Legislation

SACRAMENTO -- Attorney General Kamala D. Harris today announced that the non-conference committee components of the California Homeowner Bill of Rights have passed out of legislative committees.

“The entire Homeowner Bill of Rights legislative package will create a level playing field for California homeowners,” said Attorney General Harris. “In addition, it will allow my office to continue to prosecute those who take advantage of homeowners who are desperate to stay in their houses.”

Assembly Bill 1950, authored by Assemblymember Mike Davis (D-Los Angeles), passed out of the Senate Judiciary today. The bill extends the statute of limitations for prosecuting mortgage related crimes from one year to three years, giving the Department of Justice ample time to investigate and prosecute mortgage fraud crimes.

Two bills to provide additional protections to tenants who rent homes that are foreclosed upon also passed out of the Senate Judiciary and Assembly Judiciary Committees today.

Assembly Bill 2610 (Assemblymember Nancy Skinner, D-Berkeley) and Senate Bill 1473 (Senator Loni Hancock, D-Berkeley), will require purchasers of foreclosed homes to give tenants at least 90 days before starting eviction proceedings. If the tenant has a fixed-term lease, the new owner must honor the lease unless the owner demonstrates that certain exceptions intended to prevent fraudulent leases apply.

Also passing out of the Judiciary Committees were Assembly Bill 2314 (Assemblymember Wilmer Carter, D-Rialto) and Senate Bill 1472 (Senator Fran Pavley, D-Agoura Hills), which provide additional tools to local governments and receivers to fight blight caused by multiple vacant homes in neighborhoods.

The final component in the California Homeowner Bill of Rights, AB 1763 (Assemblymember Mike Davis, D-Los Angeles) and Senate Bill 1474 (Senator Loni Hancock, D-Berkeley), gives Attorney General Harris the ability to convene a special grand jury to investigate and indict the perpetrators of financial crimes involving victims in multiple counties. AB 1763 and SB 1474 passed out of the Senate Public Safety and Assembly Public Safety, respectively.

Two key parts of the Homeowner Bill of Rights passed Monday out of both houses of the Legislature and sent to Governor Jerry Brown. Those bills, which came out of a two-house conference committee, provide protections for borrowers and struggling homeowners, including a restriction on dual-track foreclosures, where a lender forecloses on a borrower despite being in discussions over a loan modification to save the home. The bills also guarantee struggling homeowners a single point of contact at their lender with knowledge of their loan and direct access to decision makers.

The California Homeowner Bill of Rights extends Attorney General Harris’ response to the state’s foreclosure and mortgage crisis. Attorney General Harris created a Mortgage Fraud Strike Force in March, 2011 to investigate and prosecute misconduct related to mortgages and foreclosures. In February 2012 Attorney General Harris extracted a commitment from the nation’s five largest banks to dedicate an estimated $18 billion to mitigate financial harm to California borrowers caused by bank misconduct in the foreclosure process.

For more information on the California Homeowner Bill of Rights, go to www.oag.ca.gov

SACRAMENTO -- Attorney General Kamala D. Harris announced the California Homeowner Bill of Rights is one step closer to becoming law after key provisions passed the California Legislature today. The bills, which provide first of their kind protections for homeowners and reforms to the mortgage and foreclosure process, will now be sent to the desk of Governor Jerry Brown for consideration. The bills were approved 53 to 25 in the Assembly and 25 to 13 in the Senate.

“Passing these key elements of Homeowner Bill of Rights represents a significant step forward for struggling homeowners,” said Attorney General Harris. “These common-sense reforms will require banks to treat California homeowners more fairly and bring more transparency and accountability to their practices in our state. Responsible homeowners will have a better shot to keep their homes.”

“Californians will finally have a fighting chance to keep their homes, as this measure brings fairness to the loan modification and foreclosure process,” said Senate President pro Tem Darrell Steinberg. “At the same time, the protection gained by homeowners will help stabilize the housing sector of our economy. I applaud my colleagues for their hard work to protect consumers through this reasoned compromise.”

