Current through Vol. 42, No. 1, September 16, 2024
(a)
Definitions. The following
words and terms, when used in this Section, have the following meanings unless
the context clearly indicates otherwise.
(1)
"Incapacitated adult" means, per Section
1-111 of
Title 30 of the Oklahoma Statutes (30 O.S. § 1-111), a person 18 years of
age or older:
(A) who is impaired by reason
of:
(i) mental illness as defined, per 43A
O.S. § 1-103;
(ii)
intellectual or developmental disability as defined, per 10 O.S. §
1430.2;
(iii) physical illness or
disability;
(iv) drug or alcohol
dependency as defined, per 43A O.S. § 3-403; or
(v) another similar cause, and
(B) whose ability to receive and
evaluate information effectively or to make and to communicate responsible
decisions is impaired to such an extent the person:
(i) lacks the capacity to meet essential
requirements for his or her physical health or safety, or
(ii) is unable to manage his or her financial
resources.
(2)
"Partially incapacitated person" means, per 30 O.S. § 1-111,
a person:
(A) whose impairment is such that
without a limited guardian's assistance the person is unable to:
(i) meet the essential requirements for his
or her physical health or safety; or
(ii) manage or engage in all of the
activities necessary to effectively manage his or her financial resources; or
(B) who is considered to
be legally competent in all areas not specified by a court in its dispositional
or subsequent orders. The person retains all legal rights and abilities other
than those expressly limited or curtailed in the orders.
(3)
"Natural guardian" Parents
are natural guardians of their minor child(ren) regardless of whether they live
in the same household, unless a legal guardianship or custody transfer
supersedes natural guardianship. Persons other than the parents may be
considered natural guardians when they have, over a continuing period, had
custody of the child(ren) and have held themselves responsible for care,
support, and maintenance.
(4)
"Guardian" means, per 30 O.S. § 1-111, a guardian may be
general, limited, or special.
(A) A general
guardian is a court appointed person who serves as the incapacitated person's
guardian to ensure that the essential requirements for the person's health and
safety are met, to manage the person's estate, or both.
(B) A limited guardian is a court appointed
person who serves as the partially incapacitated person's guardian and who is
court authorized to exercise only certain guardianship powers over the person,
his or her or estate or financial resources, or both.
(C) A special guardian is a court appointed
person who exercises certain specified powers to alleviate a situation
threatening serious impairment to the incapacitated or partially incapacitated
person's health or safety, or a situation when the person's financial resources
will be seriously damaged or dissipated unless immediate action is
taken.
(5)
"Conservator" means a conservator has the same powers and duties
as a guardian or limited guardian of an incapacitated or partially
incapacitated person's property, per 30 O.S. § 3-215. This includes the
investment, management, sale or mortgage of the person's property and his or
her debt payment. The conservator is not responsible for ensuring that the
essential requirements for the incapacitated or partially incapacitated
person's health and safety are met.
(6)
"Manage financial resources"
means to manage financial resources or the estate means those actions necessary
to obtain, administer, and dispose of real property, business property,
benefits and income, and to otherwise manage personal financial or business
affairs, per 30 O.S. § 1-111.
(7)
"Meet the essential requirements
for physical health or safety" means to meet the essential requirements
for physical health or safety means those actions necessary to provide the
health care, food, shelter, clothing, personal hygiene and other care without
which serious physical injury is more likely than not to occur, per 30 O.S.
§ 1-111.
(b)
When a guardian or conservator may be needed. An applicant or
recipient who meets the definition of an incapacitated or partially
incapacitated adult, per (a) of this Section, may need the protection afforded
by a guardian or conservator. When assistance is needed to select a guardian or
conservator, a referral may be made to Adult Protective Services.
(1) For State Supplemental Payment (SSP)
recipients who are:
(A) blind or 65 years of
age and older, legal guardianship or conservatorship is the only method the SSP
payment may be made to a person other than the recipient, per 56 O.S. §
172;
(B) under 65 years of age,
OKDHS may make the SSP payment to the incapacitated or partially incapacitated
person's legal guardian or conservator when needed for his or her protection
adult; or
(C) under 16 years of
age, SSP payment is made to a natural guardian, when available, per Oklahoma
Administrative Code
340:15-1-6(c)(3)
unless he or she is not competent to transact his or her own business or is
otherwise unsuitable or legally disqualified to serve as the natural guardian,
per 30 O.S. § 2-106. When the minor reaches 14 years of age, the minor may
nominate his or her own guardian, when court approved, per 30 O.S. §
2-103.
(2) For Temporary
Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) benefits, when the child does not live
with his or her parent(s), the relative payee who lives with the dependent
child need not be appointed as guardian to receive benefits on the child's
behalf.. When the eligible relative the child resides with has a guardian or
conservator, the payment is made to the eligible relative's
guardian.
(c)
Guardian or conservator responsibilities. The guardian or
conservator is responsible for managing the applicant or recipient's financial
matters. This includes signing the SSP or TANF application or renewal and any
other necessary forms and providing required verification to determine the
person's SSP or TANF eligibility, per 56 O.S. § 166. When a guardian or
conservator is appointed after an application is made, but before the
application is approved or denied, the guardian or conservator signs and
completes a new application using the same application date as the original
application.
(d)
Court
costs. The court clerk and the associate or district judge may not
charge court costs in cases involving the guardianship of persons who are
applicants for or who are receiving Social Security benefits or assistance or
veterans disability compensation of pension, per 56 O.S. §192.
Amended at 10 Ok Reg
4465, eff 8-5-93 (emergency); Amended at 11 Ok Reg 1687, eff 5-12-94; Amended
at 18 Ok Reg 2096, eff 7-1-01
