House Bill 155 transfers the Court Visitor Program from the Office of Public Advocacy to the Alaska Court System
JUNEAU – The House of Representatives today passed legislation to streamline the successful Alaska Court Visitor Program. House Bill 155, which passed the House today by a vote of 38-2, will transfer the program from the Office of Public Advocacy to the Alaska Court System.
The Alaska Court Visitor Program provides neutral individuals with specialized training to act as independent investigators and make recommendations whether guardianships or conservatorships are necessary. Currently, the program’s responsibilities and costs have been inefficiently divided between the Alaska Court System and the Office of Public Advocacy.
House Bill 155 solves this inefficiency by transferring the entire Alaska Court Visitor Program to the Alaska Court System. Both the Alaska Court System and the Office of Public Advocacy have advocated for this change.
“The inefficiencies of the current management structure have become more obvious as the Court Visitor Program has grown. The current system is not as efficient as it should be, which is why I was pleased to see overwhelming bipartisan support to make this change happen,” said Rep. Chris Tuck (D-Anchorage)
House Bill 155 now heads to the Alaska State Senate for consideration.
