---
type: "Bill"
title: "Counties: recording: real estate instruments."
description: "Existing law authorizes the board of supervisors to adopt, by resolution, a fee of up to $10 for each recording of a real estate instrument, paper, or notice required or permitted by law to be recorded, except as specified. Existing law defines the term \"real estate instrument\" to exclude a deed, instrument, or writing recorded in connection with a transfer subject to a documentary transfer tax."
jurisdiction: "us/states/ca"
legislature: "California Legislature"
session: "20152016"
identifier: "AB 661"
citation: "California AB 661 (20152016)"
classification: ["bill"]
subjects: ["Counties: recording: real estate instruments."]
status: "enacted"
primary_sponsors: ["Mathis"]
version_count: 5
action_count: 17
vote_count: 5
first_action: "2015-02-24"
last_action: "2015-07-13"
source: "openstates"
source_identifier: "ocd-bill/a0f085b3-881e-4329-bdb9-15cd2afee579"
source_url: "http://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=201520160AB661"
source_hash: "7f31edf21ece2a87f9f06cf7a06d39697461e1da26e38d405119b488c604d194"
vintage: "2026-07-01"
source_snapshot: "https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump"
retrieved_at: "2026-07-06"
confidence: "reported"
tags: ["legislation", "bill", "us-ca"]
---

# California AB 661 (20152016) — Counties: recording: real estate instruments.

Existing law authorizes the board of supervisors to adopt, by resolution, a fee of up to $10 for each recording of a real estate instrument, paper, or notice required or permitted by law to be recorded, except as specified. Existing law defines the term "real estate instrument" to exclude a deed, instrument, or writing recorded in connection with a transfer subject to a documentary transfer tax.

## Version chain

The bill's text revisions, in order — the diff chain from filing to enrollment.

1. **02/24/15 - Introduced** (filed) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=201520160AB661&version=20150AB66199INT)
2. **06/10/15 - Amended Senate** (committee substitute) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=201520160AB661&version=20150AB66198AMD)
3. **07/13/15 - Chaptered** (committee substitute) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=201520160AB661&version=20150AB66196CHP)
4. **AB661** (committee substitute) — [source](http://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=201520160AB661)
5. **06/29/15 - Enrolled** (enrolled) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=201520160AB661&version=20150AB66197ENR)

## Votes

- Consent Calendar 2nd — **37–0** (pass) · upper
- AB 661 MATHIS Assembly Third Reading — **75–0** (pass) · lower
- Do pass and be ordered to the Consent Calendar — **7–0** (pass) · upper
- AB 661 MATHIS Concurrence in Senate Amendments — **80–0** (pass) · lower
- Do pass. — **8–0** (pass) · lower

## Sponsors

- Mathis — primary (person)

## Timeline

The legislative action history — every referral, reading, and vote.

- **2015-02-24** Read first time. To print. `reading-1`
- **2015-02-25** From printer. May be heard in committee March 27.
- **2015-03-09** Referred to Com. on L. GOV. `referral-committee`
- **2015-05-07** From committee: Do pass. (Ayes 8. Noes 0.) (May 6). `committee-passage-favorable, committee-passage`
- **2015-05-11** Read second time. Ordered to third reading. `reading-2, reading-1`
- **2015-05-22** Read third time. Passed. Ordered to the Senate. (Ayes 75. Noes 0. Page 1541.) `reading-3, passage, reading-1`
- **2015-05-22** In Senate. Read first time. To Com. on RLS. for assignment. `reading-1`
- **2015-06-04** Referred to Com. on GOV. & F. `referral-committee`
- **2015-06-10** From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to committee. Read second time, amended, and re-referred to Com. on GOV. & F. `referral-committee, reading-2, amendment-introduction, amendment-passage, reading-1`
- **2015-06-17** From committee: Do pass. To Consent Calendar. (Ayes 7. Noes 0.) (June 17). `committee-passage-favorable, committee-passage`
- **2015-06-18** Read second time. Ordered to Consent Calendar. `reading-2, reading-1`
- **2015-06-22** Read third time. Passed. Ordered to the Assembly. (Ayes 37. Noes 0. Page 1548.). `reading-3, passage, reading-1`
- **2015-06-23** In Assembly. Concurrence in Senate amendments pending. May be considered on or after June 25 pursuant to Assembly Rule 77.
- **2015-06-25** Senate amendments concurred in. To Engrossing and Enrolling. (Ayes 80. Noes 0. Page 2141.). `committee-passage-favorable, amendment-passage`
- **2015-07-01** Enrolled and presented to the Governor at 2:30 p.m.
- **2015-07-13** Approved by the Governor. `executive-signature`
- **2015-07-13** Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 76, Statutes of 2015.

## Source

OpenStates / OpenCivicData bulk snapshot [2026-07-01](https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump); origin `ocd-bill/a0f085b3-881e-4329-bdb9-15cd2afee579`. Confidence: reported (aggregated from official California legislature records).