BILL NUMBER: SB 1396	CHAPTERED
	BILL TEXT

	CHAPTER  405
	FILED WITH SECRETARY OF STATE  SEPTEMBER 27, 2008
	APPROVED BY GOVERNOR  SEPTEMBER 27, 2008
	PASSED THE SENATE  AUGUST 5, 2008
	PASSED THE ASSEMBLY  AUGUST 4, 2008
	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  JULY 14, 2008
	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  JUNE 9, 2008
	AMENDED IN SENATE  APRIL 8, 2008

INTRODUCED BY   Senator Cox

                        FEBRUARY 21, 2008

   An act to amend Section 27388 of the Government Code, relating to
local government.


	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   SB 1396, Cox. Local government: recording fees.
   Existing law authorizes a county board of supervisors to impose a
fee of up to $2 to be paid at the time of recording of every real
estate instrument, paper, or notice required or permitted by law to
be recorded within that county, and defines "real estate instrument"
to mean a deed of trust, an assignment of deed of trust, a
reconveyance, a request for notice, and a notice of default.
   This bill would authorize a county board of supervisors to impose
a fee of up to $3 to be paid at the time of recording of every real
estate instrument, paper, or notice required or permitted by law to
be recorded within that county, except as specified, and would define
"real estate instrument" to mean a deed of trust, an assignment of
deed of trust, a reconveyance, a request for notice, a notice of
default, a substitution of trustee, a notice of trustee sale, and a
notice of rescission of declaration of default.


THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  SECTION 1.  Section 27388 of the Government Code is amended to
read:
   27388.  (a) In addition to any other recording fees specified in
this code, upon the adoption of a resolution by the county board of
supervisors, a fee of up to three dollars ($3) shall be paid at the
time of recording of every real estate instrument, paper, or notice
required or permitted by law to be recorded within that county,
except those expressly exempted from payment of recording fees. "Real
estate instrument" is defined for the purpose of this section as a
deed of trust, an assignment of deed of trust, a reconveyance, a
request for notice, a notice of default, a substitution of trustee, a
notice of trustee sale, and a notice of recision of declaration of
default. "Real estate instrument" does not include any deed,
instrument, or writing subject to the imposition of a documentary
transfer tax as defined in Section 11911 of the Revenue and Taxation
Code, nor any document required to facilitate the transfer subject to
the documentary transfer tax. The fees, after deduction of any
actual and necessary administrative costs incurred by the county in
carrying out this section, shall be paid quarterly to the county
auditor or director of finance, to be placed in the Real Estate Fraud
Prosecution Trust Fund. The amount deducted for administrative costs
shall not exceed 10 percent of the fees paid pursuant to this
section.
   (b) Money placed in the Real Estate Fraud Prosecution Trust Fund
shall be expended to fund programs to enhance the capacity of local
police and prosecutors to deter, investigate, and prosecute real
estate fraud crimes. After deduction of the actual and necessary
administrative costs referred to in subdivision (a), 60 percent of
the funds shall be distributed to district attorneys subject to
review pursuant to subdivision (d), and 40 percent of the funds shall
be distributed to local law enforcement agencies within the county
in accordance with subdivision (c). In those counties where the
investigation of real estate fraud is done exclusively by the
district attorney, after deduction of the actual and necessary
administrative costs referred to in subdivision (a), 100 percent of
the funds shall be distributed to the district attorney, subject to
review pursuant to subdivision (d). The funds so distributed shall be
expended for the exclusive purpose of deterring, investigating, and
prosecuting real estate fraud crimes.
   (c) The county auditor or director of finance shall distribute
funds in the Real Estate Fraud Prosecution Trust Fund to eligible law
enforcement agencies within the county pursuant to subdivision (b),
as determined by a Real Estate Fraud Prosecution Trust Fund Committee
composed of the district attorney, the county chief administrative
officer, the chief officer responsible for consumer protection within
the county, and the chief law enforcement officer of one law
enforcement agency receiving funding from the Real Estate Fraud
Prosecution Trust Fund, the latter being selected by a majority of
the other three members of the committee. The chief law enforcement
officer shall be a nonvoting member of the committee and shall serve
a one-year term, which may be renewed. Members may appoint
representatives of their offices to serve on the committee. If a
county lacks a chief officer responsible for consumer protection, the
county board of supervisors may appoint an appropriate
representative to serve on the committee. The committee shall
establish and publish deadlines and written procedures for local law
enforcement agencies within the county to apply for the use of funds
and shall review applications and make determinations by majority
vote as to the award of funds using the following criteria:
   (1) Each law enforcement agency that seeks funds shall submit a
written application to the committee setting forth in detail the
agency's proposed use of the funds.
   (2) In order to qualify for receipt of funds, each law enforcement
agency submitting an application shall provide written evidence that
the agency either:
   (A) Has a unit, division, or section devoted to the investigation
or prosecution of real estate fraud, or both, and the unit, division,
or section has been in existence for at least one year prior to the
application date.
   (B) Has on a regular basis, during the three years immediately
preceding the application date, accepted for investigation or
prosecution, or both, and assigned to specific persons employed by
the agency, cases of suspected real estate fraud, and actively
investigated and prosecuted those cases.
   (3) The committee's determination to award funds to a law
enforcement agency shall be based on, but not be limited to, (A) the
number of real estate fraud cases filed in the prior year; (B) the
number of real estate fraud cases investigated in the prior year; (C)
the number of victims involved in the cases filed; and (D) the total
aggregated monetary loss suffered by victims, including individuals,
associations, institutions, or corporations, as a result of the real
estate fraud cases filed, and those under active investigation by
that law enforcement agency.
   (4) Each law enforcement agency that, pursuant to this section,
has been awarded funds in the previous year, upon reapplication for
funds to the committee in each successive year, in addition to any
information the committee may require in paragraph (3), shall be
required to submit a detailed accounting of funds received and
expended in the prior year. The accounting shall include (A) the
amount of funds received and expended; (B) the uses to which those
funds were put, including payment of salaries and expenses, purchase
of equipment and supplies, and other expenditures by type; (C) the
number of filed complaints, investigations, arrests, and convictions
that resulted from the expenditure of the funds; and (D) other
relevant information the committee may reasonably require.
   (d) The county board of supervisors shall annually review the
effectiveness of the district attorney in deterring, investigating,
and prosecuting real estate fraud crimes based upon information
provided by the district attorney in an annual report. The district
attorney shall submit the annual report to the board and to the
Legislative Analyst's Office on or before September 1 of each year.
The Legislative Analyst's Office shall compile the results and report
to the Legislature, detailing both:
   (1) Facts, based upon, but not limited to, (A) the number of real
estate fraud cases filed in the prior year; (B) the number of real
estate fraud cases investigated in the prior year; (C) the number of
victims involved in the cases filed; (D) the number of convictions
obtained in the prior year; and (E) the total aggregated monetary
loss suffered by victims, including individuals, associations,
institutions, corporations, and other relevant public entities,
according to the number of cases filed, investigations, prosecutions,
and convictions obtained.
   (2) An accounting of funds received and expended in the prior
year, which shall include (A) the amount of funds received and
expended; (B) the uses to which those funds were put, including
payment of salaries and expenses, purchase of equipment and supplies,
and other expenditures by type; (C) the number of filed complaints,
investigations, prosecutions, and convictions that resulted from the
expenditure of funds; and (D) other relevant information provided at
the discretion of the district attorney.
   (e) A county in which a district attorney fails to submit an
annual report to the Legislative Analyst's Office pursuant to the
requirements of subdivision (d) shall not expend funds held in that
county's Real Estate Fraud Prosecution Trust Fund until the district
attorney has submitted an annual report for the county's most recent
full fiscal year.
   (f) Annual reports submitted to the Legislative Analyst's Office
pursuant to subdivision (d) shall be made in a standard form and
manner determined by the Legislative Analyst's Office, in
consultation with participating law enforcement agencies.
   (g) The intent of the Legislature in enacting this section is to
have an impact on real estate fraud involving the largest number of
victims. To the extent possible, an emphasis should be placed on
fraud against individuals whose residences are in danger of, or are
in, foreclosure as defined under subdivision (b) of Section 1695.1 of
the Civil Code. Case filing decisions continue to be in the
discretion of the prosecutor.
   (h) A district attorney's office or a local enforcement agency
that has undertaken investigations and prosecutions that will
continue into a subsequent program year may receive nonexpended funds
from the previous fiscal year subsequent to the annual submission of
information detailing the accounting of funds received and expended
in the prior year.
   (i) No money collected pursuant to this section shall be expended
to offset a reduction in any other source of funds. Funds from the
Real Estate Fraud Prosecution Trust Fund shall be used only in
connection with criminal investigations or prosecutions involving
recorded real estate documents.