Section 20602.

(a) Upon approval of a claim described in Section 20601, the Controller may do either of the following:

(1) Make payments directly to a lender, mortgage company, escrow company, or county tax collector for the property taxes owed on behalf of a qualified claimant. Payments may, upon appropriation by the Legislature, be made out of the amounts otherwise appropriated pursuant to Section 16100 of the Government Code that are secured by a lien and obligation as specified by Article 1 (commencing with Section 16180) of Chapter 5 of Division 4 of the Government Code.

(2) Issue to the claimant a certificate of eligibility, which shall consist of two parts, both of which shall contain the name of the claimant, the address of the residential dwelling on which the claimant has applied for property tax postponement, and that other information and in that form as the Controller shall prescribe. In the event that that residential dwelling is located in a chartered city which levies and collects its own taxes, the Controller shall issue a duplicate certificate of eligibility to pay all or any part of the property taxes appearing on that city's tax bill. Each part of a certificate of eligibility shall be payable in an unspecified amount and shall contain statements to identify the property tax installment to which it may be applied.

(b) The Controller shall prescribe the form of the certificates of eligibility to pay all delinquent taxes and assessments authorized by this chapter.

Upon or accompanying each certificate shall be a brief statement explaining that (1) those taxpayers whose property taxes are paid by a lender via an impound, trust or other similar account should enter the total amount of each installment on their respective certificates and mail both certificates to the tax collector at the same time, and (2) those taxpayers will receive a refund check from the county or city in the amount they entered on each certificate, within 30 days following the date on which the installment is paid by the lender or the certificate of eligibility is received by the tax collector, whichever is later, and (3) the intent of this procedure is to make sure the taxes on the claimant's dwelling are not paid twice.

(c) When a certificate of eligibility has been signed by the claimant, his or her spouse, or authorized agent and countersigned by the person authorized to collect property taxes or assessments for the local agency, such certificate shall constitute a written promise on the part of the State of California to pay the sum of money specified therein and such signed and countersigned certificate shall be deemed a negotiable instrument for the sole purpose of the payment of property taxes owing in the name of the claimant or his or her spouse for purposes of all laws of this state.

(d) A certificate of eligibility shall be valid for the duration prescribed thereon by the Controller.

(e) The Controller shall issue certificates of eligibility claims approved on or before September 30 between October 15 and November 1 of the fiscal year for which postponement is claimed. Certificates for claims approved after September 30 shall be issued at such times as the Controller determines will best implement the purpose of this chapter.

(f) The Controller shall prescribe the manner in which a claimant eligible under this chapter, who has been issued a certificate of eligibility which is lost or destroyed prior to being filed with the local agency pursuant to subdivision (b) may obtain a duplicate copy of said certificate as a replacement. (Under such conditions as may be prescribed by the Controller, a duplicate copy shall be deemed as having been filed with the local agency as of the date a claimant requests issuance of such duplicate copy.)

(Amended by Stats. 2004, Ch. 829, Sec. 2. Effective January 1, 2005.)