II 

118TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 4283 

To establish grants to provide education on guardianship alternatives for 

older adults and people with disabilities to health care workers, educators, 

family members, and court workers and court-related personnel. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MAY 8, 2024 

Mr. CASEY (for himself, Ms. KLOBUCHAR, Ms. DUCKWORTH, Mr. MERKLEY, 

and Mr. SANDERS) introduced the following bill; which was read twice 

and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions 

A BILL 

To establish grants to provide education on guardianship 

alternatives for older adults and people with disabilities 

to health care workers, educators, family members, and 

court workers and court-related personnel. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Alternatives to Guard5 ianship Education Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE. 

7 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 


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1 (1) Guardianship, although at times necessary, 

2 can negatively affect the person under guardianship 

3 by reducing or eliminating their self-determination 

4 and autonomy. 

5 (2) Although State courts and State laws at6 tempt to provide some procedures to appoint trust7 worthy guardians, incidents of physical, financial, 

8 emotional, psychological, and other types of abuse 

9 have occurred to people under guardianship arrange10 ments. 

11 (3) Once guardianship arrangements are in 

12 place, restoration of rights rarely occurs. 

13 (4) Less restrictive options to guardianship, 

14 such as supported decisionmaking and advance di15 rectives, offer ways to help people make decisions 

16 without losing their independence. 

17 (5) Awareness of guardianship alternatives by 

18 personnel that interact with individuals facing 

19 guardianship determinations, including health care 

20 workers, educators, family members, and court 

21 workers and court-related personnel, may help re22 duce unnecessary guardianship arrangements and 

23 preserve decisionmaking rights. 


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1 (6) Families and disability support personnel 

2 have reported that they have limited awareness of 

3 guardianship alternatives. 

4 (b) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this Act is to improve 

5 the awareness of guardianship alternatives, for health care 

6 workers, educators, family members, and court workers 

7 and court-related personnel, through education programs. 

8 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

9 In this Act: 

10 (1) AGING AGENCY.—The term ‘‘aging agency’’ 

11 means an organization that represents older adults, 

12 and that may have experience in serving family 

13 members of such adults. 

14 (2) DISABILITY.—The term ‘‘disability’’ has the 

15 meaning given the term in section 3 of the Ameri16 cans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 

17 12102). 

18 (3) DISABILITY AGENCY.—The term ‘‘disability 

19 agency’’ means an organization serving people with 

20 disabilities that— 

21 (A) is operated by a board, on which— 

22 (i) a majority of the members are peo23 ple with disabilities or their family mem24 bers; and 


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1 (ii) the number of members on the 

2 board who are people with disabilities is 

3 greater than the number of members on 

4 the board who are family members; 

5 (B) has an advisory panel or council, on 

6 which— 

7 (i) a majority of the members are peo8 ple with disabilities or their family mem9 bers; and 

10 (ii) the number of members on the 

11 board who are people with disabilities is 

12 greater than the number of members on 

13 the board who are family members; or 

14 (C) has employees, a majority of whom are 

15 people with disabilities. 

16 (4) GUARDIANSHIP.—The term ‘‘guardianship’’ 

17 means— 

18 (A) a protective arrangement resulting 

19 from the process by which a State court deter20 mines that an adult individual lacks capacity to 

21 make decisions about self-care, finances, prop22 erty, or personal affairs, and appoints another 

23 individual or entity known as a guardian, as a 

24 conservator, or by a similar term, as a surro25 gate decisionmaker; 


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1 (B) a protective arrangement in which the 

2 court-appointed surrogate decisionmaker carries 

3 out duties to the individual and the court; or 

4 (C) a protective arrangement in which the 

5 court exercises oversight of the surrogate deci6 sionmaker. 

7 (5) INDIAN TRIBE.—The term ‘‘Indian Tribe’’ 

8 has the meaning given the term in section 4 of the 

9 Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance 

10 Act (25 U.S.C. 5304). 

11 (6) LEGAL SERVICES AGENCY.—The term 

12 ‘‘legal services agency’’ means a public or nonprofit 

13 organization that has experience providing legal 

14 services to low-income older adults or adults with 

15 disabilities. 

