Wisconsin Legislature: DHS 85.09(4)(a)

(b) Crimes or acts related to the manufacture, distribution, prescription, use, or dispensing of a controlled substance.

(c) Fraud or substantial or repeated violations of applicable laws and rules in the operation of any health care facility or in the care of dependent persons.

(d) A conviction or pending criminal charge which substantially relates to the care of adults or minors, to the funds or property of adults or minors, or to the operation of a residential or health care facility or agency.

(3) Financial stability, including all of the following:

(a) Financial history and financial viability of the owner or related organization.

(b) Outstanding debts or amounts due to the department or other government agencies, including unpaid forfeitures and fines.

History: CR 09-061: cr. Register May 2010 No. 653, eff. 6-1-10.

DHS 85.07 Change of ownership.

(1) If a corporate guardian sells or otherwise transfers ownership of the corporation or the association, the guardian shall notify each of its wards, the department, the court which ordered the guardianship, the county department designated under s. 55.02 (2), Stats., and all agencies or persons serving the ward in writing at least 30 days before the final transfer of ownership. This notice shall include the name and contact information of the new corporation.

(2) The corporate guardian shall remain responsible for each ward until a successor guardian is appointed by the court.

(3) The corporate guardian shall transfer the original records of its wards to the successor guardian appointed by the court.

History: CR 09-061: cr. Register May 2010 No. 653, eff. 6-1-10.

DHS 85.08 Corporate guardian closing.

(1) If a guardian is a corporation and the corporation’s corporate status is revoked by the department of financial institutions or is voluntarily or involuntarily dissolved, or if the guardian is an unincorporated association and the association’s status is voluntarily or involuntarily dissolved by the members or a court, or becomes inactive, the guardian shall notify each of its wards, the department, the court which ordered the guardianship, the county department designated under s. 55.02 (2), Stats., and all agencies or persons serving the ward in writing at least 30 days before the corporation closes.

(2) The corporate guardian shall remain responsible for each ward until a successor guardian is appointed by the court.

(3) The corporate guardian shall transfer the original records of its wards to the successor guardian appointed by the court.

History: CR 09-061: cr. Register May 2010 No. 653, eff. 6-1-10.

Subchapter III — Personnel

DHS 85.09 Staff.

(1) Guardianship program manager.

(a) The guardian shall designate an employee who is 21 years or older and is fit and qualified under s. DHS 85.06, to manage its guardianship program.

(b) The guardianship program manager shall have a high school diploma or its equivalent and have at least 3 years of relevant experience.

(d) Any change of guardianship program manager shall be communicated to the department and the county department designated under s. 55.02 (2), Stats., within 14 days following the effective date of the change.

(2) Other employees.

(a) Except at provided in sub. (1) (a) each employee shall have the skills, education and ability to fulfill the employee’s job requirements.

(b) An employee that has direct contact with a ward shall be at least 18 years old.

(3) Background check. At the time of hire, employment or contract and every four years after, the corporate guardian shall conduct and document a caregiver background check on each employee following the procedures in s. 50.065, Stats., and ch. DHS 12. A guardian may not employ or contract with a person who has been convicted of the crimes or offenses, or has a governmental finding of misconduct, found in s. 50.065, Stats., unless the person has been approved under the department’s rehabilitation review process as defined in ch. DHS 12.

(4) Employee records. A separate record for each employee shall be maintained, kept current, and include all of the following:

(a) A written job description including duties, responsibilities and qualifications required for the employee.

(b) Beginning date of employment.

(d) The results of the background checks required under sub. (3).

(e) Documentation of training.

(5) Volunteers. The guardian may use volunteers if the volunteer receives the orientation and training necessary to assure the health, safety and welfare of wards.

History: CR 09-061: cr. Register May 2010 No. 653, eff. 6-1-10; corrections in (1) (a) under s. 13.92 (4) (b) 7., Stats., and s. 35.17, Stats., Register July 2018 No. 751.

DHS 85.10 Training.

(1) Initial training. Before performing the duties of a guardian, each guardian representative shall receive training that includes all of the following:

(a) Job responsibilities.

(b) Prevention and reporting of ward abuse, neglect and misappropriation of ward property.

(d) Information regarding the needs and services for each ward for whom the guardian representative is responsible.

(e) Information about local resources available to meet the needs of wards.

(f) Agency policies and procedures.

(2) Continuing education. Each guardian representative shall complete 20 hours of training every 24 calendar months. The training shall be relevant to the guardian representative’s job assignment and designed to increase the effectiveness of the employee to meet the needs of the wards served.

History: CR 09-061: cr. Register May 2010 No. 653, eff. 6-1-10.

DHS 85.11 Staffing.

(1) The guardian shall at all times have an adequate number of staff who are qualified either by training or by experience to meet the needs of its wards, including knowledge of service needs and resources for meeting service needs.

(2) The guardian representative shall be accessible to the ward and to other persons concerned about the ward’s well-being.

(3) The corporate guardian shall have staff available at all times to respond to an emergency situation as defined in s. DHS 94.02 (14).

(4) The corporate guardian shall have staff accessible to the local planning agency or interagency mechanism designated under s. 55.02, Stats.

History: CR 09-061: cr. Register May 2010 No. 653, eff. 6-1-10.

DHS 85.12 Conflict of interest.

(1) The corporate guardian may not be subject to undue influence from any party.

(2) When the corporate guardian is a part of a larger organization, the corporate guardian shall have designated staff with independent decision-making authority about the guardianship program.

