Opinion No. (2007)

EDMUND G. BROWN JR. Attorney General DANIEL G. STONE Deputy Attorney General THE HONORABLE PETER MOOCK, COUNTY COUNSEL, COUNTY OF KINGS, has requested an opinion on the following questions: 1. When the amount of a documentary transfer tax appears on a separate paper rather than on the recorded property conveyance document, is the county recorder required to make a copy of the separate paper before returning it to the recording party? 2. When the county recorder has not made a copy of the separate paper showing the documentary transfer tax amount, but the recorder's accounting records include a payment receipt showing the tax amount, is the recorder's receipt subject to inspection under the Public Records Act? *Page 2 CONCLUSIONS 1. When the amount of a documentary transfer tax appears on a separate paper rather than on the recorded property conveyance document, the county recorder is not required to make a copy of the separate paper before returning it to the recording party. 2. When the county recorder has not made a copy of the separate paper showing the documentary transfer tax amount, but the recorder's accounting records include a payment receipt showing the tax amount, the…