REGISTERS OF DEEDS

M.G.L. pt. Part I, tit. Title VI, ch. c. 36

in effect

M.G.L. c. 36, § 1 Registry districts

c. 36, § 1. Registry districts Section 1. The counties of Berkshire, Bristol, Essex, Middlesex and Worcester are for the registry of deeds severally divided into the following districts: In Berkshire, the middle district, with its office in Pittsfield, comprising Pittsfield, Becket, Dalton, Hinsdale, Lee, Lenox, Otis, Peru, Richmond, Stockbridge, Tyringham and Washington; the northern district, with its office in Adams, that portion of the county lying north of the middle district; and the southern district, with its office in Great Barrington, that portion of the county lying south of the middle district. In Bristol, the southern district, with its office in New Bedford, comprising, New Bedford, Acushnet, Dartmouth, Fairhaven and Westport, the Fall River district, with its office in Fall River, comprising Fall River, Freetown, Somerset and Swansea; and the northern district, with its office in Taunton, the remainder of said county. In Essex, the northern district, with its office in Lawrence, comprising Lawrence, Andover, Methuen and North Andover; the southern district, with its office in Salem, the remainder of said county. In Middlesex, the northern district, with its office in Lowell, comprising Lowell, Billerica, Carlisle, Chelmsford, Dracut, Dunstable, Tewksbury, Tyngsborough, Westford and Wilmington; the southern district, with its office in Cambridge, the remainder of said county. In Worcester, the northern district, with its office in Fitchburg, comprising Fitchburg, Ashburnham, Leominster, Lunenburg and Westminster; the Worcester district, with its office in Worcester, the remainder of said county. Each of the other counties of the commonwealth shall have an office for the registry of deeds in a shire town thereof.

M.G.L. c. 36, § 2 Election; qualification; tenure

c. 36, § 2. Election; qualification; tenure Section 2. In each such district and in each county not divided into districts, a register of deeds, who shall be a resident of such district or county, shall be elected, as provided in section one hundred and fifty-seven of chapter fifty-four, for the term of six years, beginning with the first Wednesday of January following his election, and until his successor is qualified.

M.G.L. c. 36, § 3 Oath of office; bond

c. 36, § 3. Oath of office; bond Section 3. Each register of deeds shall be sworn before the county commissioners, or in Suffolk county before the city council of Boston, and prior to being sworn, and thereafter, at intervals of not more than one year, so long as he continues to hold such office, shall give bond to the county, in such sum as the commissioners or said council, respectively, shall approve, conditioned to perform faithfully his own official duties, with a surety company authorized to transact business in the commonwealth, as surety.

M.G.L. c. 36, § 4 Assistant registers; appointment

c. 36, § 4. Assistant registers; appointment Section 4. Each register, with the approval of the superior court, may appoint an assistant register of deeds, removable at his pleasure, for whose official acts he shall be responsible; provided, however, that any person so appointed by the register for Suffolk county who has served continuously in any position in the registry of deeds in said county for a period of twenty or more years shall not be removed therefrom except for cause. The assistant shall give bond in the same manner as the register, and may be a woman. Any document or paper certified or attested by such assistant or by a second, third or fourth assistant register or by a chief clerk designated under section seven shall be admissible evidence as if certified or attested by the register.

M.G.L. c. 36, § 5 Assistant registers in Suffolk county and southern district of Middlesex

c. 36, § 5. Assistant registers in Suffolk county and southern district of Middlesex Section 5. The registers of deeds for Suffolk county and the southern district of Middlesex may, by a writing recorded in their respective registries, appoint one of the persons employed in their respective registries as second assistant register, one of such persons as third assistant register and one of such persons as fourth assistant register, all of whom shall serve at the pleasure of such register; provided, however, that any person so appointed by the register of deeds for Suffolk county who has served continuously in any such position for a period of at least ten years shall not be removed therefrom except for cause. The register of deeds for the southern district of Middlesex may, by a writing recorded in his registry, appoint one of the persons employed in said registry as fifth assistant register and one of such persons as sixth assistant register.

