SB25-016 Summary

SB25-016: Updating Escrow Disbursement Practices
 

Prime Sponsors: Senator Marc Snyder, Representative Andrew Boesenecker, Representative Ron Weinberg

Introduced: January 08, 2025

Signed: March 20, 2025

Effective Date: August 6, 2025

Summary:

SB25-016 affects certain earnest money deposits and other funds necessary to consummate a real estate transaction that are available for immediate withdrawal.

First, the law clarifies the definition of a wire transfer to be one that was “made through a funds-transfer service operated by the Federal Reserve or the Clearing House Payments Company.”  

Next, the law clarifies that a certified check, cashier’s check, teller’s check, or any other instrument, as is defined in federal law at 12 CFR 229.10(c), is available for immediate withdrawal.  

Finally, the law explains that a real-time or instant payment made through a funds-transfer service operated by the Federal Reserve or the Clearing House payments Company’s real-time payment system is also available for immediate withdrawal.