16 (7) OLDER ADULT.—The term ‘‘older adult’’ 

17 has the meaning given the term ‘‘older individual’’ 

18 as defined in section 102 of the Older Americans 

19 Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3002). 

20 (8) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

21 the Secretary of Health and Human Services, acting 

22 through the Administrator of the Administration for 

23 Community Living. 

24 (9) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means any of 

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1 monwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, 

2 the United States Virgin Islands, and the Common3 wealth of the Northern Marianas. 

4 TITLE I—GUARDIANSHIP ALTER5 NATIVES EDUCATION FOR 

6 HEALTH CARE WORKERS 

7 SEC. 101. DEFINITIONS. 

8 In this title: 

9 (1) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—The term ‘‘eligible enti10 ty’’ means a partnership (established by a disability 

11 agency, legal services agency, or aging agency)— 

12 (A) that includes— 

13 (i) that disability agency, legal serv14 ices agency, or aging agency; and 

15 (ii) at least one health care entity, de16 partment of such an entity, or specialty of17 fice of such an entity, that has frequent 

18 contact with people with disabilities or 

19 older adults, including— 

20 (I) a primary care clinic, includ21 ing a Federally qualified health center 

22 or rural health clinic (as such terms 

23 are defined in section 1861(aa) of the 

24 Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 

25 1395x(aa))); 


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1 (II) an emergency department; 

2 (III) a long-term care provider; 

3 (IV) a pediatric office; 

4 (V) a rehabilitation center; 

5 (VI) a geriatrician office; 

6 (VII) a neurology office; or 

7 (VIII) an entity providing a 

8 training program for health care 

9 workers in any specialty listed in this 

10 subparagraph; and 

11 (B) for which the establishing agency has 

12 memorialized the establishment, membership, 

13 and functions of the partnership in the form of 

14 a letter of support, memorandum of under15 standing, or similar document. 

16 (2) HEALTH CARE WORKERS.—The term 

17 ‘‘health care workers’’ means staff with direct con18 tact with patients in health care settings, including 

19 physicians, advanced practice providers, nurses, 

20 medical assistants, social workers, health care ad21 ministrators, dentists, dental hygiene professionals, 

22 receptionists, and mental health professionals. 

23 SEC. 102. GRANT PROGRAM. 

24 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall make grants, 

25 on a competitive basis, to eligible entities in States, and 


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1 to eligible entities that serve Indian Tribes, to enable the 

2 recipients to carry out guardianship alternatives education 

3 programs for health care workers. 

4 (b) TERM.—The Secretary may make such a grant 

5 for a first term of 3 years. An eligible entity may seek 

6 renewal of, and the Secretary may make, such a grant for 

7 a second term of 3 years, in order to expand service deliv8 ery of the education program to health care workers. 

9 SEC. 103. APPLICATIONS. 

10 To be eligible to receive a grant under this title, an 

11 entity shall submit an application to the Secretary at such 

12 time, in such manner, and containing such information as 

13 the Secretary may require, including— 

14 (1) information identifying the target popu15 lation to receive instruction, and a projected number 

16 of participants in and graduates of the education 

17 program to be carried out under the grant; 

18 (2) a needs assessment, identifying the need for 

19 guardianship alternatives education for the target 

20 population proposed; 

21 (3) information identifying who will facilitate 

22 the related instruction; 

23 (4) a description of how the entity will conduct 

24 outreach to health care workers for the education 

25 program; 


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1 (5) a description of learning objectives for the 

2 education program; 

3 (6) a description of activities to be carried out 

4 under the grant; 

5 (7) an evaluation plan for the education pro6 gram; 

7 (8) a timeline for establishing and carrying out 

8 the education program; 

9 (9) information that demonstrates the instruc10 tors’ knowledge of guardianship alternatives and ex11 perience in conducting education and training pro12 grams for the public; 

13 (10) information describing the format for the 

14 instruction, which may be in-person, online, or hy15 brid, and how the instruction and related materials 

16 will be accessible by all participants; and 

17 (11) a description of how the entity will, to the 

18 best of its ability, ensure the education program 

19 reaches populations from diverse backgrounds and 

20 communities and underserved demographic popu21 lations (such as an underserved race, ethnicity, gen22 der, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, or type 

23 of disability). 


