A. Subject to the availability of funds, the Department of Human Services shall establish a public guardianship pilot program.

B. The Department of Human Services shall establish and operate the pilot program in consultation with an evaluating board established pursuant to this section and in accordance with the provisions of the Oklahoma Public Guardianship Act, except as to custody orders entered in criminal competency proceedings as set forth in Section 7 of this act.

C. The evaluating board shall determine the effectiveness of the pilot program. The evaluating board shall submit a preliminary report to the Legislature no later than six (6) months after the pilot program is established. Such report shall cover:

1. The feasibility of statewide expansion of the program;

2. Staffing, particularly use of volunteers, training and liability issues;

3. Funding sources;

4. Eligibility standards;

5. Fee schedule;

6. Special-needs wards; and

7. Professional guardians.

D. The evaluating board shall consist of not more than two appointees from each of the following officials and agencies:

1. Governor;

2. Speaker of the House of Representatives;

3. President Pro Tempore of the Senate;

4. Office of the Attorney General;

5. Oklahoma Health Care Authority;

6. Developmental Disabilities Services Division of the Department of Human Services;

7. Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services;

8. Adult Protective Services;

9. A Legal Services Developer;

10. State Long-Term Care Ombudsman;

11. Legal Aid of Western Oklahoma;

12. Legal Services of Eastern Oklahoma;

13. Oklahoma Bar Association; and

14. Advocacy Partnership for Aging Oklahomans.

Added by Laws 2001, c. 310, § 4, emerg. eff. June 1, 2001. Amended by Laws 2004, c. 106, § 9, eff. April 1, 2005.