(3) Pursuant to s. 55.03 (1), Stats., a guardian may not be a provider of protective services or protective placement for its ward.

(4) No corporate guardian may accept a guardianship from a court in a county in which a member of the corporate guardian’s board of directors or any employee or volunteer of the corporate guardian is a member or employee of the community board organized under s. 46.23, 51.42 or 51.437, Stats., or an employee of the county department of social services or human services or community programs or county board of supervisors or department of aging or a county court commissioner who hears petitions for guardianship or a member of a medicaid managed care organization.

(5) A corporate guardian may not profit from their ward.

(6) The guardian may not commingle personal or corporate funds with the funds of the ward. The guardian may consolidate and maintain wards’ funds in accounts with other wards’ funds if the guardian keeps separate and complete accounting of each ward’s funds.

(7) Pursuant to s. 54.18 (3) (b), Stats., the corporate guardian may not lend funds of the ward to another individual or to an entity, unless the court first approves the terms, rate of interest, and any requirement for security.

(8) The corporate guardian may not engage in any financial transaction involving the ward’s estate except as permitted under ch. 54, Stats., and this chapter.

History: CR 09-061: cr. Register May 2010 No. 653, eff. 6-1-10.

Subchapter IV — Ward Services

DHS 85.13 Rights of wards.

(1) Wards’ rights. Every ward shall have the right to all of the following in relation to the corporate guardian:

(a) Be treated with respect and dignity by the staff and volunteers of the corporate guardian.

(b) Be free from abuse, mistreatment, neglect and misappropriation of property.

(c) Confidentiality of health and personal information and records, except to the extent the corporate guardian may be authorized under the guardianship order to give informed consent to disclosure.

(d) Be informed of the services provided by the corporate guardian agency.

(e) Be consulted about decisions on the ward’s behalf, to the extent the ward is capable.

(f) Have guardianship services provided in a way that is least restrictive as defined in s. 54.01 (18), Stats.

(g) Communicate freely with the advocates of the ward’s choice.

(h) File a grievance or a complaint without retaliation.

(2) Complaints. Any person may file a complaint with a corporate guardian or the department regarding the operation of a corporate guardian. The department may investigate a corporate guardian as it deems necessary.

Note: A complaint may be filed by writing the Division of Quality Assurance, P.O. Box 2969, Madison, Wisconsin 53701-2969 or by calling the department’s toll-free complaint line at 1-800-642-6552 or by filing a complaint at https://www.surveygizmo.com/s3/4488026/DQA-Complaint-Intake-Survey.

History: CR 09-061: cr. Register May 2010 No. 653, eff. 6-1-10.

DHS 85.14 Duties.

(1) The guardian representative shall meet with the ward within 14 days of the court appointment as corporate guardian. At the first meeting, the guardian representative shall complete all of the following:

(a) Explain to the ward the role of the guardian.

(b) Explain the guardianship determination and order including the rights addressed by the court. The guardian representative shall be familiar with the provisions of the court order as they relate to limitations on the rights of the ward and those rights which are retained. The guardian representative shall explain to the ward the provisions of the court order as they relate to limitations on the rights of the ward and those rights which are retained.

(c) Explain the applicable rights of the ward contained in ss. 54.18 (1), 54.25 (2), 54.42 and 55.10 (4), Stats., s. DHS 85.13 and the rules of the residence.

(d) Explain how to file a grievance and how to obtain a written copy of the grievance procedures for the living arrangement or for a service provider and the guardianship program.

(e) Explain how to file a complaint with the department and provide the ward with the department’s toll-free complaint telephone number and the address and telephone number of the department’s division of quality assurance.

(2) The guardian representative shall notify relevant agencies and individuals of the appointment guardianship and shall provide letters of guardianship to the ward’s service providers and others, as necessary.

(3) If a medical evaluation was not completed within the past year, the guardian shall obtain an evaluation of the ward’s condition, treatment, and functional status from the ward’s treating physician, or appropriate treatment provider.

(4) The guardian representative shall fulfill the duties of a guardian of person pursuant to ss. 54.18 (2) and (3) and 54.25 (1), Stats. The guardian representative shall fulfill the powers assigned by the court and shall exercise only those powers granted to the guardian representative by the court pursuant to s. 54.25 (2), Stats. A guardian representative shall be aware of and, if applicable, advocate for the ward’s rights under ss. 50.09 and 51.61, Stats., and shall advocate for the least possible restrictions on the ward’s liberty and exercise of constitutional and statutory rights, pursuant to ss. 54.18 (2) and 54.25 (2) (d) 3., Stats.

(5) A guardian representative of the estate shall fulfill the duties of a guardian of the estate pursuant to ss. 54.18 (2) and (3), 54.19, and 54.20 (1), Stats. A guardian representative shall fulfill the powers assigned by the court pursuant to s. 54.20, Stats., and shall seek court approval for those powers requiring court approval pursuant to s. 54.20 (2), Stats. In seeking compensation or reimbursement from the ward’s funds, a guardian representative shall ensure that any payments sought or received will not prevent the corporate guardian from providing adequately for the personal needs of the ward from the ward’s available assets and income, including any available public benefits.

(6) A corporate guardian shall obtain court approval prior to receiving any compensation or reimbursement from the wards funds, pursuant to s. 54.72, Stats. In seeking compensation or reimbursement from the ward’s funds, a corporate guardian must ensure that any payments sought or received will not prevent the corporate guardian from providing adequately for the personal needs of the ward from the ward’s available assets and income, including any available public benefits.