| 43 | | - | [ county clerks - duty of register of deeds - |
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| 44 | | - | notification - fee - optional confirmation - |
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| 45 | | - | liability - effective date ] |
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| 63 | + | |
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| 64 | + | |
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| 65 | + | AS INTRODUCED |
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| 66 | + | |
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| 67 | + | An Act relating to county clerks; amending 19 O.S. |
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| 68 | + | 2021, Section 298, as amended by Section 1, Chapter |
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| 69 | + | 250, O.S.L. 2024 (19 O.S. Supp. 2024, Section 298), |
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| 70 | + | which relates to the duty of register of deeds; |
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| 71 | + | requiring certain notification by county clerk; |
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| 72 | + | providing for certain fee; providing for certain |
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| 73 | + | optional confirmation; clarifying certain liability; |
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| 74 | + | updating statutory language; and prov iding an |
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| 75 | + | effective date. |
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| 46 | 76 | | |
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| 47 | 77 | | |
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| 48 | 78 | | |
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| 49 | 79 | | |
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| 50 | 80 | | |
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| 51 | 81 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA: |
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| 52 | 82 | | SECTION 1. AMENDATORY 19 O.S. 2021, Section 298, as |
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| 53 | 83 | | amended by Section 1, Chapter 250, O.S.L. 2024 (19 O.S. Supp. 2024, |
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| 54 | 84 | | Section 298), is amended to read as follows: |
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| 55 | 85 | | Section 298. A. Every county clerk in this state shall require |
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| 56 | 86 | | that the mandates of the Legislature be complied with, as expressed |
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| 57 | 87 | | in Sections 287 and 291 of this title, and for that purpose, every |
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| 58 | 88 | | instrument offered which may be accepted by the county clerk for |
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| 59 | 89 | | recording, affecting specific real propert y whether of conveyance, |
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| 60 | 90 | | encumbrance, assignment, or release of encumbrance, lease, |
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| 91 | 145 | | shall by its own terms describe the property by its specific legal |
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| 92 | 146 | | description, and provide such information as is necessary for |
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| 93 | 147 | | indexing as required in Sections 287 and 291 of this title, and on |
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| 94 | 148 | | each such instrument shall be list ed the mailing address of the |
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| 95 | 149 | | grantee, mortgagee, assignee , or other designated party to which the |
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| 96 | 150 | | instrument is to be delivered after recording. If an instrument |
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| 97 | 151 | | offered to a county clerk for recording contains more than twenty - |
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| 98 | 152 | | five legal descriptions requiring separate entries in the indexes |
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| 99 | 153 | | required by Sections 287 and 291 of this title, the descriptions |
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| 100 | 154 | | shall be sorted by addition, block, and lot if platted property, or |
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| 101 | 155 | | by township, range, and section if described by governmental survey |
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| 102 | 156 | | description. Any instrument offered to a county clerk for recording |
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| 103 | 157 | | containing more than twenty -five legal descriptions per page, |
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| 104 | 158 | | counted as each description which could require a separate lin e |
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| 105 | 159 | | entry in the numerical index, shall be accompanied by an additional |
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| 106 | 160 | | filing fee of One Dollar ($1.00) per legal description in excess of |
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| 107 | 161 | | twenty-five legal descriptions per page to be paid to the county |
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| 108 | 162 | | clerk. Unless the person offering a nonconforming in strument for |
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| 109 | 163 | | filing is willing to reform the instrument to conform to statutor y |
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| 110 | 164 | | requirements, for which purpose it may be withdrawn and refiled |
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| 111 | 165 | | during the same business day, the county clerk may refuse to record |
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| 141 | 219 | | this title, or to file or record the same in the office of the |
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| 142 | 220 | | county clerk. |
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| 143 | 221 | | B. All documents filed of record in the office of the county |
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| 144 | 222 | | clerk pursuant to subsect ion A of this section or pursuant to any |
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| 145 | 223 | | other law shall be an original or a c ertified copy of an original |
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| 146 | 224 | | document. Such documents shall be clearly legible, in the English |
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| 147 | 225 | | language, using xerographically reproducible dark ink, on paper of a |
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| 148 | 226 | | color that is xerographically reproducible by the copying equipment |
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| 149 | 227 | | in use by the county clerk. Unless otherwise provided by law, such |
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| 150 | 228 | | documents shall measure no larger than eight and one -half (8 1/2) |
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| 151 | 229 | | inches by fourteen (14) inches. All documents shall provide an are a |
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| 152 | 230 | | free of printed information sufficient in size to accommodate |
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| 153 | 231 | | affixation of the documentary stamps required by Section 3201 of |
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| 154 | 232 | | Title 68 of the Oklahoma Statutes, any certification of the payment |
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| 155 | 233 | | of mortgage taxes required by Section 1901 et seq. of Title 68 of |
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| 156 | 234 | | the Oklahoma Statutes, and the recording information affixed by the |
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| 157 | 235 | | county clerk upon acceptance of a document for recordation. Any |
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| 158 | 236 | | part of a signature or any stray markings within the margin shall |
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| 159 | 237 | | not void the requirements for accepting and filing any document by |
