HB 2923: court-ordered treatment; judicial review - Arizona

Senate Engrossed Version (04/16/2026) → Chaptered Version · 3 edits

MINOR

The bill was formally enacted into law after being approved by the Governor and filed with the Secretary of State. The substantive legal text regarding guardianship and habeas corpus procedures remained unchanged, with the primary differences being the conversion of the bill title from 'House Bill' to 'Chapter' and the addition of official approval dates.

Scope change

The bill's scope and applicability remain unchanged; the text governing Arizona Revised Statutes 14-5312.01 was not modified.

TIMELINE

Added official approval dates indicating the Governor approved the bill on June 4, 2026, and it was filed on June 5, 2026.

TECHNICAL

Changed the document title from 'HOUSE BILL 2923' to 'CHAPTER 120' to reflect its status as enacted law.

Removed the 'Senate Engrossed Version' header and replaced it with the 'Chapter' designation.

House Engrossed Version (03/09/2026) → Senate Engrossed Version (04/16/2026) · 4 edits · Apr 16, 2026

MODERATE

The bill was renumbered and shifted from the House to the Senate version, adding new subsections to clarify the guardian's authority over inpatient treatment and the timeline for judicial reviews. Key substantive changes include extending the deadline for medical directors to submit psychiatric reports for court review from three to seven business days and clarifying that a ward's attorney must be present at all times while a guardian holds inpatient treatment authority.

Scope change

The bill's scope expanded to explicitly require continuous legal representation for wards under guardian consent for inpatient care and to extend the administrative timeline for processing release requests.

TIMELINE

The deadline for medical directors to deliver psychiatric reports to the court for judicial review was extended from three business days to seven business days.

REQUIREMENT

New language requires that a ward appointed a guardian must be represented by an attorney at all times while the guardian has authority to consent to inpatient treatment.

New subsections clarify that the court can limit a guardian's authority to the least restrictive treatment alternative and must hold hearings within three days if the attorney requests a review of placement appropriateness.

TECHNICAL

The bill title was updated from 'House Engrossed' to 'Senate Engrossed' and section numbers were adjusted to reflect the Senate version (e.g., Section 1 became Section 1.1).

Introduced Version → House Engrossed Version (03/09/2026) · 5 edits · Apr 16, 2026

MODERATE

The bill was reorganized and renamed from an 'Introduced Version' to a 'House Engrossed Version,' indicating it has passed initial review. Key substantive changes include shifting the burden of proof in court-ordered treatment cases from the patient to the treatment agency, shortening the waiting period for judicial review from 90 to 60 days, and clarifying notification procedures for guardians. These changes aim to streamline the review process and ensure the agency actively proves continued necessity for involuntary treatment.

Scope change

The bill's scope remains focused on court-ordered mental health treatment and judicial review, but the applicability of the burden of proof has shifted to the treatment agency rather than the patient.

REQUIREMENT

The burden of proof for continuing court-ordered treatment was shifted from the patient to the mental health treatment agency, requiring the agency to prove by clear and convincing evidence that treatment is still necessary.

Notification procedures were updated to explicitly require the medical director to notify the guardian within three days of a judicial review request, if a guardianship exists.

The requirement for the medical director to consider the patient's history of compliance with treatment was clarified to include behavior before and after the court order.

TIMELINE

The waiting period before a patient can request judicial review was reduced from 90 days to 60 days after the original order is entered.

A new Section 3 was added to establish that the act becomes effective on December 31, 2026.

court-ordered treatment; judicial review

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