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1 SEC. 104. USE OF FUNDS. 

2 (a) REQUIRED USES.—An eligible entity that receives 

3 a grant under this title shall use the grant funds for— 

4 (1) implementing an education program to en5 hance the awareness of alternatives to guardianship 

6 for health care workers; and 

7 (2) ensuring that the guardianship alternatives 

8 education program— 

9 (A) discusses the background of guardian10 ship, the possible consequences of unnecessary 

11 guardianship, and the need for guardianship al12 ternatives; 

13 (B) covers the various guardianship alter14 natives available in the State or States involved; 

15 (C) includes a curriculum tailored to the 

16 needs of the target population; 

17 (D) includes, to the best of its ability, in18 structors with a diverse range of disabilities as 

19 instructors or speakers; 

20 (E) provides the instruction and related 

21 materials for the education program in acces22 sible formats; and 

23 (F) includes, to the best of its ability, 

24 methods to reach populations from diverse 

25 backgrounds and communities and underserved 

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1 served race, ethnicity, gender, gender identity, 

2 sexual orientation, age, or type of disability). 

3 (b) ALLOWABLE USES.—The eligible entity may use 

4 the grant funds for— 

5 (1) recruiting individuals to receive guardian6 ship alternatives education; 

7 (2) modifying a curriculum for the education 

8 program; 

9 (3) creating accessible materials for the edu10 cation program, such as materials with Communica11 tion Access Realtime Translation, with American 

12 Sign Language, in Braille, in plain language, and in 

13 other appropriate formats; 

14 (4) transporting individuals enrolled in the edu15 cation program to and from the instructional ses16 sions; 

17 (5) providing child care during the instructional 

18 sessions for people in attendance; 

19 (6) conducting website management for the 

20 education program; 

21 (7) translating recruitment and instructional 

22 materials for the education program; 

23 (8) providing payment for venue for in-person 

24 instruction; 


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1 (9) providing payment for costs of arranging 

2 for professional continuing education credits; 

3 (10) providing reasonable food and beverages 

4 for in-person instruction; 

5 (11) expanding or adapting an existing (as of 

6 the date of submission of the application for the 

7 grant) guardianship alternatives education program; 

8 or 

9 (12) providing payment for instructors (includ10 ing guest instructors) and speakers. 

11 TITLE II—GUARDIANSHIP AL12 TERNATIVES EDUCATION FOR 

13 EDUCATORS 

14 SEC. 201. DEFINITIONS. 

15 In this title: 

16 (1) EDUCATORS.—The term ‘‘educators’’ means 

17 teachers and other staff (as defined in section 8101 

18 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 

19 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801)), in a public or private ele20 mentary school or secondary school, that have con21 tact with students with disabilities and their care22 givers, including— 

23 (A) teachers; 

24 (B) special education teachers; 

25 (C) special education directors; 


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1 (D) transition coordinators; 

2 (E) State qualified vocational rehabilita3 tion counselors, as defined in section 

4 100(a)(3)(E) of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 

5 (29 U.S.C. 720(a)(3)(E)); 

6 (F) any person providing pre-employment 

7 transition services, as defined in section 7 of 

8 the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 705); 

9 (G) paraprofessionals; 

10 (H) school social workers; 

11 (I) school psychologists; 

12 (J) school counselors; 

13 (K) educational diagnosticians; 

14 (L) specialized instructional support per15 sonnel, as defined in that section 8101; and 

16 (M) staff of a training program for an oc17 cupation described in any of subparagraphs (A) 

18 through (L). 

19 (2) ELEMENTARY SCHOOL; SECONDARY

20 SCHOOL.—The terms ‘‘elementary school’’ and ‘‘sec21 ondary school’’ have the meanings given the terms 

22 in section 8101 of the Elementary and Secondary 

23 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801). 


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1 (3) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—The term ‘‘eligible enti2 ty’’ means a partnership (established by a disability 

3 agency or legal services agency)— 

4 (A) that includes— 

5 (i) that disability agency or legal serv6 ices agency; and 

7 (ii) a local educational agency, or a 

8 public or private elementary school or sec9 ondary school, that employs educators; and 

10 (B) for which the establishing agency has 

11 memorialized the establishment, membership, 

12 and functions of the partnership in the form of 

13 a letter of support, memorandum of under14 standing, or similar document. 