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| 160 | 238 | | any county within the state, provided there remains sufficien t space |
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| 161 | 239 | | for the affixation of stamps and recording information without |
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| 162 | 240 | | covering language contained in the instrument. If an instrument |
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| 192 | 294 | | information without covering language contained in the instrument, |
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| 193 | 295 | | the county clerk shall attach an additional page to the document to |
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| 194 | 296 | | provide for the affixation of such st amps and recording information. |
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| 195 | 297 | | A county clerk shall not charge any additiona l fee or fine for stray |
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| 196 | 298 | | markings within the margin of a document. The top margin of all |
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| 197 | 299 | | documents shall be at least two (2) inches and all other margins |
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| 198 | 300 | | shall be at least one (1 ) inch. |
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| 199 | 301 | | C. Despite any provision in this section to the contrary, the |
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| 200 | 302 | | county clerk shall accept for filing any document that fails to meet |
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| 201 | 303 | | the requirements of subsection B of this section if: |
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| 202 | 304 | | 1. The document is an original or a certified copy of an |
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| 203 | 305 | | original; |
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| 204 | 306 | | 2. The document is legible without the aid of magnification or |
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| 205 | 307 | | other enhancement of the text; |
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| 206 | 308 | | 3. The document is xerographically reproducible by the copying |
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| 207 | 309 | | equipment in use by the county clerk; |
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| 208 | 310 | | 4. The document meets all other statutory requirement s for |
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| 209 | 311 | | recordation; and |
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| 210 | 312 | | 5. The person offering the instrument for recording pays the |
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| 211 | 313 | | additional fee provided in Section 32 of Title 28 of the Oklahoma |
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| 212 | 314 | | Statutes for nonconforming documents. |
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| 243 | 369 | | that the document be an original or certified copy of an original |
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| 244 | 370 | | instrument or document, provided that the digitized image or |
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| 245 | 371 | | electronic copy is submitted for recording electronically pursuant |
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| 246 | 372 | | to the Uniform Real Property Electronic Recording Act in Title 16 of |
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| 247 | 373 | | the Oklahoma Statutes and all other rules promulgated pursuant to |
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| 248 | 374 | | that act. |
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| 249 | 375 | | E. This section shall not apply to plats, filings under the |
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| 250 | 376 | | Uniform Commercial Code, or any other instruments that may b e filed |
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| 251 | 377 | | pursuant to any other law. |
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| 252 | 378 | | F. All documents accepted for filing, including all documents |
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| 253 | 379 | | filed before February 18, 1997, shall be deemed to comply with the |
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| 254 | 380 | | requirements of this section and, except as otherwise provided by |
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| 255 | 381 | | law, impart constructive notice of the contents of such document to |
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| 256 | 382 | | third parties unless a person claiming adversely to any such |
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| 257 | 383 | | document files an affidavit setting forth the basis of such claim in |
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| 258 | 384 | | the office of the county clerk of the county where the property is |
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| 259 | 385 | | located within six (6) months from February 18, 1997. |
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| 260 | 386 | | G. Upon the filing of a deed, the county clerk shall notify or |
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| 261 | 387 | | attempt to notify the previous deed holder of the filing. The |
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| 262 | 388 | | county clerk may determine the most effective way to notify the |
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| 263 | 389 | | previous deed holder and may use third -party vendors, provided the |
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| 294 | 444 | | dollar notification fee to the filer of the deed for each deed filed |
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| 295 | 445 | | with the county clerk to effectuate the purposes of this subsection. |
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| 296 | 446 | | H. The county clerk shall provide an immediate option for a |
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| 297 | 447 | | deed holder to, at any time, place a trigger within their deed, |
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| 298 | 448 | | which shall require the county clerk to contact such deed holder at |
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| 299 | 449 | | the time of any subsequent filings to immediately notify and verify |
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| 300 | 450 | | that they are or are not the person or entity transfer ring the deed. |
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| 301 | 451 | | If the deed holder, once contact is established, contests the |
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| 302 | 452 | | validity of the proposed deed filing, the county clerk shall cease |
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| 303 | 453 | | completion of the filing and submit a formal and immediate inquiry |
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| 304 | 454 | | to the local district attorney to investigat e and make a |
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| 305 | 455 | | determination as to whether the awaiting filing of a deed is |
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| 306 | 456 | | fraudulent or is a legitimate deed conveyance. The district |
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| 307 | 457 | | attorney shall verify with the original deed holder if they want to |
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| 308 | 458 | | allow the new deed to be filed or if they want to hal t the filing. |
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| 309 | 459 | | If the deed holder does not respond within five (5) business da ys |
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| 310 | 460 | | and every reasonable attempt has been made to contact such deed |
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| 311 | 461 | | holder, then the county cle rk shall complete the proposed filing . |
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| 312 | 462 | | I. The county clerk shall not be liable to a deed holder for |
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| 313 | 463 | | any damages pursuant to this section when the notification processes |
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| 314 | 464 | | of this section are followed. |
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