“The package approved by the Legislature today is a major victory for California’s consumers,” said Assembly Speaker John A. Pérez. “We impose tough new regulations on banks and lenders to stop the abusive practices we’ve seen since the collapse of the housing market, and this package will bring relief to hundreds of thousands of California homeowners.”

The California Homeowner Bill of Rights consists of a series of related bills, including two that were passed on June 26 by a two-house conference committee: AB 278 (Eng, Feuer, Pérez, Mitchell) and SB 900 (Leno, Evans, Corbett, DeSaulnier, Pavley, Steinberg). 

The two identical bills passed by the conference committee contain key elements of the legislative package and provide protections for borrowers and struggling homeowners, including a restriction on dual-track foreclosures, where a lender forecloses on a borrower despite being in discussions over a loan modification to save the home. The bills also guarantee struggling homeowners a single point of contact at their lender with knowledge of their loan and direct access to decision makers. For the first time, the Homeowner Bill of Rights imposes civil penalties, of up to $7,500, on the repeated filing of foreclosure documents without verifying their accuracy, a practice commonly known as “robo-signing.” In addition, homeowners may require loan servicers to document their right to foreclose.

Homeowners will also have a clearly-defined right to access the courts to protect themselves from violations of these protections.

The Homeowner Bill of Rights also consists of four bills outside of the conference committee process.  These will enhance law enforcement responses to mortgage and foreclosure-related crime, in part by empowering the Attorney General to call a grand jury in response to financial crimes spanning multiple jurisdictions. Additional elements will help communities fight blight related to foreclosure, and the crime that results, and provide enhanced protections for tenants in foreclosed homes. Please see the attached fact sheet for the status of these bills.

The California Homeowner Bill of Rights was introduced February 29, 2012 at a press conference featuring Assembly Speaker John A. Pérez and Senate President pro Tem Darrell Steinberg and bill authors from the Assembly and Senate. The Homeowner Bill of Rights codifies many of the core protections from the recent national mortgage settlement.

The California Homeowner Bill of Rights extends Attorney General Harris’ response to the state’s foreclosure and mortgage crisis. Attorney General Harris created a Mortgage Fraud Strike Force in March, 2011 to investigate and prosecute misconduct related to mortgages and foreclosures. In February 2012 Attorney General Harris extracted a commitment from the nation’s five largest banks to dedicate an estimated $18 billion to mitigate financial harm to California borrowers caused by bank misconduct in the foreclosure process.

More details about the California Homeowner Bill of Rights are found on the attached fact sheet. To learn more about how the bills impact California homeowners, review the slideshow at: www.oag.ca.gov.

SACRAMENTO -- Attorney General Kamala D. Harris today announced the passage of two central elements of the California Homeowner Bill of Rights through a special two-house conference committee. The 4 to 1 vote sends the bills to an expected vote next week in both the Assembly and Senate.

The two bills approved by the conference committee are the Foreclosure Reduction Act, which restricts the process of “dual-tracked” foreclosures and the Due Process Rights Act, which guarantees a reliable contact for struggling homeowners to discuss their loan with and which for the first time imposes civil penalties on the practice of fraudulently signing foreclosure documents without verifying their accuracy, a practice commonly known as “robo-signing.” The proposed legislation also includes meaningful enforcement for borrowers whose rights are violated.

The full Homeowner Bill of Rights includes additional provisions to reduce blight, ensure appropriate law enforcement response to mortgage fraud and crime, and protect tenants.  The bills containing these protections are also advancing through the Legislature.

“I am gratified by this vote, which represents one more step toward our goal of achieving a Homeowner Bill of Rights for California,” said Attorney General Harris. “The mortgage and foreclosure crisis in our state demands urgent efforts to help Californians keep their homes. The legislature will now have the opportunity to cast a vote on behalf of California’s struggling homeowners.”