15 SEC. 202. GRANT PROGRAM. 

16 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall make grants, 

17 on a competitive basis, to eligible entities in States, and 

18 to eligible entities that serve Indian Tribes, to enable the 

19 recipients to carry out guardianship alternatives education 

20 programs for educators. 

21 (b) TERM.—The Secretary may make such a grant 

22 for a first term of 3 years. An eligible entity may seek 

23 renewal of, and the Secretary may make, such a grant for 

24 a second term of 3 years, in order to expand service deliv25 ery of the education program to educators. 


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1 SEC. 203. APPLICATIONS. 

2 To be eligible to receive a grant under this title, an 

3 entity shall submit an application to the Secretary at such 

4 time, in such manner, and containing such information as 

5 the Secretary may require, including— 

6 (1) information identifying the target popu7 lation to receive instruction, and a projected number 

8 of participants in and graduates of the education 

9 program to be carried out under the grant; 

10 (2) a needs assessment, identifying the need for 

11 guardianship alternatives education for the target 

12 population; 

13 (3) information identifying who will facilitate 

14 the related instruction; 

15 (4) a description of how the entity will conduct 

16 outreach to educators for the education program; 

17 (5) a description of learning objectives for the 

18 education program; 

19 (6) a description of activities to be carried out 

20 under the grant; 

21 (7) an evaluation plan for the education pro22 gram; 

23 (8) a timeline for establishing and carrying out 

24 the education program; 

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1 perience in conducting education and training pro2 grams for the public; and 

3 (10) information describing the format for the 

4 instruction, which may be in-person, online, or hy5 brid, and how the instruction and related materials 

6 will be accessible by all participants. 

7 SEC. 204. USE OF FUNDS. 

8 (a) REQUIRED USES.—An eligible entity that receives 

9 a grant under this title shall use the grant funds for imple10 menting an education program to enhance the awareness 

11 of alternatives to guardianship for educators and ensuring 

12 that the education program meets the requirements of sec13 tion 104(a)(2). 

14 (b) ALLOWABLE USES.—The eligible entity may use 

15 the grant funds to carry out the activities described in sec16 tion 104(b), for the education program. 

17 TITLE III—GUARDIANSHIP AL18 TERNATIVES EDUCATION FOR 

19 FAMILIES 

20 SEC. 301. DEFINITIONS. 

21 In this title: 

22 (1) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—The term ‘‘eligible enti23 ty’’ means a disability agency, legal services agency, 

24 or aging agency with a goal to inform and support 


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1 older adults, or people with disabilities, and their 

2 family members. 

3 (2) FAMILY MEMBER.—The term ‘‘family mem4 ber’’ means a member of the family of— 

5 (A) an older adult; or 

6 (B) a person with a disability. 

7 SEC. 302. GRANT PROGRAM. 

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall make grants, 

9 on a competitive basis, to eligible entities in States, and 

10 to eligible entities that serve Indian Tribes, to enable the 

11 recipients to carry out guardianship alternatives education 

12 programs for family members of older adults and family 

13 members of people with disabilities. 

14 (b) TERM.—The Secretary may make such a grant 

15 for a first term of 3 years. An eligible entity may seek 

16 renewal of, and the Secretary may make, such a grant for 

17 a second term of 3 years, in order to expand service deliv18 ery of the education program to such family members. 

19 SEC. 303. APPLICATIONS. 

20 To be eligible to receive a grant under this title, an 

21 entity shall submit an application to the Secretary at such 

22 time, in such manner, and containing such information as 

23 the Secretary may require, including— 

24 (1) information identifying the target popu25 lation to receive instruction, and a projected number 


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1 of participants in and graduates of the education 

2 program to be carried out under the grant; 

3 (2) information identifying who will facilitate 

4 the related instruction for the education program; 

5 (3) a description of how the entity will conduct 

6 outreach to educators for the education program; 

7 (4) a description of learning objectives for the 

8 education program; 

9 (5) a description of activities to be carried out 

10 under the grant; 

11 (6) an evaluation plan for the education pro12 gram; 

13 (7) a timeline for establishing and carrying out 

14 the education program; 

15 (8) information that demonstrates the instruc16 tors’ knowledge of guardianship alternatives and ex17 perience in conducting education and training pro18 grams for the public; and 

19 (9) information describing the format for the 

20 instruction, which may be in-person, online, or hy21 brid, and how the instruction and related materials 

22 will be accessible by all participants. 

