Senate 958

WEST VIRGINIA LEGISLATURE

2026 REGULAR SESSION

Introduced

Senate Bill 958

By Senator Oliverio

[Introduced February 16, 2026; referred
to the Committee on the Judiciary; and then to the Committee on Finance]

A BILL to amend and reenact §44A-2-1 and §44A-3-11 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, relating to closure of the Enforcement of Guardianship and Conservatorship Act Fund and redirection of remaining balance and certain filing fees; specifying Court Security Fund to receive certain portion of filing fee petition for the appointment of a guardian or conservator; closing Enforcement of Guardianship and Conservatorship Act Fund as of certain date; transferring remaining balance to Court Security Fund; and requiring Supreme Court of Appeals to establish and pay fee for reviewing certain reports.

Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:

ARTICLE 2. PROCEDURE FOR APPOINTMENT.

§44A-2-1. Filing of petition; jurisdiction; fees; special revenue account established.

(a) A petition for the appointment of a guardian or conservator shall be filed with the clerk of the circuit court in the county in which the alleged protected person resides or, if an alleged protected person has been admitted to a health care or correctional facility, in the county in which that facility is located. A petition for the appointment of a conservator for a missing person shall be filed with the clerk of the circuit court in the county in which the missing person last resided. The circuit clerk is not required to accept for filing a petition that is not administratively complete.

(b) The circuit court in which the proceeding is first commenced shall have exclusive jurisdiction unless that court determines that a transfer of venue would be in the best interests of the person alleged to need protection.

(c) The fee for filing a petition shall be $110 payable upon filing to the circuit clerk, $75 of which shall be retained by the circuit clerk and $35 of which shall be remitted by the circuit clerk to the special revenue account in the state Treasury created in subsection (e) of this section Court Security Fund established in §51-3-14 of this code.

(d) The person bringing the petition shall be responsible for fees for filing the petition and other papers, for service of process, and for copies of court documents and transcripts. In the event that a guardian, conservator, or both, is appointed by the court, such fees shall be reimbursed to the individual who filed the petition from the protected person’s estate, if funds are available. Any person who is pecuniarily unable to pay the fees and costs as set forth in article one, chapter fifty-nine §59-1-1 et seq. of this code and article two, chapter fifty-one §51-2-1 et seq. of this code will not be required to pay the fees and costs.

(e) There is hereby created in the state Treasury a special revenue account, which shall be an interest-bearing account, to be known as the Enforcement of Guardianship and Conservatorship Act Fund. On July 1, 2026, the Enforcement of Guardianship and Conservatorship Act Fund created by prior enactment of this section shall be closed, and any unexpended balances remaining in the fund shall be transferred to the Court Security Fund established in §51-3-14 of this code.

(f) The reports of guardians and inventory and accountings of conservators required by this chapter shall be examined multiannually by the fiduciary commissioner or other person appointed by the court in accordance with section eleven, article three of this chapter §44A-3-11 of this code.

(g) The special revenue account known as the Enforcement of Guardianship and Conservatorship Act Fund, previously administered by the State Auditor, shall, on and after the amendment and reenactment of this section, be administered by the West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals. All moneys previously collected for deposit into the fund pursuant to this chapter and not expended in accordance with this chapter shall be transferred to the West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals. All collections shall be deposited and used for payment of fiduciary commissioner or other person appointed by the court for review of the reports required by section eleven, article three of this chapter and the education program required by section ten, article one of this chapter.

ARTICLE 3. GUARDIANSHIP AND CONSERVATORSHIP ADMINISTRATION.

§44A-3-11. Filing of reports and accountings; misdemeanor for failure to file; reporting elder abuse.

(a) Reports of guardians and accountings of conservators, as described in this article shall be filed with the circuit clerk of the county in which appointed and also with the fiduciary commissioner of the county or other person if the court has made a referral in its order:

(1) Within six months of being appointed;

(2) By December 31 of each year thereafter;

(3) When the court orders additional reports or accountings to be filed;

(4) When the guardian or conservator resigns or is removed; and

(5) When the appointment of the guardian or conservator is terminated, except that in the case of a guardian, the court may determine that there is no need for a report upon the termination; and in the case of a conservator, no accounting is required if all persons entitled to any proceeds of the estate consent thereto.

(b) The circuit clerk shall notify the court if the required reports are not filed or are administratively incomplete. The fiduciary commissioner, or other person appointed by the court or mental hygiene commissioner, shall review the reports and accountings multiannually, and may request additional information from the guardian or conservator. If the reports or accountings are not filed, or if there are any questions or discrepancies in the reports or accountings, the person reviewing the report shall notify the court or mental hygiene commissioner for further investigation or action of the court, including, but not limited to, a court order requesting copies of bank or investment records, appointing counsel to investigate the matter or setting a hearing on the matter.

(c) If the court has in its order made a referral to the fiduciary commissioner of the county:

(1) The accounting shall be governed by and the fiduciary commissioner shall handle the same under the provisions of sections ten, eleven, twelve, thirteen and fourteen, article four, chapter forty-four of this code, except that all compensation and expenses of the conservator shall be allowed and approved only by the circuit court in accordance with the provisions of section thirteen, article one of this chapter.

(2) The fiduciary commissioner may not publish any notice concerning the filing of a proposed accounting, but shall serve a copy of the proposed accounting of the conservator together with the notice by United States mail on the protected person, all individuals and entities given notice of the petition and any other person or entity found to be interested in the affairs of the protected person, all of whom have standing to file exceptions to or falsify the accounting before the fiduciary commissioner.

(3) In the settlement of the accounting of a conservator, the fiduciary commissioner is entitled to fees as are allowed for fiduciary commissioners in the handling of accountings of a decedent's estate, or as otherwise set by order of the circuit court.

(4) If the court or mental hygiene commissioner appoints a person other than the fiduciary commissioner to review the reports, such person shall report to the court as required by this article. The court shall establish a fee for reviewing a report which shall be paid by the Supreme Court of Appeals. from the Enforcement of Guardianship and Conservatorship Act Fund.

(5) Any party feeling aggrieved of a settlement or decision by the fiduciary commissioner concerning the accounting may on motion filed within four months of the settlement or decision appeal the same to the circuit court.

(d) Any guardian or conservator who knowingly violates the provisions of this section is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than $100 nor more than $500.

(e) The parties, attorneys or mental hygiene commissioner shall report violations of this section, or any other alleged elder abuse violations, including criminal elder abuse pursuant to §61-2-29 of this code, to the Department of Human Services or county prosecutor for further investigation and action.

(f) The West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals shall prescribe forms for reports, accountings and inventories required to be filed pursuant to the provisions of this article.

NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to close the Enforcement of Guardianship and Conservatorship Act Fund and redirect the remaining balance and certain filing fees to the Court Security Fund.

Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from a heading or the present law and underscoring indicates new language that would be added.