M.G.L. c. 36, § 5A Second assistant register and administrative assistant for Norfolk county

c. 36, § 5A. Second assistant register and administrative assistant for Norfolk county Section 5A. The register of deeds for Norfolk county may, by a writing recorded in his registry, designate one of the persons employed therein as second assistant register who shall serve at the pleasure of such register and may also so designate one of the persons employed therein as administrative assistant who shall serve at the pleasure of such register and be compensated at the same rate allowed for the second assistant register.

M.G.L. c. 36, § 6 Assistant registers for districts of southern Essex and Worcester and Hampden county

c. 36, § 6. Assistant registers for districts of southern Essex and Worcester and Hampden county Section 6. The registers for the southern district of Essex, the county of Hampden and the Worcester district may, with the approval of their respective county commissioners, appoint and at pleasure remove, a second assistant register. Such an assistant shall have all the powers and authority vested in an assistant register.

M.G.L. c. 36, § 7 Chief clerk in Worcester district

c. 36, § 7. Chief clerk in Worcester district Section 7. The register for the Worcester district may, by a writing recorded in his registry, authorize a person employed in said registry to certify or attest, as chief clerk, records or copies of records recorded or filed therein, which authority the register may at pleasure in like manner revoke.

M.G.L. c. 36, § 8 Assistant and temporary registers and clerks; powers and duties

c. 36, § 8. Assistant and temporary registers and clerks; powers and duties Section 8. During the disability of a register, or if a vacancy occurs in the office, the assistant register, or second assistant register, or if none, the clerk, shall perform the register's duties. If the register is disabled and there is no assistant or clerk, or if they are both unable, by reason of illness or otherwise, to perform their official duties, the county commissioners, or in Suffolk county the superior court, may appoint a temporary register of deeds. Notice of such appointment shall be recorded in the registry. Section three shall apply to temporary registers who shall exercise the same powers and duties as registers of deeds until the register or a qualified assistant is able to assume the same, or until the qualification of a new register.

M.G.L. c. 36, § 9 Removal

c. 36, § 9. Removal Section 9. If a register, upon presentment of the grand jury, is found guilty of misconduct in his official duties, or if from bodily or mental infirmity he is incapable in person of rightly performing the same, the county commissioners, or in Suffolk county the superior court, shall, after reasonable notice, remove him from office, and may order delivery of the books, papers and other things belonging to the office to their clerk or to a new register when appointed or elected.

M.G.L. c. 36, § 10 Duties of new register as to unrecorded instruments

c. 36, § 10. Duties of new register as to unrecorded instruments Section 10. If, upon the death, removal or expiration of the term of a register, deeds or other instruments entered in the registry are unrecorded, or recorded but unattested, or if records are unattested, his successor or any subsequent register shall record or attest such deeds, instruments or records agreeably to the facts and conformably with the records and books of entry.

M.G.L. c. 36, § 11 Office hours

c. 36, § 11. Office hours Section 11. Every register shall keep in his registry all books, records, deeds and papers belonging thereto, and shall keep the office open a fixed number of hours daily on days other than Saturdays, Sundays and holidays, for receiving and recording papers, except that, if the convenience of the public so requires, a register may keep his registry open on any Saturday, not a legal holiday, for said purposes during such hours as he may determine. Office hours heretofore fixed in the respective counties shall continue until changed by order of the county commissioners. Notice thereof shall be given by posting the same in conspicuous places upon or near the entrance door and upon the walls or counters in each registry. The provisions of section nine of chapter four shall apply in the case of the closing of a registry on any Saturday to the same extent as if such Saturday were a legal holiday.

