Two more states enacted new UCC Article 9 amendments last week. On April 14, Nebraska and Washington signed into law NE LB 90 and WA HB 1492, respectively.
Nebraska’s bill is uniform to the model act* across the board, with Alternative A chosen for 9-503, and reference to placeholder text only for 9-521.
Washington treats 9-521 the same and is also uniform in all respects, except the state has opted for Alternative B for 9-503. This means that unlike North Dakota and Nebraska, Washington will allow for a “safe harbor” in individual debtor names. If an individual debtor has a WA driver’s license, the financing statement is sufficient if it uses the name found therein. However, unlike Alternative A, it also allows for other individual names to be used, such as the surname and first personal name.
What does this mean in a practical sense? Well, searchers beware in Washington. Under Alternative B, a variety of debtor names will be sufficient, so searchers will need to conduct a more expansive search to ensure that all possible name variations are uncovered.
*For more information about the various provisions of the model act, visit the “Legislation and Judgments” category of this blog.
Comments