2021 New Mexico Statutes
Chapter 28 - Human Rights
Article 16B - Office of Guardianship
Section 28-16B-4 - Service agreement monitoring and enforcement.

A. The office of guardianship shall monitor professional guardians providing services to income-eligible protected persons and enforce agreements the office has executed with guardianship and legal services providers. In carrying out this duty, the office may:

(1) have access to case records, copies of court filings and reports, financial records and other records maintained by guardianship and legal services providers related to the services provided to income-eligible protected persons, unless specifically sequestered by the court;

(2) petition the court of jurisdiction for access to records that have been sequestered;

(3) conduct annual comprehensive service reviews to ensure service providers comply with service agreements and statutory duties;

(4) visit protected persons to evaluate the adequacy of guardianship services provided and determine if the guardianship should be amended or terminated; and

(5) pursue legal and other remedies against service providers for noncompliance with service agreements and statutory duties.

B. The office shall protect and maintain the confidentiality of all client-specific information and records obtained to the same extent as required for the service providers and to any extent otherwise required by state or federal law.

History: Laws 2003, ch. 280, § 4; 2009, ch. 159, § 9; 2021, ch. 128, § 4.

The 2021 amendment, effective July 1, 2021, required the office of guardianship to monitor professional guardians providing services to income-eligible protected persons, and authorized the office to conduct annual comprehensive service reviews and other monitoring activities of its service providers to ensure protected persons served by the office of guardianship are receiving appropriate services; in the section heading, deleted "Contract" and added "Service agreement"; in Subsection A, in the introductory paragraph, after "shall monitor", deleted "and enforce all guardianship contracts" and added "professional guardians providing services to income-eligible protected persons and enforce agreements the office has executed with guardianship and legal services providers", in Paragraph A(1), after "maintained by", deleted "contractors related to contract services provided" and added "guardianship and legal services providers related to the services provided to income-eligible protected persons", deleted former Paragraph A(3), added new Paragraphs A(3) and A(4) and redesignated former Paragraph A(4) as Paragraph A(5), and in Paragraph A(5), after "remedies against", deleted "contractors for noncompliance with contract provisions" and added "service providers for noncompliance with service agreements and statutory duties"; and in Subsection B, after "required for the", deleted "contractor" and added "service providers".

The 2009 amendment, effective June 19, 2009, in Paragraph (3) of Subsection A, changed "ward" to "protected person".