M.G.L. c. 36, § 12 Place of record

c. 36, § 12. Place of record Section 12. Every deed and other instrument required to be recorded in the registry of deeds shall be recorded in the registry of deeds for the district where the land lies to which such deed or instrument relates; and in all things relating to the register or registry of deeds, each district therefor shall be deemed a county.

M.G.L. c. 36, § 12A Refusal to accept certain instruments for recording authorized

c. 36, § 12A. Refusal to accept certain instruments for recording authorized Section 12A. A register of deeds may refuse to accept an instrument for recording if it cannot be properly duplicated or a proper record cannot be made thereof.

M.G.L. c. 36, § 13 Recording of certified copies of instruments in more than county or district

c. 36, § 13. Recording of certified copies of instruments in more than county or district Section 13. If a deed or other writing affecting land has been recorded in a registry of deeds or registered in a registry district of the land court, a copy thereof, duly certified by a proper official, may be recorded or registered in any county or registry district wherein the original might properly have been recorded or registered, and when so recorded or registered shall have the same effect as a record or registration of the original instrument.

M.G.L. c. 36, § 13A Plans, rules for filing in registries

c. 36, § 13A. Plans, rules for filing in registries Section 13A. The registers of deeds, or a majority of them, may from time to time make and amend rules prescribing the size or sizes of plans which shall be received for record in registries of deeds in which copies of such rules are posted as hereinafter provided, the material on which the plans shall be made, and other requirements which will best effect the preservation for reference of the matter shown on such plans. No such rule or any amendment thereof shall take effect until after it has been approved by the attorney general. Any register of deeds may post a copy of the rules, approved as aforesaid, in a conspicuous place in his registry; and, after the expiration of thirty days from such posting, no plan which does not, in the opinion of the register, conform to such rules shall be received for record therein.

M.G.L. c. 36, § 13B Plans; filing in registry of deeds; fees

c. 36, § 13B. Plans; filing in registry of deeds; fees Section 13B. A plan, the original of which was prepared by an engineer, surveyor or draftsman who is no longer living or whose whereabouts is not known but which plan has been referred to in deeds or other documents theretofore duly recorded or a plan prepared or bearing a date prior to January first, nineteen hundred and sixteen, shall be received for filing in the registry of deeds of the district or county where the land lies even though the original or the best available print or photo copy thereof does not conform to the rules established under section thirteen A, provided there is filed and recorded with it a tracing or copy thereof prepared in accordance with said rules as then applicable in said registry and duly identified as a copy thereof. The fee for filing such plan shall be the recording fee for the tracing or copy thereof, as provided by section thirty-eight of chapter two hundred and sixty-two, together with a further fee to be established in each case by the register of deeds with due regard to the probable expense of preserving and storing the original or print or photo copy thereof. In his discretion, the register may require the person presenting such plan for filing to provide and to record an affidavit setting forth the facts that qualify said plan to be received under the provisions of this section.

M.G.L. c. 36, § 14 Registry book; contents of entries; instrument number; changes and corrections

c. 36, § 14. Registry book; contents of entries; instrument number; changes and corrections Section 14. (a) Each register shall keep a record, in book or electronic form, into which the register shall enter recording information for all instruments accepted for record in the order in which they are recorded. Upon recording of an instrument, the following information shall be entered into the record: (i) the day, hour and minute when the register assigns an instrument number or book and page number, as the case may be; (ii) the instrument number, or book and page number, so assigned; (iii) the names of the grantors and grantees in the instrument; and (iv) the city or town in which the land lies. (b) No instrument received by the register shall be considered recorded until the register assigns to the instrument an instrument number, or book and page number, as the case may be. (c) A change or correction made to the record shall be accessible to the public in that particular registry district in which the affected land lies. Such change or correction shall be maintained by the register as part of the record for public inspection during registry business hours at each office in the registry district. A change or correction to the record shall document the nature and date of the change or correction.