The California Homeowner Bill of Rights was introduced February 29, 2012 at a press conference featuring Assembly Speaker John A. Perez and Senate President pro Tem Darrell Steinberg and bill authors from the Assembly and Senate. The goal of the Homeowner Bill of Rights is to take many of the mortgage reforms extracted from banks in a national mortgage settlement and write them into California law so they could apply to all mortgage-holders in the state.

“The mortgage and foreclosure abuse in California ends here,” said Noreen Evans (D-Santa Rosa), co-chair of the Joint Conference Committee. “This committee has passed historic legislation that codifies the
protections eligible homeowners deserve, while helping to stabilize the foreclosure crisis that has thwarted California’s economic recovery. The Legislature has studied, listened and engaged Californians and
industry to find a solution that is fair and effective to mitigate this crisis. I look forward to the full support of the Legislature and Governor in implementing this package.”

“This bill is the result of a long and difficult process in which we received input from all interested parties; including homeowners and the banks and found that foreclosures benefit no one,” said Assemblymember Mike Eng (D-Alhambra). “We ended such dubious practices as having a bank foreclose while a homeowner is in the process of modifying a loan and cut through confusion by making sure that there is a ‘single point of contact’ with mortgage servicers.  With half a million California homes at risk of foreclosure, this action was urgently needed.”

The California Homeowner Bill of Rights extends Attorney General Harris’ response to the state’s foreclosure and mortgage crisis. Attorney General Harris created a Mortgage Fraud Strike Force in March, 2011 to investigate and prosecute misconduct related to mortgages and foreclosures. In February 2012 Attorney General Harris extracted a commitment from the nation’s five largest banks of an estimated $18 billion for California borrowers.

More details about the California Homeowner Bill of Rights are found on the attached fact sheet.  To learn more about how the bills impact California homeowners, review the slideshow at: www.oag.ca.gov.

SACRAMENTO -- Attorney General Kamala D. Harris today announced the Assembly Public Safety Committee passed an important piece of the California Homeowner Bill of Rights that aims to protect California homeowners from fraud and scams.

Senate Bill 1474 (Senator Loni Hancock, D-Berkeley) would allow Attorney General Harris to convene a special grand jury to investigate and indict the perpetrators of financial crimes involving victims in more than one county, as well as crimes conducted by a single defendant or multiple defendants who worked together. The bill passed unanimously with bipartisan support.

Under current law, fraud in which the victims are located across the state require separate grand juries and charges must be filed in every county where the defendant committed a crime. This legislation would provide for the option of a special grand jury that can produce indictments for financial crimes beyond the scope of single-county grand juries.

“Scammers continue to prey on vulnerable Californians who simply want to stay in their homes,” Attorney General Harris said. “This legislation will create a more cohesive legal process to prosecute those who prey on Californians across county lines.”

“The Attorney General is currently engaged in the investigation of significant crimes,” Senator Hancock said. “Unfortunately, county-by-county grand juries do not work well in dealing with large-scale wrongdoing in multiple jurisdictions. With this bill, the Attorney General can investigate multijurisdictional crimes – it will provide protection when Californians need it the most.”

The Mortgage Fraud Strike Force, established by Attorney General Harris, investigates and prosecutes crimes related to mortgages, foreclosures and real estate. In recent weeks, the Strike Force has secured the conviction of perpetrators of scams in the Fresno and Sacramento areas.

SB 1474 will be heard next in the Assembly Appropriations Committee.

For more information on the California Homeowner Bill of Rights, go to www.oag.ca.gov.

SACRAMENTO -- Attorney General Kamala D. Harris today announced the passage out of the Assembly Public Safety Committee of a bill to ensure that those convicted of human trafficking crimes involving minors will not be able to keep the financial benefits reaped from those crimes.

