STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 9295 2025-2026 Regular Sessions IN ASSEMBLY December 10, 2025 ___________ Introduced by M. of A. LAVINE -- read once and referred to the Committee on Aging AN ACT to amend the elder law and the state finance law, in relation to establishing the statewide initiative of not-for-profit guardians The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Short title. This act shall be known and may be cited as 2 the "New York state good guardianship act". 3 § 2. Legislative intent and findings. The Legislature finds that arti- 4 cle 81 of the New York state mental hygiene law mandates assignment of a 5 guardian when an individual is deemed to be incapacitated and unable to 6 manage their own affairs. At present, this mandate is not adequately 7 funded by New York state. This has led to a dearth of reputable guardi- 8 anship resources, leaving judges constrained when attempting to fulfill 9 their legal mandate, risking harm for individuals in dire need of care, 10 and increasing the cost burden on our social safety net. 11 Guardianship involves essential management of financial resources, 12 coordination of health care, and ensuring basic daily needs such as 13 cooking, cleaning and shopping are met. When an individual has signif- 14 icant financial resources, identifying a paid guardian is a viable 15 option. However, the reality is that most people assigned a guardian 16 cannot afford to pay for this high-level of care. This is where communi- 17 ty-based not-for-profit organizations step in to serve. Reputable not- 18 for-profits organizations take a multidisciplinary approach to care and 19 tailor a plan to an individual's needs, at no charge or for minimal 20 fees. 21 Due to the high level of need and lack of an adequate funding stream, 22 not-for-profit groups are unable to take on more cases without sacrific- 23 ing quality of care. Some districts lack a not-for-profit guardianship 24 services provider altogether. These factors put a strain on municipal 25 and county budgets when local departments of social services must step EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD13789-01-5

A. 9295 2 1 in as the guardian of last resort, as they too do not have adequate 2 resources to keep pace with demand. Moreover, the lack of appropriate 3 assignments of guardians has led to a significant cost burden on our 4 social safety net, particularly avoidable hospitalizations and care 5 through Medicaid and shelter stays. This gap in quality guardians has 6 also allowed a third rail of actors to enter the market: unscrupulous 7 and unchecked for-profit entities who collect fees while neglecting 8 those in their care. 9 To address this issue, the Legislature proposes to establish a state- 10 wide initiative of not-for-profit guardians program that leverages the 11 expertise and capacity of existing, reputable not-for-profit organiza- 12 tions to provide comprehensive, multidisciplinary guardianship services. 13 This initiative will help grow well-established guardianship programs, 14 create new programs, and promote alternatives to guardianships where 15 appropriate to ensure that the entire state has access to these 16 services. Understanding the magnitude of serving as a guardian, this 17 legislation will ensure proper oversight, accountability, and service 18 delivery while addressing the needs of individuals who cannot care for 19 themselves due to age, disability, or other conditions. Taking these 20 steps will also help eliminate bad actors from the guardianship market 21 while providing significant Medicaid and social welfare savings to the 22 state. Lastly, the enactment of this legislation is consistent with the 23 recommendations of the adopted New York State Master Plan on Aging, 24 which supports a fifteen-million-dollar investment in guardianship 25 services. 26 § 3. The elder law is amended by adding a new section 226 to read as 27 follows: 28 § 226. Statewide initiative of not-for-profit guardians. 1. There 29 shall hereby be established within the office a program to be referred 30 to as the "statewide initiative of not-for-profit guardians". Such 31 initiative shall exist to: 32 (a) serve as guardian for any individual over the age of eighteen 33 eligible under article eighty-one of the mental hygiene law for whom an 34 appointing judge is unable to find a guardian, whether a suitable family 35 member or friend or an attorney from part thirty-six of the rules of the 36 chief judge, to serve; 37 (b) operate a free public helpline to provide guidance, resources, and 38 referrals for any individual or entity navigating guardianship pursuant 39 to article eighty-one of the mental hygiene law and/or seeking alterna- 40 tive services; 41 (c) build statewide capacity and training opportunities to establish 42 new programs within existing not-for-profit agencies; and 43 (d) collect, analyze, and report on data related to guardianship cases 44 referred to them. 45 2. (a) To participate in the initiative established pursuant to this 46 section and be eligible for funding, an entity shall: 47 (i) be organized as a tax-exempt entity pursuant to section 501(c)(3) 48 of the Internal Revenue Code or recognized as a not-for-profit entity in 49 good standing with the charities bureau of the office of the attorney 50 general; and 51 (ii) have experience in providing guardianship services or demonstrate 52 sufficient capacity to provide guardianship services as determined by 53 the office. 54 (b) Entities participating in the initiative shall fulfill guardian- 55 ship duties as provided for in sections 81.20, 81.21, and 81.22 of the 56 mental hygiene law.

A. 9295 3 1 3. (a) The director shall submit a request for proposals from not-for- 2 profit entities as described herein for the purpose of administering 3 statewide initiative of not-for-profit guardians. The entity chosen to 4 administer such initiative shall enter into a contract with the state 5 for a term of five years, which may be renewed subject to the approval 6 of the director. 7 (b) The administrative entity chosen by the director shall review 8 plans submitted for approval and funding of guardianship services and 9 award grants for such services. In awarding grants, the entity shall use 10 best efforts to provide statewide distribution of funding. 11 (c) Funding for the statewide initiative of not-for-profit guardians 12 shall be from the statewide initiative of not-for-profit guardians fund 13 established pursuant to section ninety-nine-tt of the state finance law. 14 4. (a) Participating not-for-profit organizations shall collect and 15 report to the administrative entity chosen by the director anonymized 16 data on guardianship cases, including demographic information, types of 17 services provided, duration of guardianship, and client outcomes. 18 (b) The administrative entity chosen by the director shall compile the 19 data outlined in paragraph (a) of this subdivision and produce an annual 20 report summarizing the performance and effectiveness of the statewide 21 initiative of not-for-profit guardians. Such report shall be submitted 22 annually on or before January first, two thousand twenty-seven, and each 23 year thereafter, to the governor, speaker of the assembly, and temporary 24 president of the senate. 25 § 4. The state finance law is amended by adding a new section 99-tt to 26 read as follows: 27 § 99-tt. Statewide initiative of not-for-profit guardians fund. 1. 28 There is hereby established in the joint custody of the comptroller, the 29 commissioner of taxation and finance, and the commissioner of health, a 30 fund, to be known as the "statewide initiative of not-for-profit guardi- 31 ans fund". 32 2. Such fund shall consist of all moneys appropriated thereto from any 33 other fund or source pursuant to law. Nothing contained in this section 34 shall prevent the state from receiving grants, gifts or bequests for the 35 purposes of the fund as defined in this section and depositing them into 36 the fund according to law. 37 3. Moneys of the fund shall be made available to the administrative 38 entity chosen by the director of the office for the aging pursuant to 39 section two hundred twenty-six of the elder law to fund the statewide 40 initiative of not-for-profit guardians established by such section. 41 § 5. Severability. If any clause, sentence, paragraph, section or part 42 of this act shall be adjudged by any court of competent jurisdiction to 43 be invalid and after exhaustion of all further judicial review, the 44 judgment shall not affect, impair or invalidate the remainder thereof, 45 but shall be confined in its operation to the clause, sentence, para- 46 graph, section or part of this act directly involved in the controversy 47 in which the judgment shall have been rendered. 48 § 6. This act shall take effect immediately.

Enacts the New York state good guardianship act

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