2008 Legislation
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HOUSE BILL NO. 442<br /> – Vulnerable adult, exploit, definitn

HOUSE BILL NO. 442

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Bill Status



H0442.................................................by HEALTH AND WELFARE
VULNERABLE ADULTS - Amends existing law relating to vulnerable adults to
revise the definition of "exploitation" or "exploit."

01/31    House intro - 1st rdg - to printing
02/01    Rpt prt - to Jud
02/14    Rpt out - rec d/p - to 2nd rdg
02/15    2nd rdg - to 3rd rdg
02/19    3rd rdg - PASSED - 69-0-1
      AYES -- Anderson, Andrus, Barrett, Bayer, Bedke, Bell, Bilbao, Black,
      Block, Bock, Boe, Bolz, Bowers, Brackett, Bradford, Chadderdon,
      Chavez, Chew, Clark, Collins, Crane, Durst, Eskridge, Hagedorn, Hart,
      Harwood, Henbest(Burgoyne), Henderson, Jaquet, Killen, King, Kren,
      Labrador, Lake, LeFavour, Loertscher, Luker, Marriott, Mathews,
      McGeachin, Mortimer, Moyle, Nielsen, Nonini, Pasley-Stuart, Patrick,
      Pence, Raybould, Ringo, Roberts, Ruchti, Rusche, Sayler, Schaefer,
      Shepherd(02), Shepherd(08), Shirley, Shively, Smith(24),
      Smith(30)(Stanek), Snodgrass, Stevenson, Thayn, Thomas, Trail, Vander
      Woude, Wills, Wood(27), Wood(35)
      NAYS -- None
      Absent and excused -- Mr. Speaker
    Floor Sponsor - Mathews
    Title apvd - to Senate
02/20    Senate intro - 1st rdg - to Health/Wel
02/27    Rpt out - Ref'd to Jud
03/11    Rpt out - rec d/p - to 2nd rdg
03/12    2nd rdg - to 3rd rdg
03/14    3rd rdg - PASSED - 33-0-2
      AYES -- Andreason, Bair, Bastian, Broadsword, Burkett, Cameron,
      Coiner, Corder, Darrington, Davis, Fulcher, Gannon, Geddes, Goedde,
      Hammond, Heinrich, Hill, Kelly, Keough, Langhorst, Little, Lodge,
      Malepeai(Sagness), McGee, McKague, McKenzie, Pearce, Richardson,
      Schroeder, Siddoway, Stegner, Stennett, Werk
      NAYS -- None
      Absent and excused -- Bilyeu, Jorgenson
    Floor Sponsor - Kelly
    Title apvd - to House
03/17    To enrol - Rpt enrol - Sp signed
03/18    Pres signed - To Governor
03/19    Governor signed
         Session Law Chapter 209
         Effective: 07/01/08

Bill Text




                                                                       
  ]]]]              LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF IDAHO             ]]]]
 Fifty-ninth Legislature                   Second Regular Session - 2008

                                                                       

                              IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                                     HOUSE BILL NO. 442

                              BY HEALTH AND WELFARE COMMITTEE

  1                                        AN ACT
  2    RELATING TO VULNERABLE ADULTS; AMENDING SECTION 18-1505, IDAHO CODE, TO REVISE
  3        A DEFINITION; AND AMENDING SECTION 39-5302, IDAHO CODE, TO REVISE A  DEFI-
  4        NITION.

  5    Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Idaho:

  6        SECTION  1.  That  Section 18-1505, Idaho Code, be, and the same is hereby
  7    amended to read as follows:

  8        18-1505.  ABUSE, EXPLOITATION OR NEGLECT OF A VULNERABLE  ADULT.  (1)  Any
  9    person who abuses or neglects a vulnerable adult under circumstances likely to
 10    produce great bodily harm or death is guilty of a felony punishable by impris-
 11    onment  for not more than ten (10) years and not more than a twenty-five thou-
 12    sand dollar ($25,000) fine.
 13        (2)  Any person who abuses or neglects a vulnerable  adult  under  circum-
 14    stances  other  than  those  likely  to  produce great bodily harm or death is
 15    guilty of a misdemeanor.
 16        (3)  Any person who exploits a vulnerable adult  is  guilty  of  a  misde-
 17    meanor, unless the monetary damage from such exploitation exceeds one thousand
 18    dollars ($1,000), in which case the person is guilty of a felony punishable by
 19    imprisonment  for not more than ten (10) years and not more than a twenty-five
 20    thousand dollar ($25,000) fine.
 21        (4)  As used in this section:
 22        (a)  "Abuse" means the intentional or  negligent  infliction  of  physical
 23        pain,  injury  or mental injury. Intentional abuse shall be punished under
 24        subsection (1) or (2) of this section depending upon the  harm  inflicted.
 25        Abuse  by negligent infliction shall only be punished under subsection (2)
 26        of this section.
 27        (b)  "Caretaker" means any individual or institution that  is  responsible
 28        by  relationship,  contract  or  court  order  to provide food, shelter or
 29        clothing, medical or other life-sustaining  necessities  to  a  vulnerable
 30        adult.
 31        (c)  "Exploitation" or "exploit" means an action which may include, but is
 32        not  limited to, the misuse unjust or improper use of a vulnerable adult's
 33        financial power of attorney, funds, property or resources by another  per-
 34        son for profit or advantage.
 35        (d)  "Neglect"  means  failure  of  a caretaker to provide food, clothing,
 36        shelter or medical care to a vulnerable adult, in  such  a  manner  as  to
 37        jeopardize the life, health and safety of the vulnerable adult.
 38        (e)  "Vulnerable adult" means a person eighteen (18) years of age or older
 39        who  is  unable to protect himself from abuse, neglect or exploitation due
 40        to physical or mental impairment which affects the  person's  judgment  or
 41        behavior  to the extent that he lacks sufficient understanding or capacity
 42        to make or communicate or implement decisions regarding his person.
 43        (5)  Nothing in this section shall  be  construed  to  mean  a  person  is

