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Committee advances bill to require title-fee transparency for homebuyers
Summary
The Business & Utilities Subcommittee advanced House Bill 569, amended to remove underwriters from a consumer-acknowledgment requirement and instead require clearer disclosure about shared title fees so buyers know who is receiving or responsible for fees.
House Bill 569, sponsored in committee as introduced by Representative Farmer, was amended and approved for consideration by the full committee. The amendment removes underwriters from a prior version of the measure and focuses the bill’s consumer protections on requiring clear disclosure when title companies share fees, the sponsor said.
Representative Farmer explained the amendment’s centerpiece: "it provides a level of transparency, to the consumer if if title companies are gonna be sharing fees with other title companies that at least the person that are paying those fees, the consumer know know that those fees are gonna be shared." The sponsor said the change also clarifies which side of a transaction accepts responsibility so consumers can identify who would be liable if a problem arises.
Committee members asked whether the change represented a compromise and whether existing practices would be disrupted. After brief debate the committee voted to put amendment 15,999 on the bill and send the amended measure to the full committee (recorded tally: 7 ayes, 2 nays).