“Human trafficking crimes involving minors are reprehensible and convicted perpetrators should not be able to keep the financial rewards from trafficking,” said Attorney General Harris. “This bill will aid groups who are dedicated to helping victims.”

Senate Bill 1133, authored by Senator Mark Leno (D-San Francisco), will force perpetrators of human trafficking crimes to forfeit any profits made from committing those crimes. The bill expands on the current list of assets that are currently subject to forfeiture. These resources will be used to aid the victims of human trafficking by providing resources for treatment and services. SB 1133 passed unanimously and will be heard next in the Assembly Appropriations Committee.

“Sex trafficking of minors is a horrendous crime that is driven by the prospect of lucrative profits,” said Senator Leno. “This legislation aims to deprive convicted criminals of the financial resources and assets that would allow them to continue luring young people into the sex trade. In turn, proceeds from those forfeitures would rightfully be used to help victims begin to repair their lives.”

 “We have girls who come in literally wearing just the clothes on their back and the shoes on their feet,” said Alexandra Snyder, Policy Director of Courage House, who spoke in support of the legislation.

Attorney General Harris is also sponsoring Assembly Bill 2466 (Preservation of Assets for Victims of Human Trafficking), by Assemblymember Bob Blumenfield (D-San Fernando Valley), which will require that more victims of human trafficking receive restitution. AB 2466 will be heard in the Senate Public Safety on June 26.

Attorney General Harris has made the fight against human trafficking a priority throughout her career. This week she announced an innovative program with Yahoo! and Polaris Project to combat human trafficking, which, in the past five years, has largely migrated to the Internet. Through this joint effort, if key search words like “human trafficking” are entered into Yahoo! Search, Internet users will see a banner that states: “Call the National Human Trafficking Resource Center at 1-888-373-7888 to report sex trafficking, forced labor, or to get help.”

For more information, go to the Attorney General’s human trafficking web site at www.oag.ca.gov/human-trafficking.

SACRAMENTO -- Attorney General Kamala D. Harris today announced two bills to help tenants who suddenly find themselves with the possibility of being displaced because of a foreclosure passed the Assembly and Senate. The bills are part of the Attorney General’s proposed California Homeowner Bill of Rights.

Assembly Bill 2610 (Assemblymember Nancy Skinner, D-Berkeley) and Senate Bill 1473 (Senator Loni Hancock, D-Berkeley) will require purchasers of foreclosed homes to give tenants at least 90 days before starting eviction proceedings.

“Tenants are unsuspecting victims in the mortgage and financial crisis,” said Attorney General Harris. “They pay rent on time but may suddenly find themselves forced to move. These bills will give tenants important rights and fair treatment when they live in a rental that is under threat of foreclosure.”

Under the bills, if the tenant has a fixed-term lease, the new owner must honor the lease unless the owner demonstrates that certain exceptions intended to prevent fraudulent leases apply.

Currently, there are incongruities within state law, and between state and federal law, regarding eviction proceedings following a foreclosure. AB 2610 and SB 1473 would correct these confusing laws. All provisions in the bill will remain in effect until December 31, 2019.

“Too often, California tenants are the unwitting victims when a home they are renting is foreclosed on,” said Senator Hancock. “The inconsistency between state and federal law has left renters confused and, at times, misled about their legal protections. This bill provides common sense solutions to help protect California citizens caught in the crossfire of the mortgage foreclosure crisis.”

“The mortgage crisis and resulting foreclosures have directly impacted more than 200,000 California renters in 2010 alone,” said Assemblymember Skinner. “The Renters’ Right Act of 2012 protects families in rental housing by providing basic protections and legal rights in the face of unjust foreclosure-related evictions.”

SB 1473 passed the Senate on a 25 to 13 vote and AB 2610 passed the Assembly on a 54 to 13 vote.

The bills are part of the California Homeowner Bill of Rights. Other portions of the package are being considered in a Joint Legislative Conference Committee, including elements to restrict unnecessary foreclosures and protect the due process rights of borrowers and homeowners.

