HB 4909-4912 were passed by the state House last fall, and referred to the Senate Judiciary Committee.

Scott Teter, Division Chief of the Department of Attorney General Financial Crimes Division, and head of the Elder Abuse Task Force, testified before the Senate Civil Rights, Judiciary, and Public Safety Committee in support of the reform package in June of this year. This package is still pending before the Senate.

Michiganders are encouraged to contact State Senator Stephanie Chang and the governor’s office to express their support. The reforms in HB 4909-4912 would:

A subcommittee of the Elder Abuse Task Force has proposed a family consent bill which would allow family members of an adult to make emergency treatment decisions for an adult who cannot make their own healthcare decisions. 

This would only apply when the adult does not have pre-existing arrangements for medical-decision making, like a healthcare power of attorney or patient advocate designation, already in place.

This consent power would reduce the need for emergency guardianship appointments for those that do not otherwise require a guardian. 

The Senate Judiciary Committee held hearings on SB 922-925 on September 18, 2024.

• SB 922 would create a personal protective order, or PPO, that is available for vulnerable adults or adults who are at least 60 years old.  This type of PPO would provide unique protections needed for this population, including allowing the court to prohibit a perpetrator’s access to the income or assets of a victim to prevent future financial exploitation.
• SB 923 would amend the racketeering statute to add embezzlement from a vulnerable adult to the list of predicate acts that constitute racketeering.  Broadly, racketeering is a pattern of commission of certain types of predicate criminal acts committed by two or more persons or corporations acting together.  Embezzlement has long been listed as a predicate crime to racketeering, but embezzlement from a vulnerable adult is not a listed predicate act.  Racketeering carries a more significant criminal penalty, and a longer statute of limitations, than most embezzlement offenses, so adding embezzlement from a vulnerable adult as a predicate act to racketeering will provide prosecutors with an important tool to stop those who steal from vulnerable adults.  
• SB 924 would amend the law prohibiting embezzlement from a vulnerable adult by penalizing those who steal from vulnerable adults after a victim’s death, as well as during the victim’s lifetime. 
• SB 925 would create a statute formally recognizing Vulnerable Adult Multidisciplinary Teams.  This law would allow those teams to collaborate on cases and track their outcomes while protecting the confidentiality of the victims’ information by exempting these team meetings from the Freedom of Information Act and the Open Meetings Act.

Senate Bills 922-925 were voted out of the Senate Judiciary Committee on October 2 and referred favorably to the Senate Committee of the Whole.

Judges, and in particular probate court judges, may be in the best position to spot financial exploitation while presiding over related cases, including guardianship and conservatorship proceedings.

For that reason, a form has been created to allow Michigan judges to refer concerns of vulnerable adult financial exploitation directly to police, county prosecutors, adult protective services and the Michigan Department of Attorney General.

This form will be posted on the Michigan Department of Attorney General’s Elder Abuse Task Force website once it is ready for use.