Electronic Recording Certified in Two More California Counties

September 30, 2010

Riverside and Santa Barbara counties have received state Attorney General clearance to begin recording property documents electronically through a multi-county recording system pioneered by Orange County.

The system, known as SECURE, ushers counties into the 21 Century by eliminating the time and expense of either mailing or hand-carrying property documents to be recorded.

Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside and San Diego counties share ownership of the SECURE system. The counties represent more than 60% of all documents recorded statewide. Santa Barbara, Sacramento and San Mateo counties are partners in SECURE; other counties are encouraged to join.

Los Angeles, the largest county in the nation, began recording documents electronically alongside Orange County when the system launched in December 2009. In August, Los Angeles County celebrated its 4,500 electronically recorded document.

“Santa Barbara is excited to have completed this next step towards providing improved and efficient electronic recording services for our customers,” Santa Barbara Clerk-Recorder-Assessor Joseph Holland said of the certification.

Riverside County Assessor-County Clerk-Recorder Larry Ward was equally enthusiastic. “We believe SECURE will enable us to provide our recording customers with even better service than we provide today,” he said.

“We’re thrilled to welcome two new counties into the world of electronic recording,” said Orange County Clerk-Recorder Tom Daly.

The system reduces expenses and increases efficiency for users statewide. Customers are able to submit documents from a single computer screen to every participating county using the system. The Attorney General’s office reviews and approves electronic recording systems to ensure rigorous security safeguards.

In 1997, Orange County was first in the United States to implement an electronic document recording system.

The county has recorded more than 5.5 million documents electronically since then, without a single known security breach. Orange County has 198 pre-authorized users, most of whom are high-volume customers.


Contact ALTA at 202-296-3671 or communications@alta.org.