HB 18 Pennsylvania House · 2025-2026 Regular Session

An Act amending Title 20 (Decedents, Estates and Fiduciaries) of the Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes, in incapacitated persons, further providing for review hearing.

HB 18 requires courts to hold a review hearing for any person declared incapacitated under Pennsylvania law at least every two years. This directly affects individuals under court-appointed guardianship or conservatorship and their legal representatives. The key provision mandates these periodic reviews to assess whether continued incapacity and the need for court supervision remain appropriate. The bill became law on October 27, 2025 (Act No. 39 of 2025), implementing this mandatory review process.
Bill status signed all 5 stages cleared
Introduction
Jan 2025
Committee Review
Oct 2025
House Passage
Jul 2025
Senate Passage
Oct 2025
Signed into Law
Oct 2025
Introduced Jan 8, 2025 Signed Oct 27, 2025
Maddy AI version diff · 1 comparison

What changed between versions

Printer's No. PN0003 Printer's No. PN1974 · 3 edits
MINOR
The bill was updated from its original draft (Printer's No. 3) to its final amended version (Printer's No. 1974) after being reported from the Judiciary Committee. The most significant policy change is the addition of specific timelines for review hearings, requiring courts to schedule them within 30 days and hold them no later than 60 days after a petition is filed, with limited exceptions for delays. The text also clarifies that if an interested party requests a review hearing twice within 180 days without raising new issues, the court may decline to schedule a third hearing for another 180 days.
Scope change
The bill's scope regarding the review of guardianships was expanded to include strict procedural deadlines and a mechanism to prevent repetitive, unproductive review hearings.
TIMELINE

Added a mandatory requirement for courts to schedule review hearings within 30 days and hold them no later than 60 days after a petition is filed.

REQUIREMENT

Added a provision allowing courts to decline scheduling a review hearing if the same party requests one again within 180 days without presenting new facts or issues.

TECHNICAL

Changed the bill header to reflect its status as an amended version reported from the Judiciary Committee.

Floor votes · Senate Oct 7, 2025 · House Jul 1, 2025

How they voted

471
Passed · 2 other
Total votes 50
Oct 7, 2025
D Democratic23
21 Yea 2
91% Yea
R Republican27
26 Yea 1 Nay
96% Yea
Vote distribution
All Yea All Nay Mixed No data
Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions
21
Key actions
8
Committee
9
Amendments
1
Oct 27, 2025
Signed into law
Approved by the Governor
upper
Oct 7, 2025
Upper · Passed
Third consideration and final passage
upper
Oct 6, 2025
Upper · Passed
Re-reported as committed
upper
Sep 10, 2025
Committee
Re-referred to Appropriations
upper
Sep 9, 2025
Upper · Passed
Reported as committed
upper
Jul 8, 2025
Committee
Referred to Judiciary
upper
Jul 1, 2025
Lower · Passed
Third consideration and final passage
lower
Jul 1, 2025
Lower · Passed
Re-reported as committed
lower
Jun 30, 2025
Committee
Re-committed to Appropriations
lower
Jun 30, 2025
Lower · Passed
Re-reported as committed
lower
Jun 23, 2025
Committee
Re-committed to Rules
lower
Jun 23, 2025
Lower · Passed
Reported as amended
lower
Jan 8, 2025
Committee
Referred to Judiciary
lower
1 primary · 5 co-sponsors

Sponsors