CONFERENCE COMMITTEE REP. NO. 30

 

Honolulu, Hawaii

                 , 2015

 

RE:    S.B. No. 223

       S.D. 1

       H.D. 1

       C.D. 1

 

 

 

Honorable Donna Mercado Kim

President of the Senate

Twenty-Eighth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2015

State of Hawaii

 

Honorable Joseph M. Souki

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-Eighth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2015

State of Hawaii

 

Madam and Sir:

 

     Your Committee on Conference on the disagreeing vote of the Senate to the amendments proposed by the House of Representatives in S.B. No. 223, S.D. 1, H.D. 1, entitled:

 

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO THE OFFICE OF THE PUBLIC GUARDIAN,"

 

having met, and after full and free discussion, has agreed to recommend and does recommend to the respective Houses the final passage of this bill in an amended form.

 

     The purpose of this measure is to:

 

     (1)  Add "emergency guardian" and substitute "temporary guardian" with "temporary substitute guardian" under the types of guardian the public guardian is authorized to serve as;

 

     (2)  Prohibit the Office of the Public Guardian from petitioning for its own appointment as guardian of the person for an incapacitated person; and

 

     (3)  Authorize the court to allow the Office of the Public Guardian to manage a ward's financial assets where no conservatorship is in effect, provided that if a conservatorship comes into effect for the ward, the public guardian's financial powers related to the ward shall be terminated.

 

     Your Committee on Conference finds that for the past ten years, the Office of the Public Guardian has declined to petition the court for its own appointment due to the potential for conflicts of interest.  This measure codifies this practice by prohibiting the Office of the Public Guardian from petitioning for its own appointment while allowing private and public entities and the Department of Human Services to petition for the Office of the Public Guardian's appointment as guardian pursuant to section 560:5‑304, Hawaii Revised Statutes.

 

     Your Committee on Conference has amended this measure by clarifying that if a conservatorship comes into effect for the ward, the public guardian shall not have or exercise any financial powers that have been granted to the conservator for the duration of the conservatorship rather than terminating the public guardian's financial powers related to the ward.

 

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the managers of your Committee on Conference that is attached to this report, your Committee on Conference is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 223, S.D. 1, H.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Final Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 223, S.D. 1, H.D. 1, C.D. 1.

 

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the managers:

 

ON THE PART OF THE HOUSE

 

ON THE PART OF THE SENATE

 

____________________________

KARL RHOADS, Chair

 

________________________________

GILBERT S.C. KEITH-AGARAN, Chair

 

 

________________________________

MAILE S.L. SHIMABUKURO, Co-Chair