Governor Kelly Signs Bipartisan Bill Establishing the Supported Decision-making Agreements Act

Post Date:04/07/2026

TOPEKA – Governor Laura Kelly today announced she has signed Senate Bill 84 (SB 84), establishing the Supported Decision-making Agreements Act, which will allow adults to enter into supported decision-making agreements to receive assistance with an adult’s affairs from one or more other adults. This bill provides individuals who need assistance with decision-making with the option to receive support from one or more adults while remaining as independent as possible.

“Senate Bill 84 is thoughtful legislation that empowers Kansans to receive support as they make key decisions about their lives, while preserving their independence,” Governor Laura Kelly said. “These voluntary agreements will equip those with intellectual and developmental disabilities, mental health needs, or other impairments, with assistance from trusted adults as they navigate decisions about health care, finances, housing, and more.”

SB 84 establishes the legal framework for a supportive adult to provide decision-making assistance to another adult (the principal), who could be an adult with developmental disabilities, brain injuries, mental health needs, or more, who wants support while maintaining control over decisions in their life. A supporter could provide the principal with aid in making and communicating decisions, and understanding information, options, responsibilities, and consequences related to those decisions. The supporter could also access and obtain information relevant to decisions necessary for managing the principal’s affairs; ascertain the wishes and decisions of the principal and help communicate those decisions to others; advocate to ensure those wishes and decisions are implemented; and accompany the principal, as well as participate in discussions with others, when the principal is making decisions.

“I’m pleased to support this commonsense legislation that establishes a legal framework to help Kansans receive voluntary support from other adults as they navigate their lives, while maintaining their control and independence,” said Representative Mari-Lynn Poskin, District 20. “Everyone has the right to agency in their own life, and this bill will enable more Kansans to make choices that are best for them with the comfort of knowing they have reliable assistance from others. Congratulations to disability advocates who have been working on this for years.”

The supportive adult would not be allowed to exert undue influence on the principal, make decisions for or on behalf of the principal, sign for the principal, obtain information not reasonably related to the matters the supporter is authorized to assist the principal with under the agreement without consent, and use information acquired for a purpose other than authorized under the agreement. Violations would be added to the crime of mistreatment of a dependent adult or an elder person, for which felony or misdemeanor penalties would apply, depending on the amount of financial resources involved.

“Through Senate Bill 84, we’re offering Kansans more avenues to be active participants not only in their own lives, but also in their communities across the state,” said Senator Rick Billinger, District 40. “This is strong, bipartisan legislation that will truly help more Kansans make life-changing decisions that will be in their best interests.”

In addition to Senate Bill 84, Governor Kelly also signed the following bipartisan bills:

House Substitute for Senate Bill 260: Establishing the born to invest act and requiring the office of vital statistics to provide data to the office of the state treasurer for distribution of informational materials regarding certain government-administered savings accounts

Senate Bill 398: Aligning a part of the Kansas Rules of Evidence dealing with Expert witnesses with the Federal Rules of Evidence by requiring a proponent to demonstrate that it is more likely than not that certain specialized knowledge will help the trier of fact to understand evidence before certain qualified witnesses may testify.

Senate Bill 418: Enacting the by-right housing development act to provide a streamlined permit approval process for by-right housing developments and allowing third-party review of new residential construction development documents and inspection of improvements, along with making other updates to zoning and regulations.

Senate Bill 459: Removing the prisoner review board from the supervision of the secretary of corrections, changing the appointing authority, creating qualifications for the members of the board, and requiring parole hearings to be postponed if proper notice of the public comment session is not made to the victim.

Senate Substitute for House Bill 2402: Requiring eligible boards of education to consider participation in the community eligibility provision, providing a financial hardship exception to such participation and requiring the state department of education to assist school districts seeking such participation.

House Bill 2739: Relating to housing code requirements, removing the definition of apartment houses from chapter 31 of the Kansas Statutes Annotated, providing requirements for adoption of the national fire protection association standards, 2024 edition, and providing that certain state accessibility standards are not applicable to moderate income housing program and Kansas investor tax credit housing act projects.

House Bill 2528: Requiring all state board of nursing actions related to certain nonpractice violations be void, allowing for late license renewal for professional, practical and advanced practice registered nurses, setting fees for late license renewal, limiting unprofessional conduct to acts related to the practice of nursing, prohibiting the board from taking retaliatory action against a licensee based on certain lawful actions and creating a civil cause of action for violation thereof, requiring termination of current board members on January 1, 2027 and requiring the governor to appoint interim board members subject to senate confirmation and requiring the board to issue refunds for overpayment or duplicate payment.

House Bill 2652: Requiring the clerk of the appellate courts to publish monthly a list of cases of the supreme court and court of appeals in which a decision has not been entered and filed within six months of submission and a list of cases in which a petition for review has not been granted or denied within six months of submission. 

