46626.
(a) At least 30 days prior to the filing or recording of a lien pursuant to either Chapter 14 (commencing with Section 7150) or Chapter 14.5 (commencing with Section 7220) of Division 7 of Title 1 of the Government Code, the department shall mail to the fee payer a preliminary notice of lien. The notice shall specify the department’s statutory authority for filing or recording the lien, the earliest date on which the lien may be filed or recorded, and the remedies available to the fee payer to prevent the filing or recording of the lien. In the event liens are filed for the same liability in multiple counties, only one preliminary notice shall be sent.
(b) The preliminary notice required by this section shall not apply to
jeopardy determinations issued under Article 4 (commencing with Section 46301) of Chapter 3.
(c) If the department determines that a lien was recorded in error, it shall mail a release to the fee payer and the entity that recorded the lien as soon as possible, but in no event later than seven days after this determination and the receipt of lien recording information. The release shall contain a statement that the lien was filed in error. In the event the erroneously recorded lien is obstructing a lawful transaction, the department shall immediately issue a release of lien to the fee payer and the entity that recorded the lien.
(d) Upon issuing a release pursuant to subdivision (c), notice of that release shall be mailed to the taxpayer. Upon the request of the taxpayer, a copy of the release shall be mailed to the major credit reporting companies in the county where the lien was
recorded.
(e) (1) The department may release or subordinate a lien if the department determines any of the following:
(A) Release or subordination will facilitate the collection of the fee liability.
(B) Release or subordination will be in the best interest of the state and the fee payer.
(C) Release or subordination will be in the best interest of the state and another person that is not the taxpayer but that holds an interest with the taxpayer in the property that is subject to the lien.
(2) The amendments added to this subdivision do not constitute a change in, and are declaratory of, existing law.
(Amended by Stats. 2022, Ch. 474, Sec. 87. (SB 1496) Effective January 1, 2023.)