APPOINTMENT OF DEPARTMENT OF AGING AND DISABILITY SERVICES AS SUCCESSOR GUARDIAN.

(a) In this section, "department" means the Department of Aging and Disability Services.

(b) The court may appoint the department as a successor guardian of the person or estate, or both, of a ward who has been adjudicated as totally incapacitated if:

(1) there is no less-restrictive alternative to continuation of the guardianship;

(2) there is no family member or other suitable person, including a guardianship program, willing and able to serve as the ward's successor guardian;

(3) the ward is located more than 100 miles from the court that created the guardianship;

(4) the ward has private assets or access to government benefits to pay for the ward's needs;

(5) the department is served with citation and a hearing is held regarding the department's appointment as proposed successor guardian; and

(6) the appointment of the department does not violate a limitation imposed by Subsection (c).

(c) The number of appointments under Subsection (b) is subject to an annual limit of 55. The appointments must be distributed equally or as equally as possible among the health and human services regions of this state. The department, at the department's discretion, may establish a different distribution scheme to promote the efficient use and administration of resources.

(d) If the department is named as a proposed successor guardian in an application in which the department is not the applicant, citation must be issued and served on the department as provided by Section 1051.103(5).