The amount and distribution of the real estate transfer fee, grants under the land information program, real property recording notification systems, and making an appropriation. (FE)

Under current law, the Department of Administration administers a land information program, using revenue from the land information fund, that provides funding to counties for the modernization of local land records. Under the land information program, DOA awards land information system base budget grants to counties to enable county land information offices to develop, maintain, and operate basic land information systems. Currently, the minimum amount of a grant is $100,000 less the amount of certain fees retained by the county in the preceding fiscal year. The bill increases that base amount to $175,000 less the retained fees.

Under current law, DOA may award a grant under the land information program to any county in an amount not less than $1,000 per year to be used for the training and education of county employees for the design, development, and implementation of a land information system. The bill increases the minimum training and education grant amount from $1,000 to $5,000.

The bill directs DOA to award additional local government contribution based grants to counties to fully distribute 46 percent of the amount of real estate transfer fees that are deposited into the land information fund under the bill in each fiscal year. Under the bill, DOA annually must award 46 percent of those deposited amounts as grants to counties based on the relative proportion of the fees each county collected.

This bill also requires any county that retains real estate transfer fee moneys to establish a real property recording notification system to be administered by the county’s register of deeds. Upon application by a person, such a system monitors publicly recorded real property records for activity and changes related to properties owned by a specific person or a specific property, and, upon the recording of a new document against a monitored property, notifies the person who applied for monitoring. The bill specifies that no fee may be charged to an applicant for application, monitoring, or notification under such a system.