Bulletin: UT2023003

Dear Associates:

The following are summaries of some of the bills passed during the 2023 legislative session which are of interest to the title industry:

HB186 Restrictions on Foreign Acquisitions of Land Act (UCA 63L-13 et seq): This bill prohibits a restricted foreign entity from acquiring an interest in land. The restriction does not apply to an interest in land acquired before May 3, 2003. The bill defines a restricted foreign entity as:

(3) “Restricted foreign entity" means:

(a) a company that the United States Secretary of Defense is required to identify and report as a military company under Section 1260H of the William M. (Mac) Thornberry National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021, Pub. L. No. 116-283;
(b) an affiliate, subsidiary, or holding company of a company described in Subsection (3)(a);
(c) a country with a commercial or defense industrial base of which a company
described in Subsection (3)(a) or (b) is a part;
(d) a state, province, region, prefecture, subdivision, or municipality of a country described in Subsection (3)(c); and
(e) an agency, bureau, committee, or department of a country described in Subsection (3)(c).

A deed or other written instrument, other than probate, purporting to convey land to a restricted foreign entity is invalid. If a restricted foreign entity acquires land on or after May 3, 2023, by grant, gift, devise, or bequest, it must alienate that interest within 5 years, or the interest will escheat to the state.

(Effective May 3, 2023)

HB211 Real Estate Amendments (UCA 57-30-101 and 61-2f-305): This bill addresses Residential Property Service Agreements (i.e., MV Realty) that are overburdensome. The law makes the Residential Property Service Agreements void and a wrongful lien. The bill also provides that delivery of commissions can be to associate brokers or real estate agents.

(Effective May 3, 2023)

HB309 County Recorder Amendments (UCA 17-21-12.5 et seq.): This bill enacts provisions whereby an individual may request that certain personal information (a signature, the first five digits of SSN, or the month and day of a birth date) be redacted by a county recorder from a copy of an originally recorded instrument. The recorder is required to maintain an unredacted version of the recorded instrument. Certain persons (persons whose personal information was redacted, the beneficiary of a deed of trust, a title company licensed in the state, or an attorney licensed by the Utah state bar) may access the unredacted versions.

(Effective May 3, 2023)

HB351 County Recorder Modifications (UCA 17-21-1 and 63C-29 et seq. and 17-50-340): The bill establishes a County Recorders Standards Board for the purpose of making statewide rules that establish standards for county recorders. The expectation is this will reduce or eliminate inconsistencies and promote uniformity among the various county recorders. The bill describes the membership and appointment of the board members and requires county legislative bodies to establish a county appeal authority to hear and decide appeals from a county recorder’s application of the board’s rules.

(Effective May 3, 2023)

HB410 Insurance Amendments (UCA 31A-19a-209 and 31A-23a-406):  The insurance department bill has eliminated requirements for title insurance licensees to submit a schedule of escrow charges. It also eliminated ‘escrow business’ from the requirement to use rates/charges that would cause the company to operate at less than the cost of doing business. The statute was updated to include the Automated Clearing House Network (ACH) electronic funds transfer system as funds that may be disbursed on the same day deposits are made if the following requirements are met:

(A) the transferred funds remain uniquely designated and traceable throughout the

entire ACH network transfer process;
(B) except as a function of the ACH network process, the transferred funds are not subject to comingling or third party access during the transfer process;
(C) the transferred funds are deposited into the title insurance producer's escrow account and are available for disbursement; and
(D) either the ACH network payment type or the title insurance producer's systems prevent the transaction from being unilaterally canceled or reversed by the consumer once the transferred funds are deposited to the individual title insurance producer or agency title producer.

(Effective May 3, 2023)

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