The California Homeowner Bill of Rights also includes:

DUE PROCESS AND FORECLOSURE REDUCTION ACT: SB 900 (Leno) & AB 278 (Eng). These bills are being considered by a Joint Legislative Conference Committee.

BLIGHT PREVENTION LEGISLATION: AB 2314 (Carter) & SB 1472 (Pavley and DeSaulnier). These bills have passed the Assembly and Senate, respectively, and now will be heard in the other house.

GRAND JURY LEGISLATION: AB 1763 (Davis) & SB 1474 (Hancock). These bills have passed the Assembly and Senate, respectively, and will now be heard in the other house.

AG ENFORCEMENT LEGISLATION: AB 1950 (Davis). This bill passed the Assembly, and will now be heard in the Senate.

For more information on the California Homeowner Bill of Rights, go to www.oag.ca.gov

SACRAMENTO -- Attorney General Kamala D. Harris today announced the Assembly and Senate each passed important components of the California Homeowner Bill of Rights that will help protect homeowners from scams.

The bills enhance the Attorney General’s enforcement powers and allow the Attorney General to use special grand juries to prosecute multi-jurisdictional financial crimes. The Mortgage Fraud Strike Force established by the Attorney General has been investigating and prosecuting a wide range of crimes related to mortgages, foreclosures and real estate.

“California was the epicenter of the mortgage and foreclosure crisis and scammers have been preying on vulnerable citizens who simply want to keep their homes,” said Attorney General Harris. “These bills will aid our efforts to prosecute and convict these criminals.”

These are two of the six bills in the California Homeowner Bill of Rights. Other portions of the package are being considered in a Joint Legislative Conference Committee, including elements to restrict unnecessary foreclosures and protect the due process rights of borrowers and homeowners.

AB 1763 (Assemblymember Mike Davis, D-Los Angeles) and SB 1474 (Senator Loni Hancock, D-Berkeley) would allow the Attorney General to convene a special grand jury to investigate and indict the perpetrators of financial crimes involving victims in multiple jurisdictions. Both bills passed out of their respective houses unanimously with bipartisan support.

The special grand jury would convene in cases involving fraud or theft that occurs in more than one county and where all potential charges are against a single defendant or multiple defendants working together.

Crimes of a financial nature often occur in multiple jurisdictions. Under current law, crimes where the fraud victims are all over the state require separate grand juries and charges filed in each county where the defendant committed the crime. This legislation would provide for the option of a special grand jury that can investigate financial crimes beyond the scope of single-county grand juries.

“The Attorney General is currently engaged in the investigation of significant crimes,” Senator Hancock said. “Unfortunately, county-by-county grand juries do not work well in dealing with large-scale wrongdoing in multiple jurisdictions. With this bill, the Attorney General can investigate multijurisdictional crimes – it will provide protection when Californians need it the most.”

In addition, AB 1950, by Assemblymember Davis, will extend to three years the statute of limitations on mortgage related crimes. The current statute of limitations of one year can make it difficult to prosecute crimes such as the prohibition on charging up front fees for loan modification services. Because the foreclosure process is so protracted, some homeowners may not even realize that they have been the victim of a scam before it is too late for prosecution.

“AB 1950 equips the Attorney General to do her job; to go after the bad actors that have taken advantage of homeowners. It accomplishes this by providing the Attorney General with appropriate time to investigate and prosecute those who prey on California homeowners,” said Assemblymember Mike Davis. The bill passed out of the Assembly on a 46 to 18 vote.

The California Homeowner Bill of Rights also includes:

DUE PROCESS AND FORECLOSURE REDUCTION ACT: SB 900 (Leno) & AB 278 (Eng). These bills are being considered by a Joint Legislative Conference Committee.

BLIGHT PREVENTION LEGISLATION: AB 2314 (Carter) & SB 1472 (Pavley and DeSaulnier). These bills have passed the Assembly and Senate, respectively and now will be heard in the other house.