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Governor Kelly Signs Bipartisan Bill Establishing the Supported Decision-making Agreements Act 

Governor Walker signs Alzheimer's related bills into law

MADISON, Wis. - On April 3, Governor Scott Walker signed two bills related to Alzheimer’s care into law.

The first bill, AB-629, reviews and adjusts Guardianship Laws to allow Wisconsin courts to effectively communicate with other courts when a jurisdictional issue arises. Sample issues can arise in a situation involving individuals who live seasonally in another state, transfer of guardianship and long-distance caregiving. This bill would simplify the process for resolving a jurisdictional adult guardianship issue, thus allowing cases to be settled more quickly, and provide more predictable outcomes.

Bill AB-632 allows the Department of Health services to distribute up to $500,000 in grants to community programs in efforts to raise awareness and utilization of such services and support programs, specifically in rural areas.

“A lot of it is education and just making sure that the local agencies are empowered to educate people on where people can turn to,” said Abbe Klein with the Alzheimer's Association.

Both bills were passed through their respective committees and full chambers with unanimous “yes” votes, but the organization said they’re not stopping yet.

“There are always bills that are in the works and that we're always kind of advocating for and educating people on. So no, this is definitely not the end, it's a great step forward but there are always going to be more bills in the pipeline we're going to want support on,” said Klein.

For more information about the Alzheimer’s Association, visit alz.org or call 800.272.3900.

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Governor Walker signs Alzheimer's related bills into law

Governor signs guardianship overhaul law

Gov. Susana Martinez

SANTA FE – Gov. Susana Martinez on Wednesday signed 23 bills into law, including legislation to overhaul a New Mexico guardianship system that had come under scrutiny in recent month for secrecy and financial irregularities.

The 60-page bill is designed to prevent abuse and exploitation of thousands of incapacitated people who are under court-ordered guardianship or conservatorship programs around the state.

The new changes are less sweeping than originally proposed, but involve increased transparency and greater involvement of family members. With the governor’s signature, they will take effect in July.

Meanwhile, the two-term Republican governor also struck down a bill that would have granted future New Mexico governors – not her – and other elected statewide officials their first pay raises since 2002.

Martinez had vowed to veto the salary increase legislation, which would have raised the governor’s annual salary from $110,000 to $121,000, starting in January 2019.

“Through a relentless commitment to responsible stewardship of taxpayer dollars – like balancing budgets and cutting taxes – New Mexico has a budget surplus of hundreds of millions of dollars,” Martinez said in a statement. “I will not waste a dime of it on doling out taxpayer dollars on pay raises for politicians.”

The legislation, Senate Bill 176, passed both legislative chambers by decisive margins during the recently completed 30-day session, with supporters saying some state elected officials make less money than their top appointees.

In addition to governor, the bill would have raised the annual salaries of the secretary of state, attorney general, state auditor, state treasurer, commissioner of public lands and the five members of the Public Regulation Commission.

Rep. Larry Larrañaga, R-Albuquerque, one of the bill’s co-sponsors, said the idea was floated because state workers and teachers are scheduled to receive pay raises under a $6.3 billion budget plan still on the governor’s desk.

Since state elected officials’ salary levels are set by state law, adjusting them requires both an appropriation in the budget bill and approval of a change in statute.

“We thought it would be a reasonable thing to provide an increase in compensation to state officials, too,” Larrañaga said.

Among the other bills signed by Martinez on Wednesday were five measures aimed at helping military veterans and their families. The governor said the bills reflected her priority of “protecting those who put their lives on the line for our freedom.”

One of those bills, House Bill 67, will make it a crime to make false claims about military service for personal gain. Such an offense will now be a misdemeanor, starting in July.

Martinez has until March 7 to act on more than 80 bills additional bills passed during this year’s legislative session. Bills not signed by that deadline are automatically vetoed.

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Governor signs guardianship overhaul law

No Neglect

New Oregon legislation aims to protect elderly from abuse

By Kelly Kenoyer

Gov. Kate Brown Signs a bill increasing Civil penalties for Elder Abuse

A new law in Oregon takes great steps for protecting the elderly from abuse and mismanagement in the state’s 530-some licensed care facilities.

House Bill 3359, signed by Gov. Kate Brown in August, increases civil penalties for elder abuse by 400 to 500 percent. It also institutes a fine, capped at $1,000, for facilities that fail to report their own abuses.

Eugene Weekly reported in May that facilities had little incentive to fix systemic problems that led to neglect and abuse because the existing fines were lower than the costs of fixing the problems (“System of Neglect,” May 4).
Under the previous statutes, civil penalties for all but the most egregious abuse and neglect cases in Oregon were capped at $500.

Lee Bliven is a local ombudsman — a volunteer who advocates for patients in long-term care facilities — and an advocate for the elderly who fought the neglect of his wife by a local facility earlier this year. “Most care facilities are receiving a minimum of $5,000 up to, at the high end, about $12,000” a month per resident, Bliven says, so a $500 fine for neglect has little effect.