                                       2

  1    abused,  neglected  or exploited for the sole reason he is relying upon treat-
  2    ment by spiritual means through prayer alone in accordance with the tenets and
  3    practices of a recognized church or religious denomination; nor shall the pro-
  4    visions of this section be construed to require any medical care or  treatment
  5    in contravention of the stated or implied objection of such a person.
  6        (6)  Nothing  in  this section shall be construed to mean that an employer
  7    or  supervisor of a person who abuses, exploits or neglects a vulnerable adult
  8    may be prosecuted unless there is direct evidence of a violation of this stat-
  9    ute by the employer or supervisor.

 10        SECTION 2.  That Section 39-5302, Idaho Code, be, and the same  is  hereby
 11    amended to read as follows:

 12        39-5302.  DEFINITIONS. For the purposes of this chapter:
 13        (1)  "Abuse"  means  the  intentional  or negligent infliction of physical
 14    pain, injury or mental injury.
 15        (2)  "Caretaker" means any individual or institution that  is  responsible
 16    by  relationship,  contract, or court order to provide food, shelter or cloth-
 17    ing, medical or other life-sustaining necessities to a vulnerable adult.
 18        (3)  "Commission" means the Idaho commission on aging, established  pursu-
 19    ant to chapter 50, title 67, Idaho Code.
 20        (4)  "Contractor"  means  an  area agency on aging and its duly authorized
 21    agents and employees providing adult protection services pursuant  to  a  con-
 22    tract with the commission in accordance with section 67-5011, Idaho Code.  The
 23    commission   designates  area  agencies  on  aging  pursuant  to  42  U.S.C.A.
 24    3025(a)(2)(A) and may establish by rule when duties or obligations under  this
 25    chapter may be fulfilled by an area agency on aging.
 26        (5)  "Department" means the Idaho department of health and welfare.
 27        (6)  "Emergency"  means  an  exigent  circumstance  in  which a vulnerable
 28    adult's health and safety is placed in imminent  danger.  Imminent  danger  is
 29    when death or severe bodily injury could reasonably be expected to occur with-
 30    out intervention.
 31        (7)  "Exploitation"  means an action which may include, but is not limited
 32    to, the misuse unjust or improper use of a vulnerable adult's financial  power
 33    of  attorney,  funds,  property,  or resources by another person for profit or
 34    advantage.
 35        (8)  "Neglect" means failure of a caretaker  to  provide  food,  clothing,
 36    shelter or medical care reasonably necessary to sustain the life and health of
 37    a vulnerable adult, or the failure of a vulnerable adult to provide those ser-
 38    vices for himself.
 39        (9)  "Supportive services" means noninvestigatory remedial, social, legal,
 40    health, educational, mental health and referral services provided to a vulner-
 41    able adult.
 42        (10) "Vulnerable adult" means a person eighteen (18) years of age or older
 43    who  is  unable  to protect himself from abuse, neglect or exploitation due to
 44    physical or mental impairment which affects the person's judgment or  behavior
 45    to  the  extent  that he lacks sufficient understanding or capacity to make or
 46    communicate or implement decisions regarding his person.
 47        Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to mean  a  person  is  abused,
 48    neglected,  or  exploited  for the sole reason he is relying upon treatment by
 49    spiritual means through prayer alone in accordance with the tenets  and  prac-
 50    tices  of  a recognized church or religious denomination; nor shall the provi-
 51    sions of this chapter be construed to require any medical care or treatment in
 52    contravention of the stated or implied objection of such a person.

Statement of Purpose / Fiscal Impact


                          STATEMENT OF PURPOSE
                                
                                RS 17647
                                
This legislation modifies Sections 18-1505(4)(c) and 39-5302(7), Idaho Code,
to clarify that unjust or improper use of a vulnerable adult's financial power
of attorney falls within the definition of exploitation because it is a misuse
of a vulnerable adult's funds, property, or resources.  Idaho's Adult Protection
investigators and many private attorneys receive complaints involving such unjust
or improper use of a financial power of attorney.  Although misuse of a vulnerable 
adult's financial power of attorney certainly qualifies as exploitation of the 
vulnerable adult, when these cases are reported to law enforcement and county 
prosecutors, they are often improperly characterized by law enforcement, city 
attorneys, and county prosecutors as civil matters not subject to criminal 
prosecution.  This modification is proposed so that there is no question that 
unjust or improper use of a vulnerable adult's financial power of attorney falls 
within the definition of exploitation.
                                
                                
                                
                              FISCAL IMPACT
                                
None.  The modification does not expand the definition of exploitation; it merely
clarifies that misuse of financial powers of attorney are within such definition.



CONTACT

Name:     Rep. Russ Mathews
Phone:    (208) 332-1000


STATEMENT OF PURPOSE/FISCAL NOTE                                           H 442