23 SEC. 304. USE OF FUNDS. 

24 (a) REQUIRED USES.—An eligible entity that receives 

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1 menting an education program to enhance the awareness 

2 of alternatives to guardianship for family members and 

3 ensuring that the education program meets the require4 ments of section 104(a)(2). 

5 (b) ALLOWABLE USES.—The eligible entity may use 

6 the grant funds to carry out the activities described in sec7 tion 104(b), for the education program. 

8 TITLE IV—GUARDIANSHIP AL9 TERNATIVES EDUCATION FOR 

10 COURT WORKERS AND 

11 COURT-RELATED PERSONNEL 

12 SEC. 401. DEFINITIONS. 

13 In this title: 

14 (1) COURT-RELATED PERSONNEL.—The term 

15 ‘‘court-related personnel’’ means persons working in, 

16 or members of organizations supporting, court sys17 tems or court workers, including— 

18 (A) staff and members of local chapters of 

19 the American Bar Association; 

20 (B) staff and members of local chapters of 

21 the American Civil Liberties Union; 

22 (C) staff and members of local associations 

23 of court workers; 

24 (D) staff and members of elder rights law 

25 organizations; 


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1 (E) staff and members of disability rights 

2 law organizations; 

3 (F) staff of an agency implementing a 

4 State protection and advocacy system, as de5 fined in section 102 of the Developmental Dis6 abilities Act and Bill of Rights of 2000 (42 

7 U.S.C. 15002); 

8 (G) district attorneys and their staff; 

9 (H) court clerks and clerk staff not di10 rectly employed by the court; or 

11 (I) an entity providing a training program 

12 for any specialty relevant to an organization or 

13 occupation listed in this paragraph. 

14 (2) COURT WORKERS.—The term ‘‘court work15 ers’’ means persons working in local court systems, 

16 including— 

17 (A) court staff; 

18 (B) law or court clerks and paralegals; 

19 (C) attorneys; and 

20 (D) judges. 

21 (3) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—The term ‘‘eligible enti22 ty’’ means a partnership (established by a disability 

23 agency, legal services agency, or aging agency)— 

24 (A) that includes— 


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1 (i) that disability agency, legal serv2 ices agency, or aging agency; and 

3 (ii) a court whose employees, or other 

4 court-related organization whose members, 

5 have contact with plaintiffs who are under 

6 or facing a guardianship or other protec7 tive arrangement or address cases related 

8 to guardianship and other protective ar9 rangements; and 

10 (B) for which the establishing agency has 

11 memorialized the establishment, membership, 

12 and functions of the partnership in the form of 

13 a letter of support, memorandum of under14 standing, or similar document. 

15 SEC. 402. GRANT PROGRAM. 

16 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall make grants, 

17 on a competitive basis, to eligible entities in States, and 

18 to eligible entities that serve Indian Tribes, to enable the 

19 recipients to carry out guardianship alternatives education 

20 programs for court workers and other court-related per21 sonnel. 

22 (b) TERM.—The Secretary may make such a grant 

23 for a first term of 3 years. An eligible entity may seek 

24 renewal of, and the Secretary may make, such a grant for 

25 a second term of 3 years, in order to expand service delivVerDate Sep 11 2014 15:49 Jun 08, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00021 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4283.IS S4283

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1 ery of the education program to court workers and other 

2 court-related personnel. 