 Increasing civil penalties for neglect in long-term care facilities will push them to adhere to guidelines, according to Bliven and other stakeholders.

The new statutes, which go into effect on Jan. 1, clarify a set of guidelines for determining the severity of a violation, splitting violations into four levels. The highest-level violation has a civil penalty of no less than $1,500 per violation, not to exceed $2,500 per violation. The legislation also establishes guidelines for assessing severity that include not only the kind of harm or potential for harm, but increase the severity if the violation is part of a pattern within the facility.

The law also includes a new civil penalty of up to $1,000 for failure to report abuse to the Department of Human Services (DHS). Bliven says he hopes to see this penalty increased and used frequently. “It needs to be a high enough penalty that if they’re caught, they regret it,” he says. “By not self-reporting, it’s going to lead to more abuse.”

Fred Steele, the state’s long-term care ombudsman, says the legislation “looks at improving quality of life and quality of care for those residents.” He calls this bill “the most comprehensive piece of legislation related to these communities ever in Oregon.”

Steele highlights sections in the bill that require more dementia-related training for those in memory care units, higher licensing fees to increase funding for DHS surveyors, and language that shows “the intent to create a licensing structure for administrators.”

Three legislators led the discussion around this bill, Steele says: Speaker Tina Kotek, Rep. Caddy McKeown and Rep. Alissa Keny-Guyer.

Steele adds that the legislators involved in the process were aware of the EW article about the civil penalties and it helped them understand the needed changes.

Steele says the increase in civil penalties is a key aspect of this legislation because “it’s a lot cheaper to pay a $500 fine rather than pay for full staffing for that facility.” Now, he says, “You can and will be fined to a degree that would be equivalent to those staffing wages that should have been going to an additional staffing person.”

Sen. Sara Gelser of Corvallis, who also worked on the bill, was pleased with the level of collaboration. She says the Oregon Healthcare Association, which represents care facilities, came to the table and was willing to discuss the issues. “You really want to protect the client and you want the state to be a very strong consumer protection agency,” she says.

Steele asks that those interested in helping the vulnerable population in retirement facilities consider becoming certified volunteer ombudsmen. “We ask for them to at least be assigned to one facility, to go at least weekly,” he says.

Ombudsmen help with reporting abuse and can be an ally for residents in facilities who may not know who else to turn to. “By our estimation we need about nine more volunteers to fully serve the communities in Lane County,” he says, adding that there is a training planned in Eugene for January.

Learn more about volunteering at oregon.gov/LTCO

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No Neglect

Governor Bill Haslam signs bills to protect elderly citizens from exploitation, abuse

(WJHL) – Gov. Bill Haslam signed two bills into law on Wednesday, both meant to better protect the elderly in Tennessee.

One of the laws aims to do more to stop people from financially exploiting senior citizens.

Co-sponsor Sen. Rusty Crowe said banks were previously afraid to report the crime due to liability concerns, so lawmakers made a change to give those banks better protection and direction.

In addition to financial exploitation, the law also increases penalties for people who abuse or exploit the elderly or vulnerable adults.

State senators credit our 2013 Community Watchdog investigation as the reason for their continued focus on elder abuse.

That investigation prompted harsher penalties and the creation of a state elderly and vulnerable abuse task force.

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Governor Bill Haslam signs bills to protect elderly citizens from exploitation, abuse

Scott signs bill aimed at unscrupulous guardians

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (By The News Service of Florida) -- Gov. Rick Scott on Thursday signed a bill aimed at better protecting elderly Floridians from unscrupulous guardians.

The measure (SB 232), filed by Sen. Nancy Detert, R-Venice, calls for the Department of Elder Affairs to certify and oversee professional guardians. Under the bill, the Statewide Public Guardianship Office at the Florida Department of Elder Affairs will expand to become the Office of Public and Professional Guardians. It will establish standards for public and private guardians, receive and investigate complaints and penalize guardians who breach the standards.

Detert has often cited a December 2014 series by the Sarasota Herald-Tribune, which found that while Florida has an efficient system of identifying and caring for fragile elders, "tapping their assets is a growth business."

In 2003, there were 23 registered professional guardians on Florida. By 2014, the number had grown to more than 440.

Detert said private guardians can sell off wards' assets to pay themselves -- even to fight the wards' grown children in court. Private professional guardians often serve wealthy people, while public guardians serve incapacitated people who don't have anybody willing and able to serve as guardians.

The state has had a more heavily regulated system of oversight for public guardians.

Detert and House sponsor Larry Ahern, R-Seminole, said the bill would propel Florida into a leadership role nationwide in protecting seniors from guardian abuse.

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Scott signs bill aimed at unscrupulous guardians