M.G.L. c. 36, § 14A Certification of historic or archeological site; recording of notice

c. 36, § 14A. Certification of historic or archeological site; recording of notice Section 14A. A notice of certification of an historic or archeological site and a withdrawal of such certification, required to be recorded under the provisions of section twenty-seven of chapter nine, shall be recorded by the register of deeds without the payment of any fee therefor.

M.G.L. c. 36, § 15 Method of recording documents; microphotographs

c. 36, § 15. Method of recording documents; microphotographs Section 15. He shall record all instruments upon the pages of the record books in fair and legible handwriting or in print, and in continuous successive lines, and shall note on the record, before attesting the same, all erasures and interlineations and the value of any stamp affixed thereto pursuant to federal law, and the cancellation thereof, and he shall make duplicate microphotographic process copies of all books in his registry in which deeds, certificates of title and other instruments have been recorded or entered.

M.G.L. c. 36, § 16 Recordation; receipts of federal succession taxes

c. 36, § 16. Recordation; receipts of federal succession taxes Section 16. He shall record receipts of federal revenue collectors for succession taxes, or other evidence of their payment, if the person applying for such record first makes affidavit to the genuineness of such receipt or evidence before a person qualified to take acknowledgment of deeds.

M.G.L. c. 36, § 17 Duplicate records; attestation; effect of copies; fees

c. 36, § 17. Duplicate records; attestation; effect of copies; fees Section 17. The register shall, at the expense of the county, procure and keep duplicate record books, in which he shall make fair and legible copies of the record of any deed or other instrument existing in the registry which has become worn, mutilated or indistinct, if so directed by the county commissioners, or if so requested by any person lawfully interested in preserving the same. He shall attest such copies, referring in his certificate of attestation to the book and page of the original record, and shall note on the margin of the first page of the original the volume and page of the duplicate records containing the copy. Such copies shall have the same force as the original records. He shall receive the same fees for copies and notations as for an original record, payable by the person requesting the same.

M.G.L. c. 36, § 18 Attestation of records by volume

c. 36, § 18. Attestation of records by volume Section 18. He may attest the records by the volume, and the attestation shall be sufficient when the volume containing the same bears the attest, with the written signature of the register or other person lawfully authorized.

M.G.L. c. 36, § 18A Illegible signatures

c. 36, § 18A. Illegible signatures Section 18A. The register or an assistant register may print or type the name of any person whose signature appears on any instrument filed for recording and is not clearly legible, such name to be printed or typed directly below such signature.

M.G.L. c. 36, § 19 Facsimile signatures

c. 36, § 19. Facsimile signatures Section 19. A facsimile of the signature of any register, imprinted by him, by an assistant register or by such office assistant as the register in writing may designate, upon any original instrument in attestation of the fact that the same has been recorded in his registry or upon any copy of the records or plans which the register is authorized by law to certify or attest as a true copy, shall have the same validity as his written signature.

M.G.L. c. 36, § 20 Instruments affecting mortgages registered in different counties

c. 36, § 20. Instruments affecting mortgages registered in different counties Section 20. If an assignment, extension, partial release, release or discharge of a mortgage of land, or a certificate of the taking or surrender of possession for foreclosure of such mortgage, or an affidavit of notice of sale under a power of sale therein, or an execution for possession of the premises conveyed thereby or any other instrument purporting to affect the same, has been recorded in the county where the land lies, and the original mortgage was not recorded in the same registry, the register of the county where such mortgage was originally recorded, upon exhibition to him at the registry of such instrument purporting to affect the same, shall enter upon the margin of the record of the mortgage a note of reference to the record of such instrument.

M.G.L. c. 36, § 21 Marginal references on record of instruments affecting certain mortgages

c. 36, § 21. Marginal references on record of instruments affecting certain mortgages Section 21. When an instrument described in the preceding section affecting a mortgage is recorded, and it refers by book and page to the record of the mortgage, the register shall enter upon the margin of such record, if in the same registry, a notation of the record of the instrument containing such reference.

