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Recorder reports surge in e-recordings, warns of 395,000 back-indexing backlog
Summary
The county recorder reported e-recordings made up 76% of roughly 10,442 recordings last year, described a free property-fraud alert service and said about 395,000 documents need back-indexing dating from 1822–1990; he also warned about software changes by vendors and data-security risks with some AI tools.
Jay, the county recorder of deeds, gave an extended report on the office's workload, technology and fraud-prevention services, saying e-recordings now account for the majority of filings and that the office faces a significant back-indexing backlog.
"We have a total volume of 10,442 last year... 76% of those were e recordings," Jay said, describing daily peaks in e-recording times and the county's dedicated desk for handling electronic submissions. He told commissioners the office offers a free property-fraud alert signup for residents and that, when fraud is detected, the registry can trigger phone and text notifications to affected property owners.
Jay reported an archival backlog he said covers records from 1822 to 1990: "we have 395,000 documents that are needed to be back indexed at the moment," he said, adding the office does quality checks on incoming documents and will reject filings that do not meet statutory recording requirements. He also warned about a vendor-software issue where a company’s tools altered document appearance and said vendor settings were turned off after recorders raised concerns.
On storage and redundancy, Jay said electronic records are backed up with third-party services (named during the report) and physical documents are stored locally, with some records held at partner repositories. The recorder cautioned staff to limit access to sensitive areas and said training and signage help manage interactions with outside visitors and constitutional auditors.
Commissioners did not take formal action on the recorder's items at this meeting but acknowledged the scope of the backlog and the need to monitor fees and storage costs. The recorder noted state-level legislation to raise certain recording fees (from $24 to $26 was mentioned) that, if enacted, would route modest additional revenue to preservation and land-survey funds.
