H.B. 395: Real Estate Transaction Amendments

What the bill does

Did not pass both chambers; the bill was filed on March 6, 2026.

It would have enacted the Utah Real Estate Cybercrime Prevention Act, treating failure to use a shared real estate transaction communication network as unprofessional conduct for licensees in the home-buying chain. It never reached a floor vote: a committee sent it back to the Rules Committee, and it was filed on March 6, 2026.

This bill enacts the Utah Real Estate Cybercrime Prevention Act.

• Defines terms
• Makes failing to use the real estate transaction communication network (network) unprofessional conduct for employees of appraisal management companies, appraisers, escrow agents, mortgage lenders, mortgage loan originators, real estate sales agents, real estate brokers, title insurance licensees, and title insurers
• Makes violating a rule from the real estate transaction communication utility (utility) unprofessional conduct for appraisal management companies, appraisers, escrow agents, mortgage lenders, mortgage loan originators, real estate sales agents, real estate brokers, title insurance licensees, and title insurers
• Requires covered individuals to use the network to send covered communications related to real estate transactions
• Creates the Real Estate Communication Commission (commission) within the Department of Commerce to oversee the network
• Assigns the commission duties such as selecting a utility and approving fee schedules
• Grants the commission the power to issue or revoke a certificate of authority and recommend enforcement actions to other regulatory agencies
• Mandates that any person operating a network obtain a certificate of authority from the commission
• Requires the utility to submit all user eligibility rules and fee schedules to the commission for review and approval
• Directs the commission to perform criminal background checks on individuals who own 10% or more of the utility
• Directs the commission to automatically revoke a certificate of authority if an owner fails to accurately disclose a criminal history involving fraud or deceit
• Establishes that a certificate of authority expires after two years and outlines the specific requirements for renewal
• Defines unprofessional conduct as violating network rules or failing to use the network for covered communications

The description and list come from the bill's own long title as recorded by the Legislature; the paragraph above is the Ledger’s summary. Read the official bill. The Ledger takes no position on it.

Subjects: Insurance · Mortgage/Deed of Trust · Telecommunications · Business · Department of Commerce · Real Estate · Fraud · Boards and Committees · Government Operations (State Issues) · Title and Escrow · Real Property · Occupational and Professional Licensing

How it moved

1. January 28, 2026 · House1st reading (Introduced)Rules Committee
2. February 3, 2026 · Houseto standing committeeBusiness, Labor, and Commerce Committee
3. March 4, 2026 · HouseHouse Comm - Recommends Returned to RulesBusiness, Labor, and Commerce Committee
4. March 6, 2026 · Housefiledfile for bills not passed

Steps as the Legislature recorded them; clerical and fiscal-staff entries are left out. Numbers such as 54-14-7 are yeas, nays and absent.

Fiscal note

From the Legislative Fiscal Analyst's note on H.B. 395, dated January 30, 2026. A fiscal note estimates direct costs and revenue; it is not an appropriation.

• State revenue: Enactment of this legislation could increase application revenue by $1,500 one-time in FY 2027. This, combined with the expenditures listed below, would decrease the year-end transfer from the Commerce Service Account to the General Fund by $41,100 ongoing beginning in FY 2027 and $5,200 one-time in FY 2027.
• State expenditures: Enactment of this legislation could cost the Department of Commerce $41,100 ongoing from the Commerce Service Account beginning in FY 2027 and $6,700 one-time from the Commerce Service Account in FY 2027 for staff support to establish the new Real Estate Communication Commission.
• Local government: Enactment of this legislation likely will not result in direct, measurable costs for local governments.
• Individuals and businesses: Enactment of this legislation could cause about 10 businesses to pay a $150 application fee to get the "Certificate of Authority". This would aggregate to an additional $1,500 in application fee revenue. Assuming each business has 10 people who own 10% of the business each, enactment of this legislation could also cause 100 people to pay a $32 background check fee as part of the application process.

Bill overview

Sponsor: Jake Sawyer

Legislature passed-list status: Not available in the saved metadata.

Passed-list membership is not a finding that a bill was signed or took effect. A bill absent from that list is not necessarily pending or defeated.

Latest recorded action

filed
Action date: March 6, 2026

The full step list is above. Find the bill in the official session list for status, hearings and committee records.

Recorded floor votes

No floor-vote records for this bill and session are available here. This does not mean no vote occurred; consult the official bill record.

Ledger coverage

No Ledger stories with an explicit source link to this bill and session are listed here.