M.G.L. c. 36, § 22 Instruments affecting interests created by delinquent taxes or assessments; recordation

c. 36, § 22. Instruments affecting interests created by delinquent taxes or assessments; recordation Section 22. If an assignment, release, partial release, discharge or disclaimer affecting title to land created by a sale or taking for payment of a tax or assessment is recorded, the register shall make a note of reference thereto on the margin of the record of the deed or instrument of sale or taking, if in his registry and referred to in such conveyance.

M.G.L. c. 36, § 23 Recordation; certification of book and page number on instruments

c. 36, § 23. Recordation; certification of book and page number on instruments Section 23. He shall certify upon every instrument recorded by him the time when received and the number of the book and leaf or page where recorded.

M.G.L. c. 36, § 24 Recordation; federal liens; filing fee

c. 36, § 24. Recordation; federal liens; filing fee Section 24. Notice of a federal tax lien which may be filed in the commonwealth or any other federal lien on any real property or fixtures shall be filed with the register of deeds of the county in which such real property or fixtures are situated. Said register shall, whether the title of the real property involved is registered or unregistered, record such notice, the recording fee for which shall be five dollars. Each register of deeds shall cause competent persons to prepare and keep current an alphabetical listing of all taxpayers against whom such a federal tax lien or other federal lien has been recorded commencing with the year nineteen hundred and fifteen. Certificates of discharge or certificates releasing specific property from such liens, or other notices affecting such liens shall be filed with the same register of deeds with whom the notice of lien was filed. The register of deeds shall, for a like fee, record any such certificates or notices and make a note of reference thereto on the margin of the record of the notice of lien referred to therein. Certification of notices of liens, certificates discharging liens, certificates releasing specific property from liens, or other notices affecting federal liens upon real property or fixtures by the secretary of the treasury of the United States or his delegate, or by any official or entity of the United States responsible for filing or certifying of any other lien shall entitle them to be recorded and no other attestation, certification or acknowledgement shall be necessary. The register of deeds may bill the district directors of internal revenue or other appropriate federal officials on a monthly basis for documents filed by them.

M.G.L. c. 36, § 24A Recordation; petitions, decrees or orders in bankruptcy

c. 36, § 24A. Recordation; petitions, decrees or orders in bankruptcy Section 24A. At any time after a petition in bankruptcy is filed, or a decree of adjudication or an order approving the trustee's bond is made, pursuant to the federal Bankruptcy Act of 1898, as amended by the federal Bankruptcy Act of 1938, the bankrupt, trustee, receiver, custodian, referee or any creditor may record a certified copy of such petition, with the schedules omitted, or of such decree or order in the registry of deeds for any county or district wherein the bankrupt owns or has an interest in any land.

M.G.L. c. 36, § 24B Records affecting title to real estate; copies to tax assessors; required information

c. 36, § 24B. Records affecting title to real estate; copies to tax assessors; required information Section 24B. The register, or said register as the assistant recorder of the land court, in each county except Dukes and Nantucket counties, shall, upon the request in writing of the board of assessors of any city or town in his county or district, furnish such board with copies of such instruments recorded or registered in his registry as affect the title to real estate in the city or town of such board and as may be necessary for the records of such board for the purposes of taxation of real estate. The said register or said assistant recorder, may at his option, furnish said board with an abstract card or cards in lieu of said copies which shall contain the following information:—the name of the city or town in which the land is situated, the name or names of the grantor and grantee, the date, an abstract of the description, the lot number and description of the plan, if any, referred to, the book and page or certificate of title number of the record, and such other information included in such instruments as is necessary for said board of assessors for its records. Said register or assistant recorder shall require from each person who appears before him to record a deed to real property, such information as the commissioner of revenue may deem necessary to assist the assessors in the performance of their duties under sections eleven and thirty-eight of chapter fifty-nine. Said information shall be collected on a form approved by the commissioner of revenue and each completed form shall be forwarded by said register or assistant recorder to the board of assessors of the city or town in which the property lies.

