of care for the conservatee, including
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measures necessary to keep the conservatee in his or her
personal residence, and any limitations on the conservatee's
potential return to the personal residence, and to submit the
determination to the court.
6)Establishes new requirements and procedures for a conservator
when selling a conservatee's principal residence.
7)Is contingent on enactment of AB 1363, SB 1550, and SB 1716.
FISCAL EFFECT
Minor absorbable costs to the Judicial Council to develop the
form in (2) above and absorbable costs to the courts.
COMMENTS
1)Background . An in-depth investigatory series published in
November 2005 by the Los Angeles Times, "Guardians for
Profit," exposed the many failings of California's
conservatorship system for elderly and dependent adults. The
Times' articles included stories of private conservators who
misuse the system and get themselves appointed inappropriately
and then either steal or mismanage the money their
conservatees spent a lifetime earning; public guardians who do
not have the resources to help truly needy individuals;
probate courts which do not have sufficient resources to
provide adequate oversight to catch the abuses; and a system
that provides no place for those in need to turn to for help.
A Times editorial, which ran at the end of the series, called
on both the courts and elected officials to "turn this abusive
system into the honest guardianship it was meant to be."
2)Purpose . According to the author, "At a recent Senate hearing,
one woman testified that a conservator sold her father's
property directly to a developer, without it being listed in
the multiple listing service used by realtors, and that it was
sold for considerably less than its value. Another woman
testified that her father was conserved for the sole purpose
of selling his home in order to pay outstanding legal fees in
an unrelated case. Recently, one of my constituents said that
her home was sold, without her knowledge and for substantially
less that its value. . . . [This bill] seeks to remedy some
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of the problems in the conservatorship system, particularly
those related to the sale of the conservatee's personal
residence."
3)Related Legislation . SB 1116 is part of a package of four
bills intended to address deficiencies with the
conservatorship system.
a) SB 1550 (Figueroa), pending in this committee,
establishes a board within the Department of Consumer
Affairs to license and regulate fiduciaries.
b) SB 1716 (Bowen), also on today's committee agenda,
expands court review of conservatorships and allows for ex
parte communications in cases involving fiduciaries and
conservatees.
c) AB 1363 (Jones), pending in the Senate Appropriations
Committee, includes several provisions to expand and
improve the court's oversight of conservatorships.
Analysis Prepared by : Chuck Nicol / APPR. / (916) 319-2081