Senate Bill sb2278
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Florida Senate - 2001 SB 2278
By Senator Sebesta
20-1434-01
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to public guardianship;
3 creating s. 744.1083, F.S.; providing
4 guidelines for the registration of public
5 guardians; authorizing rulemaking; amending s.
6 744.534, F.S.; revising provisions relating to
7 disposition of unclaimed funds; amending s.
8 744.703, F.S.; authorizing the establishment of
9 public guardian offices; providing for the
10 staffing of offices; creating s. 744.7082,
11 F.S.; defining the term "direct-support
12 organization"; providing for the purposes of a
13 direct-support organization; requiring an
14 audit; providing an effective date.
15
16 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
17
18 Section 1. Section 744.1083, Florida Statutes, is
19 created to read:
20 744.1083 Professional guardian registration.--
21 (1) A professional guardian must register with the
22 Statewide Public Guardianship Office established in part IX of
23 this chapter. The Statewide Public Guardianship Office may
24 contract with the Florida State Guardianship Association to
25 perform the administrative functions associated with
26 registering professional guardians.
27 (2) Registration shall be made on forms furnished by
28 the Statewide Public Guardianship Office and accompanied by
29 the applicable registration fee as determined by rule. Such
30 fee may not exceed the administrative costs of registering the
31 professional guardian. The Statewide Public Guardianship
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Florida Senate - 2001 SB 2278
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1 Office may charge reasonable fees to persons requesting copies
2 of the certificate of registration. Copies of the certificate
3 of registration must be made available to a court upon request
4 and without charge.
5 (3) Registration must include the following:
6 (a) If the professional guardian is a natural person,
7 the name, address, date of birth, and employer identification
8 number of the professional guardian.
9 (b) If the professional guardian is a partnership or
10 association, the name, address, and date of birth of every
11 member, and the employer identification number of the
12 partnership or association.
13 (c) If the professional guardian is a corporation, the
14 name, address and employer identification number of the
15 corporation; the name, address, and date of birth of each of
16 its directors and officers; the name of its resident agent;
17 and the name, address, and date of birth of each person having
18 at least a 10-percent interest in the corporation.
19 (d) The name, address, date of birth, and employer
20 identification number, if applicable, of each person employed
21 or under contract with the professional guardian who is
22 involved in providing financial or personal guardianship
23 services for wards.
24 (e) Documentation that the bonding and educational
25 requirements of s. 744.1085 have been met, and that background
26 screening has been conducted pursuant to s. 744.3135.
27 (4) The Statewide Public Guardianship Office may adopt
28 rules necessary to administer this section.
29 Section 2. Paragraph (c) of subsection (2) of section
30 744.534, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
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Florida Senate - 2001 SB 2278
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1 744.534 Disposition of unclaimed funds held by
2 guardian.--
3 (2)
4 (c) Within 5 10 years from the date of deposit with
5 the State Treasurer, on written petition to the court that
6 directed the deposit of the funds and informal notice to the
7 Department of Legal Affairs, and after proof of his or her
8 right to them, any person entitled to the funds, before or
9 after payment to the State Treasurer and deposit as provided
10 for in paragraph (a), may obtain a court order directing the
11 payment of the funds to him or her. All funds deposited with
12 the State Treasurer and not claimed within 5 10 years from the
13 date of deposit shall escheat to the state to be deposited in
14 the Department of Elderly Affairs Trust Fund to be used solely
15 for the benefit of public guardianship as determined by the
16 Statewide Public Guardianship Office established in part IX of
17 this chapter.
18 Section 3. Subsection (1) of section 744.703, Florida
19 Statutes, is amended to read:
20 744.703 Office of public guardian; appointment,
21 notification.--
22 (1) The executive director of the Statewide Public
23 Guardianship Office, after consultation with the chief judge
24 and other circuit judges within the judicial circuit and with
25 appropriate advocacy groups and individuals and organizations
26 who are knowledgeable about the needs of incapacitated
27 persons, may establish, within a county in the judicial
28 circuit or within the judicial circuit, one or more offices an
29 office of public guardian and if so established, shall create
30 a list of persons best qualified to serve as the public
31 guardian, who have been investigated and such qualifications
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Florida Senate - 2001 SB 2278
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1 shall include review pursuant to s. 744.3135. The public
2 guardian must have knowledge of the legal process and
3 knowledge of social services available to meet the needs of
4 incapacitated persons. The public guardian shall maintain a
5 staff or contract with professionally qualified individuals to
6 carry out the guardianship functions, including an attorney
7 who has experience in probate areas and another person who has
8 a master's degree in social work, or a gerontologist,
9 psychologist, registered nurse, or nurse practitioner. A
10 public guardian that is a nonprofit corporate guardian under
11 s. 744.309(5) must receive tax-exempt status from the United
12 States Internal Revenue Service. A nonprofit corporation under
13 s. 744.309(5) may be appointed public guardian only if:
14 (a) It has been granted tax-exempt status from the
15 United States Internal Revenue Service; and
16 (b) It maintains a staff of professionally qualified
17 individuals to carry out the guardianship functions, including
18 a staff attorney who has experience in probate areas and
19 another person who has a master's degree in social work, or a
20 gerontologist, psychologist, registered nurse, or nurse
21 practitioner.
22 Section 4. Section 744.7082, Florida Statutes, is
23 created to read:
24 744.7082 Direct-support organization.--
25 (1) As used in this section, the term "direct-support
26 organization" means a not-for-profit corporation incorporated
27 under chapter 617 and organized and operated to conduct
28 programs and activities; initiate developmental projects;
29 raise funds; request and receive grants, gifts, and bequests
30 of moneys; acquire, receive, hold, invest, and administer, in
31 its own name, securities, funds, objects of value, or other
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1 property, real or personal; and make expenditures to or for
2 the direct or indirect benefit of the Statewide Public
3 Guardianship Office or individual offices of public guardians.
4 (2) The purposes and objectives of the direct-support
5 organization must be consistent with the priority issues and
6 objectives of the Statewide Public Guardianship Office and
7 must be in the best interest of the state.
8 (3) The Statewide Public Guardianship Office may
9 permit, without charge, the appropriate use of property and
10 facilities of the state by the direct-support organization
11 subject to the provisions of this section. Such use must be
12 directly in keeping with the approved purpose of the
13 direct-support organization.
14 (4) The direct-support organization shall provide for
15 an annual post audit of its financial accounts to be conducted
16 by an independent certified public accountant. The annual
17 audit report shall include a management letter and shall be
18 submitted to the Auditor General and the Statewide Public
19 Guardianship Office for review. The Statewide Public
20 Guardianship Office and the Auditor General have the authority
21 to require and receive from the organization or from its
22 independent auditor any detail or supplemental data relative
23 to the operation of the organization.
24 Section 5. This act shall take effect July 1, 2001.
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27 SENATE SUMMARY
28 Provides for the registration of public guardians.
Revises provisions relating to the disposition of
29 unclaimed funds. Authorizes the Statewide Public
Guardianship Office to establish one or more public
30 guardian offices within a county or judicial circuit.
Provides for direct-support organizations.
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