M.G.L. c. 36, § 25 Indexes; number; form

c. 36, § 25. Indexes; number; form Section 25. He shall keep two indexes, each divided into six columns, with headings in one as follows: And in the other as follows: In Suffolk county neither index need contain the last column.

M.G.L. c. 36, § 26 Entries in indexes; time and manner of making

c. 36, § 26. Entries in indexes; time and manner of making Section 26. He shall, within twenty-four hours after a deed or other instrument which he is by law required to record has been left for record, cause the name of each grantor, grantee or other party thereto to be entered at length and alphabetically in the appropriate index, and in the appropriate column, if any, the name of the town where the land described in the instrument lies, if the same is therein disclosed. Within a reasonable time after such instrument has been recorded, he shall affix to such entry the number of the book and leaf or page where recorded.

M.G.L. c. 36, § 27 Recordation; instruments executed by agents; decrees in partition

c. 36, § 27. Recordation; instruments executed by agents; decrees in partition Section 27. When an instrument by which a person transfers or conveys by authority of law the real estate of another is left for record, the register shall enter in the entry book and grantor index both the name of the nominal grantor and that of the real party in interest, if appearing therein, otherwise he shall enter such party as ''unknown'', under the letter U. When notice of the filing of a petition for partition or of amendment thereof, or a copy of a decree in partition is left for record, he shall enter in the entry book and in both the grantor and grantee indexes the names of all persons whose estates plainly appear to be affected thereby.

M.G.L. c. 36, § 28 Classified copies of indexes

c. 36, § 28. Classified copies of indexes Section 28. Each register shall annually, at the expense of the county, cause competent persons to make copies of the indexes of the preceding year, in which the grantors and grantees shall be classified by their respective surnames in alphabetical order, and arranged thereunder in the order in which the deeds and other conveyances to which they refer were left for record. He may also cause the Christian names of the grantors and grantees, as well as their surnames, to be arranged in alphabetical order in such lists. Such copies shall in other respects be in the form required for the original indexes.

M.G.L. c. 36, § 29 New or copies of indexes; printing; selling price

c. 36, § 29. New or copies of indexes; printing; selling price Section 29. A register may, with the consent of the county commissioners, cause a competent person, at the expense of the county, to make copies of the indexes or new indexes to the records, or of any part thereof. Such copies may be printed at county expense and sold at a price not less than the cost of printing, paper and binding.

M.G.L. c. 36, § 30 Estimates of cost of indexing

c. 36, § 30. Estimates of cost of indexing Section 30. Each register, except in Suffolk county, shall annually, before January first, file with the county commissioners an estimate in detail of the character, amount and cost of indexing which, in his judgment, may be required for the ensuing year, and the commissioners shall include in the estimates for county taxes so much thereof as in their judgment is necessary. The amount authorized may, under the direction of the register, be expended for the purposes specified in his said estimate, and shall be paid to the persons actually performing the work, on approval of the bills by the commissioners.

M.G.L. c. 36, § 31A Notice to commissioner of revenue; recording

c. 36, § 31A. Notice to commissioner of revenue; recording Section 31A. Within sixty days after the recording of any deed in which the grantee is described as a trustee, or of any declaration of trust, the register in whose office such deed or declaration is recorded shall send by mail to the commissioner of revenue a notification of the recording thereof, stating the name of the grantor and of the grantee or the trustee, and the date of recording.