3 SEC. 403. APPLICATIONS. 

4 To be eligible to receive a grant under this title, an 

5 entity shall submit an application to the Secretary at such 

6 time, in such manner, and containing such information as 

7 the Secretary may require, including— 

8 (1) information identifying the target popu9 lation to receive instruction, including a projected 

10 number of participants in and graduates of the edu11 cation program to be carried out under the grant; 

12 (2) a needs assessment, identifying the need for 

13 guardianship alternatives education for the target 

14 population proposed; 

15 (3) information identifying who will facilitate 

16 the related instruction; 

17 (4) a description of how the entity will conduct 

18 outreach to the court workers or other court-related 

19 personnel proposed for the education program; 

20 (5) a description of learning objectives for the 

21 education program; 

22 (6) a description of activities to be carried out 

23 under the grant; 

24 (7) an evaluation plan for the education pro25 gram; 


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1 (8) a timeline for establishing and carrying out 

2 the education program; 

3 (9) information that demonstrates the instruc4 tors’ knowledge of guardianship alternatives and ex5 perience in conducting education and training pro6 grams for the public; and 

7 (10) information describing the format for the 

8 instruction, which may be in-person, online, or hy9 brid, and how the instruction and related materials 

10 will be accessible by all participants. 

11 SEC. 404. USE OF FUNDS. 

12 (a) REQUIRED USES.—An eligible entity that receives 

13 a grant under this title shall use the grant funds for imple14 menting an education program to enhance the awareness 

15 of alternatives to guardianship for court workers or other 

16 court-related personnel and ensuring that the education 

17 program meets the requirements of section 104(a)(2). 

18 (b) ALLOWABLE USES.—The eligible entity may use 

19 the grant funds to carry out the activities described in sec20 tion 104(b), for the education program. 

21 TITLE V—ADMINISTRATION 

22 SEC. 501. GRANT ADVISORY COUNCIL. 

23 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall establish an 

24 advisory council, to be known as the ‘‘Grant Advisory 


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1 Council’’, to advise eligible entities that receive grants 

2 under this Act on activities carried out under the grants. 

3 (b) COMPOSITION.—The advisory council shall be 

4 composed of 13 members, consisting of— 

5 (1) 3 experts who have experience in counseling 

6 individuals and guiding individuals to guardianship 

7 alternatives, or who have data-driven expertise in 

8 ways to guide individuals to guardianship alter9 natives, which may include— 

10 (A) a social services program adminis11 trator; 

12 (B) a guardianship researcher; or 

13 (C) an advocate for people with disabilities; 

14 and 

15 (2) 1 health care administrator or manager 

16 with experience with guardianship alternatives; 

17 (3) 1 administrator from a school served by a 

18 local educational agency, and 1 administrator from 

19 an institution of higher education, with experience 

20 with guardianship alternatives; 

21 (4) 1 family member, as defined in section 301, 

22 with experience with guardianship alternatives; 

23 (5) 1 court worker, as defined in section 401, 

24 with experience with guardianship alternatives; 


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1 (6) 3 people with disabilities, or older adults, 

2 who have successfully transitioned to a guardianship 

3 alternative, of which at least 1 shall be a person 

4 with a disability and at least 1 shall be an older 

5 adult; and 

6 (7) 3 people with disabilities, or older adults, 

7 who are in a guardianship alternative, of which at 

8 least 1 shall be a person with a disability and at 

9 least 1 shall be an older adult. 

10 (c) PERIOD OF APPOINTMENT; VACANCIES.—Mem11 bers shall be appointed for the life of the advisory council. 

12 Any vacancy in the council shall not affect the powers of 

13 the advisory council, but shall be filled in the same manner 

14 as the original appointment was made. 

15 (d) CHAIRMAN AND VICE CHAIRMAN.—The advisory 

16 council shall select a Chairperson and Vice Chairperson 

17 from among its members. 

18 (e) DUTIES.—The advisory council shall— 

19 (1) advise the Secretary on, and provide general 

20 oversight for, the grant programs carried out under 

21 titles I through IV concerning the activities carried 

22 out under the grants, including development of the 

23 curricula for guardianship alternatives education; 

24 (2) consult with the Secretary on the awarding 

25 of the grants; 


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1 (3) provide recommendations for sustainability 

2 and expansion of the guardianship alternatives edu3 cation programs carried out under the grants, such 

4 as development of a train-the-trainer model for such 

5 an education program; and 

6 (4) provide input for the evaluation methods 

7 and implementation of the evaluation described in 

8 section 502, including advising the Secretary on ad9 ditional criteria for the evaluator to evaluate under 

10 section 502, to measure effectiveness of guardian11 ship alternatives education programs described in 

12 section 502. 

