MAY 2019
excerpted from HousingWire 4/30/19

Iowa became the latest state to enable fully digital closings for mortgage transactions Monday with the passage of its new eNotary law. Monday, Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds signed SF 475, an act providing for notarial acts, including provisions for the use of electronic media, providing penalties, and a 7/1/20 effective date.

While eMortgages are making strides in the housing industry, eClosings are still rare, mostly due to state restrictions surrounding eNotaries. However, that is slowly beginning to change. ( Read complete article .)


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Check out the upcoming PRIA Local Chapter meetings this month and over the summer. There are meetings scheduled in Northern California, Southern California, Washington State, 2 in Wisconsin, 2 in Michigan, Georgia, and several in Minnesota. And you can always view the PRIA Local Map to help you find a Chapter meeting in your area.

A recent meeting was held in SE Minnesota on May 8 and the agenda included the following: a) septic compliance; b) GIS web mapping demo; c) assignments of contract for deeds involving mortgages; d) satisfying or releasing modified mortgages and assignment of rents; e) parcel splits, and, f) county recorder updates. Their next meeting will be held on August 7, 2019. Please see the SE Minnesota PRIA Local webpage for contact information and to see their meeting agendas and minutes.


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PRIA's Conference Planning Committee has selected the theme for the 2019 PRIA Annual Conference, “Elevate Your Game – Find Your Peak Performance.” Plan now to join PRIA members and guests in Colorado Springs, August 26-29, at The Antlers, for two-and-a-half days of thought-provoking education, spirited discussion, valuable networking and connecting. 
 
Hotel reservation information is available here and the room block is filling fast. A tentative agenda is posted to the PRIA website for your advance planning. 
 
Wondering how to convince your supervisors on the value of attending a PRIA conference? We’ve got you covered. Take a look at the 12 reasons to be in Colorado Springs in August found on the Annual Conference web page
 
The website will continue to be updated as new program information and activities are confirmed.


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The Property Records Industry Association (PRIA), through the generosity of a grant from Ernst Publishing, offers a one-year scholarship, which includes membership in PRIA for the 2019-20 membership year, along with registration (travel and hotel included) for one PRIA conference (annual 2019 or winter 2020). You, or a colleague, either government or business, could be the beneficiary of this annual scholarship. 
  
Each scholarship recipient will be selected based on outstanding contributions to the property records industry, and will be deemed eligible in one or more of the following ways:
 
  • Not currently a PRIA Member.
  • Demonstrates exceptional accomplishments in his/her chosen field.
  • Demonstrates exceptional service in local, state and/or national affairs.
  • Demonstrates exceptional service consistent with the mission and values of PRIA.
 
Each award is valued at $2,000.
 
Previous scholarship recipient Danny Hester, register of deeds, Lincoln Co., NC, said this about his scholarship, “I was fortunate enough to be the recipient of the Ernst Scholarship for the 2017-18 membership year. As a result of this membership, I have gained valuable information from the conference educational sessions and benefited from networking with the business partners, as well as recorders and clerks from around the country.”
 
Scholarship recipients for 2018-19 were Erin NIemi, land recording deputy, Okanogan Co., WA; and Tyson Fettes, register of deeds, Racine Co., WI. Both used their scholarship award funds to attend the 2019 PRIA Winter Symposium in Greenville, SC.
 
Click here for an application form and then forward that application to one, or more, of your colleagues that meet the award criteria. Or you can complete the application for yourself and submit to coordinator@pria.us .
 
But hurry! Application submission deadline is June 15 .


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excerpted from InTouch 5/9/19

As of April 30, 2019, Idaho is the 11 th state to reach the 100 percent mark with all 43 recording jurisdictions eRecording-enabled.
 
Colorado was the first multi-jurisdictional state to earn the 100 percent designation in 2011, with Arizona reaching that landmark in 2012. Massachusetts and Iowa reached the 100 percent mark in 2015, Oregon in 2018 and Nevada in February of this year. Hawaii, Alaska, Delaware and District of Columbia also claim 100 percent eRecording. 
 
With the number of counties that are eRecording across the nation now topping 1,960, significant progress continues toward nationwide acceptance of electronically recorded documents.


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Phil Bertolini, CIO from Oakland Co., MI, and a presenter at the recent PRIA Winter Symposium in Greenville, will present his program, “The Good, The Bad, The Ugly: Technology Leadership in Today’s Modern Government” in webinar format on May 23.

Register for this webinar here . And did you know? If you're a PRIA member, you can access the recordings for past PRIA webinars here . Login required.


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excerpted from JDSupra 5/6/19

On April 3, 2019, Montana Governor Steve Bullock signed into law House Bill 370 , which generally makes amendments to the Montana Revised Uniform Law on Notarial Acts. Among other things, the bill establishes the requirements for conducting electronic and remote notarizations in Montana. The law goes into effect on 10/1/19. ( Read complete article .)

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excerpted from ALTA Advocacy Update by ALTA Senior Vice President of Policy, Justin B. Ailes, April 22, 2019

"Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) Director Kathy Kraninger spoke for the first time in April publicly about her vision for the Bureau. Four parts of Kraninger's speech jumped out at me, especially when we think about RESPA. Here are the four areas along with how I score the Bureau's work to date:

1. Empowering Consumers and Turning Financial Education into Action: Although the inaccurate disclosure of title fees under TRID still needs to be fixed, overall the Loan Estimate and Closing Disclosure are a good step. They're a better tool than the old HUD-1 and TILA disclosures. Score: A

2. Ensuring Clear Rules of the Road: Frequently we hear from ALTA members about the need for clear rules of the road for RESPA. ALTA is in close touch with staff from the National Association of REALTORS and Mortgage Bankers Association, American Escrow Association and RESPRO and we hear similar concerns from all of our members: the need for RESPA rules of the road that industry can understand and adhere to, especially with regard to marketing and new companies that bring innovation to the real estate buying experience. Score: Incomplete

3. Ensuring a Culture of Compliance through Supervision: It seems that we are hearing more from ALTA members about concerns they see around RESPA compliance in their markets. Do you always see a culture of compliance by all market participants? Score: Incomplete

4. Holding Bad Actors to Account and Deterrence through Enforcement: While the financial services community felt a lot of enforcement under the previous CFPB Director Richard Cordray, this is where we not likely to experience a lot of energy from the new Director Kathy Kraninger. In the words of one observer, the "speech reinforced our expectations for the Bureau: a dramatically diminished enforcement profile." Score: Incomplete"

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