M.G.L. c. 36, § 32 Instruments creating interest in property; notice to department of public welfare

c. 36, § 32. Instruments creating interest in property; notice to department of public welfare Section 32. Whenever there is filed for record in a registry of deeds any deed of trust or other instrument creating or increasing an estate or fund for benevolent, charitable, humane or philanthropic purposes, the register shall forthwith send to the department of public welfare a statement noting the book and page of the record, with the name, if any, of the said estate or fund, and by whom the said estate or fund has been created or increased, and by whom it is to be administered. If an individual is receiving medical assistance under chapter one hundred and eighteen E and is either a grantee or grantor of an interest in real property, such individual shall comply with the provision of section thirteen A of said chapter one hundred and eighteen E requiring notice to the department of public welfare of certain transfers of property.

M.G.L. c. 36, § 32A Identification of husbands and wives in documents and communications

c. 36, § 32A. Identification of husbands and wives in documents and communications Section 32A. Whenever the register, in any communication, document or writing intended for use outside the registry, identifies a husband and wife, he shall use the name of both husband and wife and shall not use a legal phrase as a substitute for either name.

M.G.L. c. 36, § 33 Salaries

c. 36, § 33. Salaries Section 33. The salaries of registers of deeds and all assistant registers of deeds shall be paid by their respective counties; and the salaries of registers of deeds shall be in full for all services rendered as register and as assistant recorder of the land court. The salaries of the register of deeds for the county of Suffolk, and his assistants shall be as follows:— Register: A sum equivalent to seventy-five per cent of the salary of an associate justice of the superior court. First Assistant Register: A sum equivalent to the salary of the first assistant clerk of the superior court department for civil business in the county of Suffolk. All other assistant registers: A sum equivalent to the salaries of the assistant clerks of the superior court department for civil business in the county of Suffolk.

M.G.L. c. 36, § 37 Compensation for title work

c. 36, § 37. Compensation for title work Section 37. No register or assistant register shall demand or receive, directly or indirectly, compensation for title work performed by him or under his direction, in his registry.

M.G.L. c. 36, § 38 Clerical assistants; compensation

c. 36, § 38. Clerical assistants; compensation Section 38. Registers shall annually be allowed for clerical assistance in their respective registries, to be paid by their respective counties, such amounts as shall be approved by the county commissioners.

M.G.L. c. 36, § 39 Fees; recordation; disposition

c. 36, § 39. Fees; recordation; disposition Section 39. Each register shall enter in a cash book, which shall be the property of the county, all fees received by him for all official acts and services; and he shall, on the first day of each month, pay to the county treasurer, or other officer entitled to receive the same, all fees received during the preceding month, and shall render to him a sworn account thereof.

M.G.L. c. 36, § 40 Technology purchase's by register of deeds; compatibility with other registers

c. 36, § 40. Technology purchase's by register of deeds; compatibility with other registers Section 40. Notwithstanding the provisions of any general or special law to the contrary, the state secretary shall promulgate rules and regulations to ensure that all technology purchases by registries of deeds are compatible with each other.

M.G.L. c. 36, § 41 Surcharge on fees of registers of deeds and assistant recorders; registries under control of county government; surcharge to fund improvements at registries; disposition of surcharge

c. 36, § 41. Surcharge on fees of registers of deeds and assistant recorders; registries under control of county government; surcharge to fund improvements at registries; disposition of surcharge Section 41. Notwithstanding any general or special law to the contrary, the fees of each of the registers of deeds and of the assistant recorders, except as otherwise provided, to be paid when the instrument is left for recording, filing or deposit shall be subject to a surcharge of $5. The surcharge shall be imposed for the purpose of automation, modernization, operation and technological improvements at the registries of deeds. Only registries presently under the control of county government shall be subject to this section. From March 15, 2003, until June 30, 2030, all surcharges on fees collected pursuant to this section shall be forwarded to the County Registers Technological Fund established in section 2KKK of chapter 29. From July 1, 2030, all of the surcharges shall be forwarded to the General Fund as provided in section 2 of chapter 29.

Source: Massachusetts General Court (malegislature.gov)URL: https://malegislature.gov/Laws/GeneralLaws/PartI/TitleVI/Chapter36Fetched: 10/20/2026