Who Can Be the Trustee of a Miller Trust in Georgia?
In Georgia, the trustee of a Miller Trust (Qualified Income Trust) is whoever manages the trust account — depositing the applicant's income each month and paying out only what DCH allows. Per Section 2407, the applicant/recipient may NOT serve as his or her own trustee. A spouse, anyone named in the trust who is willing and capable, or a nursing-home representative may serve (a nursing home may be trustee but may not establish the trust). Whoever establishes the QIT for the applicant must show a Power of Attorney, court-appointed guardianship, or conservatorship. The trustee is the authorized signer on the QIT bank account, makes the monthly deposits and the allowable disbursements, keeps records (bank statements, cancelled checks, receipts), and accounts to the county DFCS office on behalf of DCH at the twelve-month review. A distinctive Georgia rule: income may NOT be direct-deposited into the QIT from the income source — each month the current month's income is transferred into the QIT account from the applicant's regular bank account. The template requires no trustee bond and provides for successor trustees. The trustee does not have to be a lawyer or a professional; for the core setup this is a role most families fill themselves. For a complex situation, consult a Georgia-licensed elder-law attorney. This guide is informational only and is not legal advice.
The trustee does not have to be an attorney or a professional fiduciary. Managing a Qualified Income Trust is an operational job, not a legal one: open the account, move the applicant's income through it each month, and pay out only what DCH allows — the same short list of tasks every month.
What the trustee does each month
- Deposits the applicant's income — Social Security, pension, and any other named sources — into the dedicated trust account.
- Pays out only the amounts DCH permits: typically the applicant's personal-needs allowance of $70/month, any spousal allowance, and the applicant's share of medical and care costs.
- Keeps simple records of what went in and what came out, so the trust stays compliant and Medicaid has no reason to question it.
Name a backup trustee
Many families name a successor trustee when they set the trust up, so that if the first trustee cannot continue, the trust keeps running without interruption. Either way the Georgia setup is the same — see the step-by-step setup and what to say at the bank.
Common questions
- Does the trustee of a Georgia Miller Trust have to be a lawyer?
- No. Managing a Qualified Income Trust is an administrative task — opening the dedicated account, depositing the applicant's income each month, and paying out only the amounts DCH allows. Per Section 2407, the applicant/recipient may NOT serve as his or her own trustee. For advice on your specific situation, consult a Georgia-licensed elder-law attorney.