There’s an interesting amendment to this year’s state budget. If enacted, it would specifically authorize the use of “electronic books” (aka computers with imaging systems) in place of traditional paper-based books. The same would be true for indexes. In Lowell, we stopped printing paper-based record books back in November 2001 when the tardily passed state budget took an enormous and unexpected chunk out of our operating funds. And although Chapter 36 of the General Laws does talk about reproducing recorded documents in books, I have considered the law to be flexible enough to encompass technological advances, so having document images available on computers did, in my view, comply with the existing statute. Nevertheless, this proposed legislation is welcome - I wonder if it will apply to Registered Land? Wouldn’t that be a revolutionary development?
