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MD House Bill 130

Legislation

State: Maryland
Signed: May 12, 2026

Effective: October 01, 2026
Chapter: 399

Summary

The Maryland General Assembly creates a deed fraud study task force that explicitly requires a commissioned Notary as an appointed member.

Affects

Creates an uncodified law.

Changes
  1. Creates a task force to study deed fraud.
  2. Lists the individuals, as specified, that will comprise the task force, including an individual with experience as a Notary.
  3. Charges the task force to: (a) study incidents of deed fraud in Maryland, including the number of deed fraud complaints, the number of resolved deed fraud cases, the amount of restitution awarded, and geographic and demographic trends; (b) study how deed fraud is combatted in other states; (c) identify patterns used by perpetrators of deed fraud and patterns in demographics of victims of deed fraud; (d) develop recommendations for deed fraud detection tools; (e) conduct an analysis on victims of deed fraud that identifies the economic impact on victims; and (f) make recommendations for combatting deed fraud in Maryland, including strategies for intergovernmental coordination to more effectively detect and prevent deed fraud.
  4. Requires the task force to report its findings and recommendations to the General Assembly on or before July 1, 2028.
Analysis

House Bill 130 creates a temporary Maryland Task Force to Study Deed Fraud, signaling that fraudulent property transfers are a growing issue and concern in Maryland. The Task Force includes representatives from law enforcement, the judiciary, housing agencies, legal aid, title insurance, and the Notary profession. Including a Notary on the Task Force indicates lawmakers plan to examine how fraudulent acknowledgments, forged signatures, and identity theft contribute to deed fraud.

The Task Force is directed to study complaint volume, resolved cases, restitution, geographic and demographic patterns, and economic impacts on victims. It appears lawmakers want comprehensive statewide data on deed fraud and are attempting to quantify the scope of the problem before proposing permanent reforms. By requiring analysis of victim demographics and economic impacts, the lawmakers may want data on how deed fraud disproportionately affects elderly homeowners, absentee owners, heirs’ property holders, or economically vulnerable communities.

House Bill 130 specifically calls for the Task force to make recommendations. Potential recommendations could include enhanced property alert systems, stronger identity verification standards, improved recording procedures, expedited judicial remedies, the ability of owners to authorize a title freeze on their properties, and reforms involving notarization.

Read House Bill 130.

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