TENANT PROTECTION LEGISLATION: AB 2610 (Skinner) & SB 1473 (Hancock). These bills will be heard in the Assembly and Senate by the end of the week.

For more information on the California Homeowner Bill of Rights, go to www.oag.ca.gov

SACRAMENTO -- Attorney General Kamala D. Harris today announced that a bill she is sponsoring to ensure that those convicted of human trafficking crimes involving minors will not be able to keep the financial benefits reaped from those crimes unanimously passed out of the state Senate.

“The trafficking of human beings is an unseen problem in California and throughout the country,” said Attorney General Harris. “I am proud to sponsor legislation that will undercut the trafficking of human beings throughout our state.”

Senate Bill 1133, authored by Senator Mark Leno (D-San Francisco), ensures that those convicted of human trafficking crimes involving minors will not be able to keep the financial benefits reaped from those crimes. This bill expands on the current list of assets that the perpetrator must forfeit and provides a formula to redirect those resources to community groups that aid victims of human trafficking. It passed the Senate floor 36 to 0.

“Sex trafficking of minors is a horrendous crime that is driven by the prospect of lucrative profits,” said Senator Leno. “This legislation aims to deprive convicted criminals of the financial resources and assets that would allow them to continue luring young people into the sex trade. In turn, proceeds from those forfeitures would rightfully be used to help victims begin to repair their lives.”

Attorney General Harris has been committed to combating human trafficking throughout her career. Human trafficking in California first became a felony in 2005 with the California Human Trafficking Victims Protection Act that the Attorney General co-sponsored when she served as the District Attorney of San Francisco.

Attorney General Harris has also served on the California Alliance to Combat Trafficking and Slavery Task Force and the Department of Justice is currently updating the report “Human Trafficking in California,” which was released by the task force in 2007. The updated report is expected to be issued this summer.

The Attorney General is sponsoring a second human trafficking bill this session. Assembly Bill 2466 (Preservation of Assets for Victims of Human Trafficking), by Assemblymember Bob Blumenfield (D-San Fernando Valley) will require that more victims of human trafficking receive restitution. Under California law, victims are entitled to mandatory restitution; however there are no laws to help prevent human trafficking defendants from liquidating and hiding their assets before conviction. Assembly Bill 2466 would allow a court to order the preservation of the assets and property by persons charged with human trafficking. The bill passed the Assembly unanimously earlier this month and is pending in the Senate.

Human trafficking is estimated to be a $32 billion industry, the world’s third most profitable criminal enterprise behind drugs and arms trafficking. Human trafficking involves the recruitment, smuggling, transporting, harboring, buying, or selling of a person for purposes of exploitation, prostitution, domestic servitude, sweatshop labor, migrant work, agricultural labor, peonage, bondage, or involuntary servitude. While human trafficking often involves the smuggling of human beings across international borders, numerous Americans are trafficked around the United States ever year. Human trafficking strips people, especially women and children, of their freedom and violates our nation’s promise that every person in the United States is guaranteed basic human rights.

For more information, go to the Attorney General’s human trafficking web site at www.oag.ca.gov/human-trafficking

FRESNO -- Attorney General Kamala D. Harris today was joined by Fresno County Sheriff Margaret Mims, Merced County Sheriff Mark Pazin, Tulare County Sheriff Bill Wittman, and Fresno Police Chief Jerry Dyer at a press conference in support of the California Homeowner Bill of Rights, which contains law enforcement tools to help prevent blight and other crimes associated with the foreclosure crisis.
Attorney General Harris also presented Attorney General Awards to distinguished officers from the Visalia Police Department, Fresno Police Department, the California Highway Patrol (Madera area), Kings County District Attorney’s Office and the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.

The press conference occurred after at a regional “zone” meeting, where law enforcement leaders discussed common challenges and collaboration. Zone 5 includes law enforcement agencies from Fresno, Kern, Kings, Madera, Mariposa, Merced and Tulare counties.