13 (f) REPORT.—Not later than September 30, 2027, 

14 and not later than September 30, 2030, the advisory coun15 cil shall prepare a report containing recommendations on 

16 the programs, activities, and curricula described in sub17 section (e)(1) and the sustainability and expansion de18 scribed in subsection (e)(3). The advisory council shall 

19 submit the report to the covered committees defined in 

20 section 504(f). 

21 (g) TRAVEL EXPENSES.—Subject to the limit de22 scribed in section 505(b), the members of the advisory 

23 council shall be allowed travel expenses, including per 

24 diem in lieu of subsistence, at rates authorized for employ25 ees of agencies under subchapter I of chapter 57 of title 


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1 5, United States Code, while away from their homes or 

2 regular places of business in the performance of services 

3 for the advisory council. 

4 (h) DETAIL OF GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEES.—Any 

5 Federal Government employee may be detailed to the advi6 sory council without reimbursement to serve as a staff 

7 member for the advisory council, and such detail shall be 

8 without interruption or loss of civil service status or privi9 lege. 

10 (i) TERMINATION.—The advisory council shall termi11 nate on October 1, 2030. 

12 SEC. 502. EVALUATION OF EDUCATION PROGRAMS. 

13 (a) INDEPENDENT EVALUATOR.—The Secretary 

14 shall enter into a contract with an independent entity, who 

15 is not a grant recipient under this Act and who has exper16 tise in evaluating programs for people with disabilities or 

17 programs for older adults, to carry out an evaluation of 

18 the education programs carried out under this Act. 

19 (b) POPULATION COVERED BY EVALUATION.—In 

20 conducting the evaluation, the evaluator shall consider the 

21 impact of the education programs carried out under this 

22 Act on all participants served by the education programs 

23 and on each underserved demographic population (such as 

24 an underserved race, ethnicity, gender, gender identity, 


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1 sexual orientation, age, or type of disability) served by the 

2 education programs. 

3 (c) PERFORMANCE.— 

4 (1) PERFORMANCE IN CHANGING AWARENESS

5 OF GUARDIANSHIP ALTERNATIVES.— 

6 (A) AWARENESS OF PROGRAM PARTICI7 PANTS.—The evaluator shall measure program 

8 participants’ awareness of guardianship alter9 natives as a result of the education programs. 

10 (B) AWARENESS DUE TO DISSEMINA11 TION.—The evaluator shall measure the dis12 semination of information on guardianship al13 ternatives in the workplaces and communities of 

14 participants in the education programs, as a re15 sult of the education programs, to evaluate how 

16 far awareness of guardianship alternatives has 

17 expanded beyond the participants. 

18 (2) EFFECTIVENESS OF EDUCATION PRO19 GRAMS.—The evaluator shall measure the effective20 ness of the education programs on any additional 

21 criterion that the advisory committee advised the 

22 Secretary to adopt, and the Secretary adopted, in 

23 accordance with section 501(e)(4). 

24 (d) POLICY CHANGES AT THE STATE LEVEL.—In 

25 conducting the evaluation, the evaluator shall identify any 


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1 guardianship policy changes at the State level, including 

2 the creation of, removal of, or changes to guardianship 

3 policies. 

4 SEC. 503. STATE DATA COLLECTION ON PROTECTIVE AR5 RANGEMENTS. 

6 (a) REHABILITATION ACT OF 1973.—The Rehabilita7 tion Act of 1973 is amended— 

8 (1) in section 101(a)(10) (29 U.S.C. 

9 721(a)(10))— 

10 (A) by redesignating subparagraphs (F) 

11 through (H) as subparagraphs (G) through (I), 

12 respectively; and 

13 (B) by inserting after subparagraph (E) 

14 the following: 

15 ‘‘(F) The Commissioner shall require that 

16 each designated State unit include in the re17 ports additional information described in sec18 tion 503(b) of the Alternatives to Guardianship 

19 Education Act.’’; and 

20 (2) in section 607 (29 U.S.C. 795l), by insert21 ing ‘‘(except with respect to information under sub22 paragraph (F) of section 101(a)(10))’’ after ‘‘section 

23 101(a)(10)’’. 

