Unauthorized UCC filings

AN ACT Relating to unauthorized Uniform Commercial Code filings; 1
amending RCW 62A.9A-510 and 62A.9A-516; adding a new section to 2
chapter 40.16 RCW; adding a new section to Article 62A.9A RCW; and 3
prescribing penalties. 4
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:5
NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. A new section is added to chapter 40.16 6
RCW to read as follows: 7
(1) No person shall cause to be communicated to the filing office 8
as defined in RCW 62A.9A-102 for filing a record if:9
(a) The person is not authorized to file the record under RCW 10
62A.9A-509, 62A.9A-708, or 62A.9A-808; 11
(b) The record is not related to an existing or anticipated 12
transaction that is or will be governed by Article 62A.9A RCW; and13
(c) The record is filed with the intent to harass or defraud the 14
person identified as debtor in the record. 15
(2) Except as provided in subsection (3) of this section, a 16
person convicted of a violation of subsection (1) of this section is 17
guilty of a gross misdemeanor. 18
(3) A person convicted of a second or subsequent violation of 19
subsection (1) of this section is guilty of a class C felony.20
Z-0634.1
HOUSE BILL 2640
State of Washington 69th Legislature 2026 Regular Session
By Representative Ryu; by request of Department of Licensing
Read first time 01/23/26. Referred to Committee on Civil Rights &
Judiciary.
p. 1 HB 2640
Sec. 2. RCW 62A.9A-510 and 2011 c 74 s 720 are each amended to 1
read as follows: 2
(a) Filed record effective if authorized. A filed record is 3
effective only to the extent that it was filed by a person that may 4
file it under RCW 62A.9A-509 or by the filing office under section 3 5
of this act. 6
(b) Authorization by one secured party of record. A record 7
authorized by one secured party of record does not affect the 8
financing statement with respect to another secured party of record.9
(c) Continuation statement not timely filed. A continuation 10
statement that is not filed within the six-month period prescribed by 11
RCW 62A.9A-515(d) is ineffective. 12
NEW SECTION. Sec. 3. A new section is added to Article 62A.9A 13
RCW to read as follows: 14
TERMINATION OF WRONGFULLY FILED FINANCING STATEMENT; 15
REINSTATEMENT. (a) Trusted filer. "Trusted filer" means a person that 16
regularly causes records to be communicated to the filing office 17
through batch filing and has provided the office with current contact 18
information and information sufficient to establish its identity.19
(b) Affidavit of wrongful filing. A person identified as debtor 20
in a filed financing statement may deliver to the filing office a 21
notarized affidavit, signed under penalty of perjury, that identifies 22
the financing statement by file number, indicates the affiant's 23
mailing address, and states that the affiant believes that the filed 24
record identifying the affiant as debtor was not authorized to be 25
filed and was caused to be communicated to the office with the intent 26
to harass or defraud the affiant. The office may reject an affidavit 27
that is incomplete or that it believes was delivered to it with the 28
intent to harass or defraud the secured party. The department of 29
licensing filing office shall adopt a form of affidavit for use under 30
this section. 31
(c) Termination statement by filing office. Subject to subsection 32
(k) of this section, if an affidavit is delivered to the filing 33
office under subsection (b) of this section, the office shall 34
promptly file a termination statement with respect to the financing 35
statement identified in the affidavit. The termination statement must 36
identify by its file number the initial financing statement to which 37
it relates and must indicate that it was filed pursuant to this 38
p. 2 HB 2640
section. A termination statement filed under this subsection is not 1
effective until 30 days after it is filed. 2
(d) No fee charged or refunded. The filing office shall not 3
charge a fee for the filing of an affidavit under subsection (b) of 4
this section or a termination statement under subsection (c) of this 5
section. The office shall not return any fee paid for filing the 6
financing statement identified in the affidavit, whether or not the 7
financing statement is reinstated under subsection (g) of this 8
section. 9
(e) Notice of termination statement. On the same day that a 10
filing office files a termination statement under subsection (c) of 11
this section, it shall send to the secured party of record for the 12
financing statement to which the termination statement relates a 13
notice stating that the termination statement has been filed and will 14
become effective 30 days after filing. The notice shall be sent by 15
certified mail, return receipt requested, to the address provided for 16
the secured party of record in the financing statement with a copy 17
sent by electronic mail to the electronic mail address provided by 18
the secured party of record, if any. 19
(f) Administrative review; action for reinstatement. A secured 20
