Michael Belote, Esq.

By Michael Belote, Esq., UTA California Lobbyist, California Advocates

The legislative process proceeds according to a rhythm all of its own. The year begins slowly, ceremonially, and with little concrete action. As the end of session looms, however, the pace increases exponentially, bills are “gutted and amended”, and proposals can begin to move with virtually no notice whatever. This is why making laws has been compared to making sausage. Some groups seem to begin their legislative programs in the final days!

As this column is written, just two days remain in the legislative year, an absolute eternity for skilled tacticians. By the time of the UTA Conference in November, the legislative year will be complete and Governor Brown will have acted on the many hundreds of bills sent to him. But for now, minute-by-minute diligence is required to keep track of bills which can change very quickly.

One issue which may remain “in play” over the final days is the $75 recording fee surcharge on real estate documents proposed in AB 1335 (Atkins). By all accounts, this is a high priority for Assembly Member Toni Atkins, Speaker of the Assembly. For constitutional reasons, imposing the surcharge requires a two-thirds vote, which in turn requires “AYE” votes from a small number of Republican legislators. And thus far, Republicans have resisted a variety of tax increase proposals, whether relating to gas taxes, alcohol taxes, or others.

But the legislative process is inherently, and properly, one of give and take. Could a small number of Republicans be enticed to vote for the surcharge if it was included in a package of items they support? Attend the UTA Conference and find out!

It is now clear that several issues important to UTA will not be enacted this year. For example, AB 244, which proposed to give successors in interest of decedents the status of borrowers for purposes of the Homeowner’s Bill of Rights (HOBR), was never approved by the Assembly Banking and Finance Committee, and thus will not move this year. Another bill, SB 602, proposed a program where the California Earthquake Authority would provide funding for seismic retrofit, along with superlien priority status. This bill remains with the Assembly Appropriations Committee, so it will not be enacted this year, but it could still be approved next year.

Other bills of interest to UTA include the following:

• AB 139 (Gatto) Transfers on Death. Adds California to those states which permit transfers of real property using a “revocable transfer on death deed”. Awaiting action by the Governor.
• AB 514 (Williams): County Ordinances. Permits counties to establish administrative fines for violations of certain county ordinances, including building and safety, zoning, and others.
  Ostensibly designed to permit counties to better enforce ordinances relating to use restrictions on property, such as weddings. Awaiting action by the Governor.
• AB 661 (Mathis): Real Estate Recordings. Clarifies the exemption for certain real estate instruments from the imposition of the $10 fee which counties are authorized to fund real estate fraud enforcement. Signed by Governor-Chapter 76, Statutes of 2015.
• AB 807 (Stone): Real Estate Transfer Fees. Imposes new requirements on the language which must be presented to prospective transferees when the sale involves the imposition of private transfer fees. Awaiting action by the Governor.
• AB 1267 (Bloom): Liens and Encumbrances. Expands the current prohibition against recording false liens or encumbrances against public safety officials, to making false recordings against any person, and imposes new penalties for violations. Signed by Governor-Chapter 208, Statutes of 2015.
• SB 290 (Vidak): Assessment Lien Foreclosures. UTA-sponsored bill to provide a procedure for notice to unit owners when attempts at personal service have failed. Discussions continue on this bill, with the objective of a hearing in the Senate Judiciary Committee in January.
• SB 474 (Wieckowski): Auctions. Simplifies a bill passed last year relating to “shill” bids in real estate auctions, and eliminates an unnecessary exemption from the auction law relating to credit bids. Awaiting action by the Governor.

SB 588 (De Leon): Wage Liens. Permits the state Labor Commissioner to record liens for unpaid wages due employees after a determination of employer liability has been found and the period for appeal has expired, if the employer has not timely paid the obligation. Awaiting action by the Governor.