24 (b) DATA TO BE COLLECTED AND SUBMITTED BY

25 STATES.—In order to provide objective, measurable data 


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1 on guardianships and guardianship alternatives in the 

2 States, States receiving funds under title I of the Rehabili3 tation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 720 et seq.) shall collect 

4 and report to the Secretary, in accordance with subsection 

5 (a), information about each of the following: 

6 (1) The number and type of guardianships and 

7 protective arrangements established and dissolved 

8 each calendar year in the State. 

9 (2) Demographic information of guardians and 

10 people under guardianship arrangements, including 

11 type of guardian (such as family member, friend, 

12 professional private guardian, or public agency). 

13 (3) The average length of a guardianship ar14 rangement in the State, as of the time such data is 

15 reported. 

16 (4) Information about the reasons for guardian17 ship arrangements in the State. 

18 (5) Information about the reasons that guard19 ianship arrangements were terminated in the State 

20 since the last report, including receipt of guardian21 ship alternatives education. 

22 SEC. 504. REPORTING. 

23 (a) ELIGIBLE ENTITY REPORTS.—Each eligible enti24 ty that receives a grant under this Act for an education 

25 program shall annually prepare and submit to the SecVerDate Sep 11 2014 15:49 Jun 08, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00030 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4283.IS S4283

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1 retary a progress report, that measures the change in indi2 cators described in paragraphs (1) and (2) of section 

3 502(c), as a result of the education program, and the 

4 change in policies described in section 502(d). 

5 (b) SUMMARY EFFECTIVENESS REPORT.—The Sec6 retary shall annually— 

7 (1) prepare a summary report on the change, in 

8 the aggregate, in indicators described in paragraphs 

9 (1) and (2) of section 502(c), as a result of the edu10 cation programs carried out under this Act, and the 

11 change in policies described in section 502(d), which 

12 report shall include— 

13 (A) information on methods of outreach to 

14 recruit participants for the education programs 

15 from diverse backgrounds and communities, in16 cluding the number of the participants recruited 

17 through each method; 

18 (B) the total number of participants in the 

19 education programs, and the percentage of such 

20 participants who completed the education pro21 grams; and 

22 (C) data on demographic characteristics, 

23 including the race, ethnicity, gender, gender 

24 identity, age, and type of disability, of the par25 ticipants, and data on the geographic location 


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1 of the participants, in the education programs; 

2 and 

3 (2) submit the report to the Committee on 

4 Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions and the 

5 Special Committee on Aging of the Senate, and the 

6 Committee on Education and the Workforce of the 

7 House of Representatives. 

8 (c) RENEWAL REPORT.—Not later than 3 years after 

9 the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall pre10 pare and submit to the covered committees a formative 

11 report on the instruction provided through the guardian12 ship alternatives education program during the 2-year pe13 riod after eligible entities first receive grants under this 

14 Act. The Secretary shall use the information in the report 

15 in determining whether to renew grants for eligible entities 

16 for a second grant term. The Secretary shall submit the 

17 report to the grant recipients whose grants are renewed, 

18 to inform the work of the recipients during the second 

19 grant term. 

20 (d) STATE DATA REPORT.—The Secretary shall pre21 pare a report containing the data collected under section 

22 503, and make the report publicly available. 

23 (e) FINAL REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after the 

24 end of the last second grant term to be completed under 

25 this Act, the Secretary shall prepare and submit to the 


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1 covered committees a final report summarizing all actions 

2 taken under grants made available under this Act. 

3 (f) COVERED COMMITTEES.—In this section, the 

4 term ‘‘covered committees’’ means the Committee on 

5 Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions, the Committee 

6 on Finance, and the Special Committee on Aging of the 

7 Senate, and the Committee on Education and the Work8 force and the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the 

9 House of Representatives. 

10 SEC. 505. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

11 (a) IN GENERAL.—There is authorized to be appro12 priated to carry out this Act, $10,000,000 for each of fis13 cal years 2025 through 2030. 

14 (b) ADMINISTRATION AND EVALUATION.—From the 

15 amount made available under subsection (a) for each fiscal 

16 year, the Secretary shall reserve not more than 5 percent 

17 for administration of this Act, including carrying out the 

18 activities required in sections 501 through 504. 

Æ 


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