Established May 2016, the Florida Public Guardian Coalition, Inc., (FPGC) is a not-for-profit corporation organized to strengthen and support Florida’s public guardianship programs through the exchange of information and sharing of best practices. FPGC is able to speak as one collective voice to the issues facing public guardianship programs specifically, and indigent guardianships, generally.
Only public guardianship programs that are appointed by the Office of Public and Professional Guardians are currently eligible for voting membership in FPGC. The Coalition also offers an Associate Membership. The Office of Public and Professional Guardians officially supports the establishment of FPGC.
The first year of existence was a productive one, FPGC:
- Member agencies were kept abreast of the rulemaking initiative of the Office of Public Guardianship;
- Used monthly meetings as a venue to share concerns and best practices;
- Supported a recurring appropriation of $750,000 for public guardianship. Both the Department of Elder Affairs and Governor Scott included the appropriation in their legislative budget request.
- Spearheaded efforts to restore the annual guardianship plan reporting deadlines; and,
- Convened the First Annual Invitational Symposium with the first year’s topic of Mental Health and Guardianship.
2017 was also a productive one, FPGC:
- Continued to be a forum for sharing best practices among public guardians;
- Shared with policy makers our personal experiences relating to the real physical threats public guardians face working with a vulnerable population and their families in support of a public records exemption for the personal contact information of guardians and fiduciary employees.
- Convened the Second Annual Symposium on Disaster Preparedness for Vulnerable Adults.
- Served on the Florida Working Interdisciplinary Network of Guardianship Professionals (WINGS)
AND OUR FUTURE LOOKS EVEN BRIGHTER!!! PLEASE JOIN OUR EFFORTS