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S.B. No. 335
AN ACT
relating to the recording of electronic documents.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Title 3, Property Code, is amended by adding
Chapter 15 to read as follows:
CHAPTER 15. UNIFORM REAL PROPERTY ELECTRONIC RECORDING ACT
Sec. 15.001. SHORT TITLE. This chapter may be cited as the
Uniform Real Property Electronic Recording Act.
Sec. 15.002. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter:
(1) "Document" means information that is:
(A) inscribed on a tangible medium or that is
stored in an electronic or other medium and is retrievable in
perceivable form; and
(B) eligible to be recorded in the real property
records maintained by a county clerk.
(2) "Electronic" means relating to technology having
electrical, digital, magnetic, wireless, optical, electromagnetic,
or similar capabilities.
(3) "Electronic document" means a document that is
received by a county clerk in an electronic form.
(4) "Electronic signature" means an electronic sound,
symbol, or process attached to or logically associated with a
document and executed or adopted by a person with the intent to sign
the document.
(5) "Paper document" means a document that is received
by a county clerk in a form that is not electronic.
Sec. 15.003. UNIFORMITY OF APPLICATION AND CONSTRUCTION.
In applying and construing this chapter, consideration must be
given to the need to promote uniformity of the law with respect to
the subject matter of this chapter among states that enact a law
substantially similar to this chapter.
Sec. 15.004. VALIDITY OF ELECTRONIC DOCUMENTS. (a) If a
law requires, as a condition for recording, that a document be an
original, be on paper or another tangible medium, or be in writing,
the requirement is satisfied by an electronic document that
complies with the requirements of this chapter.
(b) If a law requires, as a condition for recording, that a
document be signed, the requirement is satisfied by an electronic
signature.
(c) A requirement that a document or a signature associated
with a document be notarized, acknowledged, verified, witnessed, or
made under oath is satisfied if the electronic signature of the
person authorized to perform that act, and all other information
required to be included, is attached to or logically associated
with the document or signature. A physical or electronic image of a
stamp, impression, or seal need not accompany an electronic
signature.
Sec. 15.005. RECORDING OF DOCUMENTS. (a) A county clerk
who implements any of the functions described by this section shall
act in compliance with rules adopted by the Texas State Library and
Archives Commission under Chapter 195, Local Government Code, and
standards established by the Texas State Library and Archives
Commission under Section 15.006.
(b) A county clerk may:
(1) receive, index, store, archive, and transmit
electronic documents;
(2) provide for access to, and for search and
retrieval of, documents and information by electronic means;
(3) convert paper documents accepted for recording
into electronic form;
(4) convert into electronic form information recorded
before the county clerk began to record electronic documents;
(5) accept electronically any fee or tax that the
county clerk is authorized to collect; and
(6) agree with other officials of a state, a political
subdivision of a state, or the United States on procedures or
processes to facilitate the electronic satisfaction of prior
approvals and conditions precedent to recording and the electronic
payment of fees and taxes.
(c) A county clerk who accepts electronic documents for
recording shall:
(1) continue to accept paper documents; and
(2) place entries for paper documents and electronic
documents in the same index.
Sec. 15.006. UNIFORM STANDARDS. (a) The Texas State
Library and Archives Commission by rule shall adopt standards to
implement this chapter.
(b) To keep the standards and practices of county clerks in
this state in harmony with the standards and practices of recording
offices in other jurisdictions that enact a law that is
substantially similar to this chapter and to keep the technology
used by county clerks in this state compatible with technology used
by recording offices in other jurisdictions that enact a law that is
substantially similar to this chapter, the Texas State Library and
Archives Commission, so far as is consistent with the purposes,
policies, and provisions of this chapter, in adopting, amending,
and repealing standards shall consider:
(1) standards and practices of other jurisdictions;
(2) the most recent standards promulgated by national
standard-setting bodies, such as the Property Records Industry
Association;
(3) the views of interested persons and governmental
officials and entities; and
(4) the needs of counties of varying size, population,
and resources.