party that believes in good faith that the filed record identified in 21
an affidavit delivered to the filing office under subsection (b) of 22
this section was authorized to be filed and was not caused to be 23
communicated to the office with the intent to harass or defraud the 24
affiant may: 25
(1) Before the termination statement takes effect, request that 26
the office conduct an expedited review of the filed record and any 27
documentation provided by the secured party. The office may as a 28
result of this review remove from the record the termination 29
statement filed by it under subsection (c) of this section before it 30
takes effect and conduct an administrative review under subsection 31
(k) of this section; 32
(2) At any time file an action against the office seeking 33
reinstatement of the financing statement to which the filed record 34
relates. The action must be filed before the expiration of six months 35
after the date on which the termination statement filed under 36
subsection (c) of this section becomes effective. If the affiant is 37
not named as a defendant in the action, the secured party shall send 38
a copy of the complaint to the affiant at the address indicated in 39
the affidavit. The exclusive venue for the action shall be in the 40
p. 3 HB 2640
superior court for the county where the filing office in which the 1
financing statement was filed is located. The action shall be 2
considered by the court on an expedited basis. 3
(g) Office to file notice of action for reinstatement. Within 10 4
days after being served with process in an action under subsection 5
(f) of this section, the filing office shall file a notice indicating 6
that the action has been commenced. The notice must indicate the file 7
number of the initial financing statement to which it relates.8
(h) Action for reinstatement successful. If, in an action under 9
subsection (f) of this section, the court determines that the 10
financing statement was authorized to be filed and was not caused to 11
be communicated to the office with the intent to harass or defraud 12
the affiant, it shall order that the financing statement be 13
reinstated. If an order of reinstatement is issued by the court, the 14
office shall promptly file a record that identifies by its file 15
number the initial financing statement to which the record relates 16
and indicates that the financing statement has been reinstated.17
(i) Effect of reinstatement. Upon the filing of a record 18
reinstating a financing statement under subsection (h) of this 19
section the effectiveness of the financing statement is reinstated 20
and the financing statement shall be considered never to have been 21
terminated under this section. A continuation statement filed as 22
provided in RCW 62A.9A-515(d) after the effective date of a 23
termination statement filed under subsection (c) or (k) of this 24
section becomes effective if the financing statement is reinstated.25
(j) Liability for wrongful filing. If, in an action under 26
subsection (f) of this section, the court determines that the filed 27
record identified in an affidavit delivered to the filing office 28
under subsection (b) of this section was caused to be communicated to 29
the filing office with the intent to harass or defraud the affiant, 30
the office and the affiant may recover from the secured party that 31
filed the action the costs and expenses, including reasonable 32
attorneys' fees, that the office and the affiant incurred in the 33
action. This recovery is in addition to any recovery to which the 34
affiant is entitled under RCW 62A.9A-625. 35
(k) Procedure for record filed by trusted filer. If an affidavit 36
delivered to a filing office under subsection (b) of this section 37
relates to a filed record communicated to the office by a trusted 38
filer, the office shall promptly send to the secured party of record 39
a notice stating that the affidavit has been delivered to it and that 40
p. 4 HB 2640
it is conducting an administrative review to determine whether the 1
record was caused to be communicated with the intent to harass or 2
defraud the affiant. The notice shall be sent by certified mail, 3
return receipt requested, to the address provided for the secured 4
party in the financing statement with a copy sent by electronic mail 5
to the electronic mail address provided by the secured party of 6
record, if any, and a copy shall be sent in the same manner to the 7
affiant. The administrative review shall be conducted on an expedited 8
basis and the office may require the affiant and the secured party of 9
record to provide any additional information that the office deems 10
appropriate. If the office concludes that the record was caused to be 11
communicated with the intent to harass or defraud the affiant, it 12
shall promptly file a termination statement under subsection (b) of 13
this section that will be effective immediately and send to the 14
secured party of record the notice required by subsection (e) of this 15
