BILL ANALYSIS
------------------------------------------------------------
|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 2618|
|Office of Senate Floor Analyses | |
|1020 N Street, Suite 524 | |
|(916) 651-1520 Fax: (916) | |
|327-4478 | |
------------------------------------------------------------
CONSENT
Bill No: AB 2618
Author: Nestande (R)
Amended: 3/25/10 in Assembly
Vote: 21
SENATE JUDICIARY COMMITTEE : 5-0, 6/10/10
AYES: Corbett, Harman, Hancock, Leno, Walters
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 74-0, 4/22/10 (Consent) - See last page
for vote
SUBJECT : Local government: county recorder
SOURCE : County Recorders Association of California
DIGEST : This bill authorizes the board of supervisors of
any county to adopt a resolution authorizing the county
recorder to notify a party of the execution of an
instrument affecting their interest in real property,
within 30 days of the resolution, as specified.
ANALYSIS : Existing law authorizes the Los Angeles County
Board of Supervisors and the Riverside County Board of
Supervisors to adopt a resolution authorizing the county
recorder to notify the parties or parties executing a deed,
quitclaim deed, or deed of trust. (Sections 27297.6 and
27297.7 of the Government Code)
Existing law permits the Los Angeles County Recorder to
collect a fee from the party filing a deed, quitclaim deed,
CONTINUED
AB 2618
Page
2
or deed of trust. That fee, capped at $7, may not exceed
the mailing cost of the above notice. (Section 27387.1 of
the Government Code)
This bill expands the above authorization statewide by
permitting a board of supervisors of any county to adopt a
resolution authorizing the county recorder to notify the
parties executing a deed, quitclaim deed, or deed of trust.
This bill does not extend the fee authority statewide.
Background
Real estate fraud has impacted struggling homeowners
throughout the state for many years. In response to
several scams taking place in the early 1990s, the
Legislature approved SB 1842 (Watson), Chapter 815,
Statutes of 1992, which permitted the Los Angeles County
Recorder to notify property owners within 30 days after the
recording of a deed. That notification sought to respond
to scams where homeowners were tricked into signing a
quitclaim deed for their property (thus, transferring the
home), and where "foreclosure sharks" forge an owner's
signature and take out a loan on the property without their
knowledge or consent. While that bill sunset on January 1,
1996, SB 1631 (Watson), Chapter 177, Statutes of 1996,
permanently continued its provisions the following year.
Specifically, that bill permitted the Los Angeles County
Board of Supervisors to adopt a resolution authorizing the
county recorder to notify the parties executing specified
documents affecting their interest in real property.
As a result of concerns regarding fraud in Riverside
County, SB 1287 (Hollingsworth), Chapter 117, Statutes of
2008, enacted similar provisions with regards to that
county. The extension was supported by two cases where
several undeveloped properties were sold without the
owners' knowledge. Given the remote nature of the
properties, the owners did not know that their property had
been sold and in one case, the owner only discovered the
scam when he drove past the property and discovered a "for
sale" sign.
This bill further extends the above program to any county,
thus permitting any board of supervisors to implement the
CONTINUED
AB 2618
Page
3
notification requirements in any county.
Prior Legislation
SB 1287 (Hollingsworth), Chapter 117, Statutes of 2008,
passed the Senate on April 1, 2008, with a vote of 37-0.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: No
Local: No
SUPPORT : (Verified 6/14/10)
County Recorders Association of California (source)
California District Attorneys Association
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : According to the author, "Assembly
Bill 2618 is designed to equip counties with a tool that
will enable individuals to fight real estate fraud. There
are horror stories of people having had their home
unknowingly sold. Citizens are better able to protect
themselves and seek help once they gain knowledge of
recordations affecting their property. AB 2618 would allow
a county a mechanism to accomplish this protection."
ASSEMBLY FLOOR :
AYES: Adams, Ammiano, Anderson, Arambula, Bass, Beall,
Bill Berryhill, Tom Berryhill, Blakeslee, Block,
Bradford, Brownley, Buchanan, Charles Calderon, Carter,
Chesbro, Conway, Cook, Coto, Davis, De La Torre, De Leon,
DeVore, Emmerson, Eng, Evans, Feuer, Fletcher, Fong,
Fuentes, Fuller, Furutani, Gaines, Galgiani, Garrick,
Gilmore, Hagman, Hall, Harkey, Hayashi, Hernandez, Hill,
Jeffries, Jones, Knight, Lieu, Logue, Bonnie Lowenthal,
Ma, Mendoza, Miller, Monning, Nava, Nestande, Niello,
Nielsen, V. Manuel Perez, Portantino, Ruskin, Salas,
Saldana, Silva, Skinner, Smyth, Solorio, Audra
Strickland, Swanson, Torlakson, Torres, Torrico, Tran,
Villines, Yamada, John A. Perez
NO VOTE RECORDED: Blumenfield, Caballero, Huber, Huffman,
Norby, Vacancy
CONTINUED
AB 2618
Page
4
RJG:mw 6/14/10 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
**** END ****
CONTINUED