Sec. 15.007. RELATION TO ELECTRONIC SIGNATURES IN GLOBAL
AND NATIONAL COMMERCE ACT. This chapter modifies, limits, and
supersedes the federal Electronic Signatures in Global and National
Commerce Act (15 U.S.C. Section 7001 et seq.) but does not modify,
limit, or supersede Section 101(c) of that Act (15 U.S.C. Section
7001(c)) or authorize electronic delivery of any of the notices
described in Section 103(b) of that Act (15 U.S.C. Section
7003(b)).
Sec. 15.008. CONSTRUCTION WITH OTHER LAW. Except as
otherwise provided by this chapter, Chapter 195, Local Government
Code, and the rules adopted by the Texas State Library and Archives
Commission under that chapter apply to electronic documents filed
in accordance with this chapter.
SECTION 2. Section 191.009, Local Government Code, is
amended to read as follows:
Sec. 191.009. ELECTRONIC FILING AND RECORDING. (a) A
county clerk may accept electronic documents and other instruments
by electronic filing and record the electronic documents and other
instruments electronically if the filing or recording complies with
the rules adopted by the Texas State Library and Archives
Commission under Chapter 195. [Such an instrument is an electronic
record, as defined by Section 43.002, Business & Commerce Code.]
(b) An electronic document or other instrument that is filed
electronically in compliance with the rules adopted under Chapter
195 is considered to have been filed in compliance with any law
relating to the filing of instruments with a county clerk.
(c) For purposes of this section:
(1) an instrument is an electronic record, as defined
by Section 43.002, Business & Commerce Code; and
(2) "electronic document" has the meaning assigned by
Section 15.002, Property Code.
SECTION 3. Section 195.001, Local Government Code, is
amended by adding Subdivision (3) to read as follows:
(3) "Electronic document" has the meaning assigned by
Section 15.002, Property Code.
SECTION 4. Sections 195.002 through 195.007 and Section
195.009, Local Government Code, are amended to read as follows:
Sec. 195.002. ADOPTION OF RULES. (a) The commission
shall adopt rules by which a county clerk may accept electronic
documents and other instruments by electronic filing and record
electronic documents and other instruments electronically under
Section 191.009.
(b) The rules must provide for:
(1) the electronic filing with and recording by the
county clerk of:
(A) real property records; and
(B) except for records maintained under Section
192.006, other instruments filed with and recorded by the county
clerk as determined by the commission;
(2) the means by which an electronic document or other
instrument may be electronically transmitted to a county clerk for
filing;
(3) the means by which a county clerk may
electronically record an electronic document or other instrument
filed electronically;
(4) requiring that the means adopted under Subdivision
(2) or (3) be generally available, nonproprietary technology; and
(5) security standards to prevent the filing and
recording of fraudulent electronic documents or other instruments
or alteration of electronic documents or other instruments that
were previously filed and recorded electronically.
(c) Rules adopted by the commission under this section that
permit the use of digital signatures in the electronic filing of
electronic documents or other instruments with the county clerk
must be, to the extent practicable, consistent with rules governing
digital signatures adopted by the Department of Information
Resources under Section 2054.060, Government Code[, as added by
Chapter 528, Acts of the 75th Legislature, Regular Session, 1997].
(d) Before adopting or amending a rule under this section,
the commission shall consider the recommendations of the Electronic
Recording Advisory Committee established under Section 195.008.
(e) Notwithstanding Sections 43.017 and 43.018, Business &
Commerce Code, a county clerk may accept any filed electronic
record, as defined by Section 43.002, Business & Commerce Code, or
electronic document and may electronically record that electronic
document or record if the filing and recording of that electronic
document or record complies with rules adopted by the commission
under this section.
Sec. 195.003. PERSONS AUTHORIZED TO FILE ELECTRONICALLY.