“As I meet with law enforcement leaders around the state, I repeatedly hear of their frustrations dealing with the aftermath of our foreclosure crisis and crime that is associated with it,” said Attorney General Harris. “I am gratified by the support of these Central Valley law enforcement leaders for the California Homeowner Bill of Rights, and look forward to the public safety enhancements it will bring.”

“Attorney General Harris’ proposed legislation provides increased enforcement capabilities, due process for homeowners, and gives local law enforcement additional tools to avoid blight as a result of empty homes left vacant as a result of foreclosures. I am pleased to be able to join her and support the California Homeowner Bill of Rights,” said Sheriff Margaret Mims of Fresno County.

“All Californian’s should be appreciative of these bills the Attorney General is trying to pass as they will help prevent foreclosure abuses, especially here in Merced where we ranked among some of the nation’s highest foreclosed homes,” Merced Sheriff Mark N. Pazin said.

“As the Sheriff of Tulare County, I have seen firsthand the devastating effects of the mortgage crisis, not only in Tulare County but across the State of California. In Tulare County alone, between 2008 and 2011 there were over 11,000 foreclosures. The California Homeowner Bill of Rights will assist homeowners and law enforcement agencies by providing additional resources and tools to identify and fight a multitude of crimes related to mortgage fraud, real estate fraud, and loan scams. I fully support the California Homeowner Bill of Rights,” Tulare County Sheriff Bill Wittman said.

The California Homeowner Bill of Rights, which would bring transparency and fairness to California’s broken mortgage process, is under consideration in the Legislature and includes proposals to help law enforcement respond to mortgage fraud and to crime associated with the foreclosure crisis.

These bills would empower communities to crack down on blight and the resulting crime, would support law enforcement responses to mortgage fraud by extending the statute of limitations, and would empower the Attorney General to empanel a special grand jury to target multi-jurisdictional financial crimes.

The California Homeowner Bill of Rights will also extend to all borrowers many of the same reforms negotiated for in the recent national mortgage settlement. The legislation includes protections against the dysfunctional “dual-track” foreclosures process, guarantees of a single point of contact for distressed homeowners, and an increase in penalties for robo-signing. The multistate mortgage settlement brought a commitment of up to $18 billion for California homeowners and foreclosure victims from banks.

Foreclosure-related estimates for each county in the zone are:

Fresno County:
Number of foreclosures 2008-2011: 27,837
Estimated amount of California commitment: $311,015,043

Kern County:
Number of foreclosures 2008-2011: 35,893
Estimated amount of California commitment: $374,504,344

Kings County
Number of foreclosures 2008-2011: 2,139
Estimated amount of California commitment: $24,288,347

Madera County
Number of foreclosures 2008-2011: 7,005
Estimated amount of California commitment: $84,307,143

Mariposa County
Number of foreclosures 2008-2011: 238
Estimated amount of California commitment: $6,761,727

Merced County
Number of foreclosures 2008-2011: 18,229
Estimated amount of California commitment: $215,723,069

Tulare County
Number of foreclosures 2008-2011: 11,269
Estimated amount of California commitment: $119,124,870

SACRAMENTO -- Attorney General Kamala D. Harris today issued the following statement on the Governor’s May Revision:

“The state Department of Justice stood firm for over a year against the nation’s largest banks on behalf of California homeowners harmed by the foreclosure crisis. This effort resulted in an agreement that will provide billions in relief to California homeowners who are experiencing hardship. The agreement also required the banks to pay an additional $410 million to get homeowners the expert help they need to keep their homes.

The Governor’s May Revision, however, proposes to redirect this $410 million from the state’s homeowners to other budget purposes. While the state is undeniably facing a difficult budget gap, these funds should be used to help Californians stay in their homes. I plan to work with the Governor and Legislature toward a balanced budget that honors our obligations to California’s homeowners.”