Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-02-16
LIEN BILL IS HELD
HELP TO OWNERS
Enactment Would Be Step for
Free Sale OF Property,
Says Realty Board.

A bill providing for the divestiture OF
Federal liens has passed the House OF
Representatives and is now in the hands
of the Senate committee on the
judiciary.
THE bill is of importance to all
owners of real estate in that its enact
rnent would be a definite step toward
the removal Of unnecessary restrictions
against the free sale Of real property,
the National Association Of Real Estate
Boards declares.
The enactment OF this bill. II. r.
1881, would permit the United States
to be made a party defendant in cases
in which a mortgage seeks to foreclose
under his prior lien where there has
been filed against the real estate a
Junior lien by the Federal Government
for some debt due the United States by
the owner of the equity in the property
and for which the mortgage owes no
obligation" the board said.
Effect Is Cited.
The effect of the bill on real estate
liens as stated by the House committee
on the judiciary in reporting on the bill
and recommending its passage is as fol-
lows:
This legislation has been recon-
against the injustice with which mort
cages are confronted under the present
stat of the law who find when il is
necessary to foreclose their mortgages
that there has been filed against the
property a junior lien by the Federal
Government for some debt due the
United States by the owner Of the prop
erty, and for which the mortgage owes
no obligation either legal or moral In
such circumstances 1t Is I'M
possible for him to bring about a
judicial sale of the property owing to
the cloud upon the title created by the
Governments lien. He cannot remove
the lien and there is no way by which
he may bring the United States in as
one Of the parties to the foreclosure
procedure. He is defeated in
his own right to foreclosure unless he
is willing to pay off the Government
lien. debt for which he is in no way
RESPONSIBLE
THE purpose of this bill is to provide
q simple and just method Of proceeding
in such cases, one which is fair to the
holder of the prior lien on the real
estate and which amply and fully pro-
tects the rights of the Federal Govern
ment."
Essence Of Bill Outlined.
The essence of the bill as outlined in
the report of the House committee on
the judiciary is as follows:
The bill simply provides that when
ever prior lien or encumbrance bill
State court, and 1t shall appear that
there is filed of record lien in favor
OF the United States the plain
till or plaintiffs may have the
proceedings removed to the United
States district court in the district
where the property subject to the lien
is situated and authorizes the district
court to enter an order expressly author
izing the addition of the United States
as party defendant and to proceed to
a hearing upon the question of the
priority of the lien Of the plaintiff or
plaintiffs over the lien held by the
the status of the Federal Governments
lien the case shall be remand
ed to the State court so that
1t may proceed to execution and to sale,
subject, however to such order as may
be entered by the United States district
court limiting the judgment in the suit
as against the rights, II any, Of the
United States.
"The bill further provides that the
lien of the United States upon the prop
erty in question shall be subject to dis
charge from said property by the
judicial sale ordered by the State court
in the same manner as may be provided
by the State law as to other liens and
that the United States shall be rele-
gated to the fund produced by such
sale. The procedure provided
allows the State court to retain its juris-
dicLion over the real estate, saving only
to the Federal Government the right to
determine the status Of its lien In its
own court.
ct is hoped that Congress will speed
lily enact this legislation"