section. The secured party may thereafter file an action for 16
reinstatement under subsection (f) of this section and the provisions 17
of subsections (g) through (j) of this section are applicable.18
Sec. 4. RCW 62A.9A-516 and 2011 c 74 s 404 are each amended to 19
read as follows: 20
(a) What constitutes filing. Except as otherwise provided in 21
subsection (b) of this section, communication of a record to a filing 22
office and tender of the filing fee or acceptance of the record by 23
the filing office constitutes filing. 24
(b) Refusal to accept record; filing does not occur. Filing does 25
not occur with respect to a record that a filing office refuses to 26
accept because: 27
(1) The record is not communicated by a method or medium of 28
communication authorized by the filing office; 29
(2) An amount equal to or greater than the applicable filing fee 30
is not tendered or, in the case of a filing office described in RCW 31
62A.9A-501(a)(1), an amount equal to the applicable filing fee is not 32
tendered; 33
(3) The filing office is unable to index the record because:34
(A) In the case of an initial financing statement, the record 35
does not provide a name for the debtor; 36
(B) In the case of an amendment or information statement, the 37
record: 38
p. 5 HB 2640
(i) Does not identify the initial financing statement as required 1
by RCW 62A.9A-512 or 62A.9A-518, as applicable; or 2
(ii) Identifies an initial financing statement whose 3
effectiveness has lapsed under RCW 62A.9A-515; 4
(C) In the case of an initial financing statement that provides 5
the name of a debtor identified as an individual or an amendment that 6
provides a name of a debtor identified as an individual which was not 7
previously provided in the financing statement to which the record 8
relates, the record does not identify the debtor's surname; or9
(D) In the case of a record filed or recorded in the filing 10
office described in RCW 62A.9A-501(a)(1), the record does not provide 11
a name for the debtor or a sufficient description of the real 12
property to which the record relates; 13
(4) In the case of an initial financing statement or an amendment 14
that adds a secured party of record, the record does not provide a 15
name and mailing address for the secured party of record;16
(5) In the case of an initial financing statement or an amendment 17
that provides a name of a debtor which was not previously provided in 18
the financing statement to which the amendment relates, the record 19
does not: 20
(A) Provide a mailing address for the debtor; or21
(B) Indicate whether the name provided as the name of the debtor 22
is the name of an individual or an organization; 23
(6) In the case of an assignment reflected in an initial 24
financing statement under RCW 62A.9A-514(a) or an amendment filed 25
under RCW 62A.9A-514(b), the record does not provide a name and 26
mailing address for the assignee; ((or))27
(7) In the case of a continuation statement, the record is not 28
filed within the six-month period prescribed by RCW 62A.9A-515(d); or29
(8) In the case of an initial financing statement or an amendment 30
that provides a name of a debtor that was not previously provided in 31
the financing statement to which the amendment relates, the record 32
was not communicated to the office by a trusted filer and the office 33
reasonably believes that the record was caused to be communicated to 34
it with the intent to harass or defraud the person identified as 35
debtor. The office has no duty to form a belief as to whether a 36
record was caused to be communicated with the intent to harass or 37
defraud the person identified as debtor and has no duty to 38
investigate or ascertain facts relevant to whether such intent was 39
present. 40
p. 6 HB 2640
(c) Rules applicable to subsection (b) of this section. For 1
purposes of subsection (b) of this section: 2
(1) A record does not provide information if the filing office is 3
unable to read or decipher the information; and 4
(2) A record that does not indicate that it is an amendment or 5
identify an initial financing statement to which it relates, as 6
required by RCW 62A.9A-512, 62A.9A-514, or 62A.9A-518, is an initial 7
financing statement. 8
(d) Refusal to accept record; record effective as filed record. A 9
record that is communicated to the filing office with tender of the 10
filing fee, but which the filing office refuses to accept for a 11
reason other than one set forth in subsection (b) of this section, is 12
effective as a filed record except as against a purchaser of the 13
collateral which gives value in reasonable reliance upon the absence 14
of the record from the files. 15
(e) A record that the filing office initially refuses to accept 16
under subsection (b)(8) of this section but that it later accepts 17
after it receives additional information is effective as if the 18
office had not initially refused to accept it except as against a 19
purchaser of the collateral that gives value in reasonable reliance 20
upon the absence of the record from the files.21
--- END ---
p. 7 HB 2640