The following persons may file electronic documents or other
documents electronically for recording with a county clerk that
accepts electronic filing and recording under this chapter:
(1) an attorney licensed in this state;
(2) a bank, savings and loan association, savings
bank, or credit union doing business under laws of the United States
or this state;
(3) a federally chartered lending institution, a
federal government-sponsored entity, an instrumentality of the
federal government, or a person approved as a mortgagee by the
United States to make federally insured loans;
(4) a person licensed to make regulated loans in this
state;
(5) a title insurance company or title insurance agent
licensed to do business in this state; or
(6) an agency of this state.
Sec. 195.004. NOTICE OF CONFIRMATION. (a) A county clerk
that accepts electronic filing and recording under this chapter
shall confirm or reject an electronic filing of an electronic
document or other instrument not later than the first business day
after the date the electronic document or other [an] instrument is
filed. Notice under this section must be made:
(1) by electronic means if possible; or
(2) if notice under Subdivision (1) is not possible,
by telephone or electronic facsimile machine.
(b) If the county clerk fails to provide notice of rejection
within the time provided by Subsection (a), the electronic document
or other instrument is considered accepted for filing and may not
subsequently be rejected.
Sec. 195.005. TIME ELECTRONIC DOCUMENT OR OTHER INSTRUMENT
CONSIDERED FILED OR RECORDED. An electronic document or other
instrument that is recorded electronically under this chapter is
considered to be recorded in compliance with a law relating to the
recording of electronic documents or other instruments as of the
county clerk's business day on which the electronic document or
other instrument is filed electronically. An electronic document
or other instrument filed electronically under this chapter must be
recorded as timely as an instrument filed by any other means.
Sec. 195.006. ADDITIONAL FEE PROHIBITED. The fee to file or
record an electronic document or other instrument electronically
under this chapter is the same as the fee for filing or recording
the instrument by other means, and a county clerk may not charge an
additional fee for filing or recording an electronic document or
other instrument electronically under this chapter.
Sec. 195.007. ACCESS TO ELECTRONIC DOCUMENT OR OTHER
INSTRUMENT RECORDED ELECTRONICALLY. (a) An electronic document
or other instrument filed or recorded electronically must be
available for public inspection in the same manner and at the same
time as an instrument filed or recorded by other means.
(b) The county clerk shall provide a requestor, as defined
by Section 552.003, Government Code, of an electronic document or
other instrument filed or recorded electronically under this
chapter with electronic copies of the electronic document or other
instrument in a form that is capable of being processed by the use
of technology that is generally available and nonproprietary in
nature. The county clerk shall provide the copies to the requestor
at the cost of producing the copies in accordance with Section
552.262, Government Code.
Sec. 195.009. FILING. For purposes of this chapter, an
electronic document or other instrument is filed with the county
clerk when it is received by the county clerk, unless the county
clerk rejects the filing within the time and manner provided by this
chapter and rules adopted under this chapter.
SECTION 5. (a) The change in law made by this Act applies
only to a document that is filed for recording on or after the
effective date of this Act. A document that is filed for recording
before the effective date of this Act is covered by the law in
effect at the time the document was filed, and that law is continued
in effect for that purpose.
(b) A rule adopted before the effective date of this Act by
the Texas State Library and Archives Commission under Chapter 195,
Local Government Code, applies to an electronic document filed for
recording in accordance with Chapter 15, Property Code, as added by
this Act, on or after the effective date of this Act.
SECTION 6. This Act takes effect September 1, 2005.
______________________________ ______________________________
President of the Senate Speaker of the House
I hereby certify that S.B. No. 335 passed the Senate on
March 17, 2005, by the following vote: Yeas 30, Nays 0.
______________________________
Secretary of the Senate
I hereby certify that S.B. No. 335 passed the House on
May 23, 2005, by a non-record vote.
______________________________
Chief Clerk of the House
Approved:
______________________________
Date
______________________________
Governor