By Hartnett H.B. No. 762
74R3205 MWV-D
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
1-1 AN ACT
1-2 relating to the appointment of a court investigator in a
1-3 guardianship matter.
1-4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-5 SECTION 1. Sections 25.0025(a) and (c), Government Code, are
1-6 amended to read as follows:
1-7 (a) The judge of a statutory probate court may employ <shall
1-8 appoint> a court investigator. One person shall serve as the court
1-9 investigator for all statutory probate courts in the county unless
1-10 the commissioners court has authorized additional investigators.
1-11 The commissioners court may authorize additional court
1-12 investigators if necessary.
1-13 (c) On the filing of an application for guardianship <and
1-14 before the appointment of an attorney ad litem>, a judge of a
1-15 statutory probate court may appoint the court investigator employed
1-16 under Subsection (a) to <shall> investigate the circumstances
1-17 alleged in the application to determine whether a less restrictive
1-18 alternative than guardianship is appropriate.
1-19 SECTION 2. This Act takes effect September 1, 1995, and the
1-20 change in law made by this Act applies only to an application for
1-21 appointment of a guardian filed on or after that date. An
1-22 application for appointment of a guardian filed before the
1-23 effective date of this Act is covered by the law in effect on the
1-24 date the application was filed, and the former law is continued in
2-1 effect for that purpose.
2-2 SECTION 3. The importance of this legislation and the
2-3 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
2-4 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
2-5 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
2-6 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.