CLTA Sorting Out Final Legislative Actions and Flurry of Amendments Before Adjournment

The legislative session enters its final days with a flurry of votes and possible amendments. The fiscal committees of the Assembly and Senate took final action last Thursday on 855 bills in the Committees.  There were 293 bills pending in the Assembly Appropriations Committee on Thursday and 562 bills in the Senate Appropriations Committee. At the same time there were also over 400 bills on the floor of the Assembly and Senate. The CLTA has had its hands full working on pending legislation these last few weeks of the legislative session. 

• Title Industry to be Consulted on Mobilehome Report
  Senate Bill 996 (Padilla) was amended on August 13 to change the state law definition of a mobilehome to mean a structure that was constructed on or after June 15, 1976, with or without a foundation system, and has the same meaning as defined in federal law. Originally intended to create a pathway for reclassification of mobilehomes as real property in certain circumstances, the bill now instead requires the Department of Housing and Community to prepare and submit a report to the Legislature, after consulting with various groups, including title and escrow, that evaluates the statutory and administrative changes necessary to regulate, finance, title, tax, and protect homeowners seeking to reclassify mobilehomes to real property, including those in divided-tenure and leasehold homeownership arrangements, as well as circumstances in which the occupant owns a manufactured home, mobilehome, or commercial modular separately from the land beneath it.
  
  
• California State Senate Passes Bill Clarifying Online Notarization Act 
  The California State Senate on Monday voted 29-10 to pass Assembly Bill 1977 (Irwin), which makes a number of changes to the Online Notarization Act, the authorizing legislation directing the the California Secretary of State to implement the capabilities to support remote online notarization (RON) by January 1, 2030. Changes to the Online Notarization Act proposed by AB 1977 include clarifications to the provisions relating to the use of the notary public’s electronic signature and seal, and a requirement that a notary public pass a written exam as a condition of reappointment of their commission, among others. The bill will now be directed to the California State Assembly for consideration of amendments made in the Senate. If passed by the Assembly, the bill would then be sent to the Governor for his consideration. 
  
  
• Legislation to Increase Recording Fees and Extend Electronic Recording Authority Passed by California State Senate
  Assembly Bill 2224 (Hadwick), which would increase maximum recording fees and indefinitely extend the authority for county recorders to offer electronic recording delivery systems, was passed unanimously by the California State Senate on Monday. Under current law, the authority for county recorders to offer electronic recording delivery systems will expire on January 1, 2027, unless extended. CLTA is working with stakeholder industries to stress the importance of electronic recording in real estate transactions to lawmakers and government officials in an effort to ensure that county recorders’ ability to offer such services is not disrupted.
  
  
• Judicial Home Security Act Held in Appropriations Committee
  Assembly Bill 2235 (Pacheco), which sought to create a program administered by the Attorney General to shield home addresses of judges and their family members in public records, including real property deeds and real estate records, was held in the Senate Appropriations Committee this past week. Prior to its being held, CLTA and the bill sponsors had spent a considerable amount of time discussing amendments to ensure that the bill would not disrupt title companies’ ability to provide title and escrow services to California consumers.