Good DEED Act
Bill: H.R.9192 | Sponsor: Rep. Cleaver, Emanuel (D-MO)
Policy area: Housing and Community Development

Summary:
Good Documentation and Enforcement of Estate Deeds Act of 2022 or the Good DEED Act
This bill addresses deed fraud (i.e., forgery, impersonation, or willful misrepresentation of authority in connection with the execution of a written instrument transferring an interest in real property) by standardizing federal reporting of crimes related to deed fraud, enhancing federal penalties for individuals convicted of such crimes, and establishing a competitive grant program for states and certain localities to respond to deed fraud.

To direct the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development to establish a 
      grant program to address deed fraud, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Good Documentation and Enforcement 
of Estate Deeds Act of 2022'' or the ``Good DEED Act''.

SEC. 2. DEED FRAUD GRANT PROGRAM.

    (a) Establishment.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development 
shall establish a program (in this section referred to as the 
``Program'') to award grants, on a competitive basis, to address deed 
fraud in accordance with this section.
    (b) Eligibility.--
            (1) Eligible entities.--In carrying out the Program, the 
        Secretary may award a grant to the following:
                    (A) A State.
                    (B) A political subdivision of a State with a 
                population of 200,000 or more individuals.
            (2) Applications.--To be eligible to receive a grant under 
        the Program, an entity specified in paragraph (1) shall submit 
        to the Secretary an application at such time, in such manner, 
        and containing such information as the Secretary determines 
        appropriate.
            (3) Fingerprint requirement.--To be eligible to receive a 
        grant under the Program, an entity specified in paragraph (1) 
        that is a State shall require that if a document to be 
        notarized is a written instrument transferring an interest in 
        real property, any notary public preforming an in-person 
        notarization shall--
                    (A) if a print notary journal is used, require the 
                party signing the document to place his or her right 
                thumbprint or other finger print as appropriate in a 
                sequential notary journal entry; and
                    (B) if an electronic notary journal is used--
                            (i) save to such journal a picture of the 
                        signing party's face; or
                            (ii) save to such journal a video of the 
                        signer during the act of signing.
            (4) Recording retention requirement.--To be eligible to 
        receive a grant under the Program, a State shall require any 
        notary public performing remote notarization using audio-visual 
        technology with respect to a written instrument transferring an 
        interest in real property to submit an audio and visual 
        recording of the notarization to a repository approved by such 
        State where such recording shall be retained for not less than 
        10 years.
    (c) Use of Funds.--A grant recipient under the Program may only use 
grant amounts to fund the following activities carried out by the 
recipient or a covered organization:
            (1) Legal assistance related to deed fraud for a low-income 
        individual.
            (2) Coverage of costs associated with clearing a title for 
        a low-income individual.
            (3) Acquisition, upgrade, or implementation of technology 
        that--
                    (A) assists in preventing or detecting or 
                responding to deed fraud;
                    (B) facilitates communication in response to the 
                detection of deed fraud;
                    (C) assists in the creation of websites relating to 
                deed fraud;
                    (D) assists in the creation and use of public 
                notification systems;
                    (E) allows for geospatial information system 
                mapping of deed fraud report locations;
                    (F) enhances the indexing of information relating 
                to deed fraud;
                    (G) improves the exchange of data relating to deed 
                fraud; or
                    (H) reduces notarial fraud or mistake in the 
                performance of notarial acts.
            (4) Assistance in the prevention, detection, investigation, 
        and prosecution of deed fraud, including through the provision 
        of--
                    (A) education and training;
                    (B) information sharing and partnership 
                facilitation;
                    (C) research support and other assistance 
                supportive of intelligence-focused policing; and
                    (D) investigative support, including support staff, 
                detectives, and prosecutors.
    (d) Selection Criteria.--
            (1) Priority.--In awarding grants under the Program, the 
        Secretary shall give priority to grant applications that 
        propose to assist an area with a high actual or potential risk 
        of deed fraud affecting title, as determined by the Secretary.
            (2) Minimum allocation for legal services.--At least 35 
        percent of the amounts awarded by the Secretary under the 
        Program shall be used to provide legal assistance described in 
        subsections (c)(1) and (c)(2).
    (e) Report.--Not later than 2 years after the date of the enactment 
of this Act, the Secretary shall submit to the Committee on Financial 
Services of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Banking, 
Housing, and Urban Affairs of the Senate a report on the Program, 
including--
            (1) a description of activities funded under the Program;
            (2) an identification of factors that increase and decrease 
        the likelihood of deed fraud, which shall include the impact of 
        state laws; and
            (3) an assessment of the effectiveness of the Program in 
        assisting victims of deed fraud affecting title.
    (f) Uniform Crime Reporting Program.--The Director of the Federal 
Bureau of Investigations shall, not later than 1 year after the date of 
the enactment of this Act, add a categories for deed fraud to the 
Uniform Crime Reporting Program.
    (g) United States Sentencing Commission.--The United States 
Sentencing Commission, shall, not later than 90 days after the date of 
the enactment of this Act promulgate guidelines or amend existing 
guidelines to provide sentencing enhancements for offenses that involve 
deed fraud.
    (h) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be 
appropriated to carry out this section $10,000,000 for each of fiscal 
years 2023 through 2027.
    (i) Definitions.--In this section:
            (1) Covered organization.--The term ``covered 
        organization'' means each of the following:
                    (A) A legal services organization;
                    (B) a non-profit organization, or a State, Tribal, 
                or local government agency that develops laws, policies 
                or programs designed to prevent, detect, deter and 
                remedy deed fraud and related issues; and
            (2) Journal.--The term ``journal'' means--
                    (A) a record of notarial acts that is created and 
                maintained by a notary public; or
                    (B) all journals of notarial acts created and 
                maintained by a notary public.
            (3) Legal services organization.--The term ``legal services 
        organization'' means--
                    (A) an accredited law school;
                    (B) a public provider of legal aid or legal 
                services; or
                    (C) a nonprofit provider of legal aid or legal 
                services.
            (4) Low-income individual.--The term ``low-income 
        individual'' means an individual with a household income that 
        does not exceed 80 percent of the median income of the area in 
        which such individual resides, as determined by the Secretary.
            (5) Deed fraud.--The term ``deed fraud'' means forgery, 
        impersonation, or willful misrepresentation of authority in 
        connection with the execution of a written instrument 
        transferring an interest in real property.
            (6) Written instrument transferring an interest in real 
        property.-- The term ``written instrument transferring an 
        interest in real property'' includes any deed, mortgage, 
        satisfaction of mortgage, contract of sale, assignment or 
        termination of any of the foregoing, or any other instrument 
        which does or may evidence, create, transfer, terminate or 
        otherwise affect a legal right or interest in real property, or 
        is required for the filing of a deed, including a notarial 
        certificate, with an agency of a State or any political 
        subdivision, public authority or public benefit corporation of 
        a State.
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