Terms Used In California Codes > Public Resources Code > Division 13 > Chapter 2.6 - General

• Advertisement: means a commercial message in any medium that directly or indirectly solicits or promotes one or more specific rental-purchase transactions, excluding instore merchandising aids. See California Civil Code 1812.622
• Affected county: means each county from which territory is proposed to be transferred to create a new county. See California Government Code 23301
• Affected county: means each county which is proposed to be part of a consolidated county or which is consolidated with one or more counties. See California Government Code 23501
• Affidavit: A written statement of facts confirmed by the oath of the party making it, before a notary or officer having authority to administer oaths.
• Affirmed: In the practice of the appellate courts, the decree or order is declared valid and will stand as rendered in the lower court.
• Answer: The formal written statement by a defendant responding to a civil complaint and setting forth the grounds for defense.
• Appeal: A request made after a trial, asking another court (usually the court of appeals) to decide whether the trial was conducted properly. To make such a request is "to appeal" or "to take an appeal." One who appeals is called the appellant.
• Approved county: means the territory to be included in a new county after the registered voters in the affected county or counties have approved the creation of such a new county at a primary election, pursuant to Article 4 (commencing with Section 23350), but before an election is held for purposes of determining the location of the county seat and the selection of county officers for such new county, pursuant to Article 4. See California Government Code 23301
• assessed value: means 25 percent of full value to, and including, the 1980-81 fiscal year, and 100 percent of full value for the 1981-82 fiscal year and fiscal years thereafter. See California Government Code 25
• Assets: (1) The property comprising the estate of a deceased person, or (2) the property in a trust account.
• Attachment: A procedure by which a person's property is seized to pay judgments levied by the court.
• Bankruptcy: Refers to statutes and judicial proceedings involving persons or businesses that cannot pay their debts and seek the assistance of the court in getting a fresh start. Under the protection of the bankruptcy court, debtors may discharge their debts, perhaps by paying a portion of each debt. Bankruptcy judges preside over these proceedings.
• Baseline: Projection of the receipts, outlays, and other budget amounts that would ensue in the future without any change in existing policy. Baseline projections are used to gauge the extent to which proposed legislation, if enacted into law, would alter current spending and revenue levels.
• Beneficiary: A person who is entitled to receive the benefits or proceeds of a will, trust, insurance policy, retirement plan, annuity, or other contract. ^{Source: OCC}
• Blanket encumbrance: means any mortgage, deed of trust, option to purchase, vendor's lien or interest under a contract or agreement of sale, or other financing lien or encumbrance granted by the membership camping operator or affiliate which secures or evidences the obligation to pay money or to sell or convey any campgrounds made available to purchasers by the membership camping operator or any portion thereof, and which authorizes, permits, or requires the foreclosure or other disposition of the campground. See California Civil Code 1812.300
• Board: means the Pooled Money Investment Board. See California Government Code 16493
• Campground: means real property within this state owned or operated by a membership camping operator and designated in whole or in part by the membership camping operator as available for camping or outdoor recreation by purchasers of membership camping contracts. See California Civil Code 1812.300
• Camping site: means a space designed and promoted for the purpose of locating a trailer, tent, tent trailer, pickup camper, or other similar device used for camping. See California Civil Code 1812.300
• Cash price: means the price of the personal property described in the rental-purchase agreement that the consumer may pay in cash to the lessor at the inception of the rental-purchase agreement to acquire ownership of that personal property. See California Civil Code 1812.622
• Clerk: means the clerk of a county board of supervisors. See California Government Code 23301
• Clerk: means the clerk of the county board of supervisors. See California Government Code 23501
• Commission: means the County Formation Review Commission. See California Government Code 23301
• Common law: The legal system that originated in England and is now in use in the United States. It is based on judicial decisions rather than legislative action.
• Complaint: A written statement by the plaintiff stating the wrongs allegedly committed by the defendant.
• Computer system: means a computer processor and a video monitor, printer, and peripheral items primarily designed for use with a computer. See California Civil Code 1812.622
• Consumer: means a natural person or persons who rent or lease personal property from a lessor pursuant to a rental-purchase agreement or to whom a lessor offers personal property for use pursuant to a rental-purchase agreement. See California Civil Code 1812.622
• Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
• Conviction: A judgement of guilt against a criminal defendant.
• Cost of rental: means the difference between the total of all periodic payments necessary to acquire ownership under the rental-purchase agreement and the cash price of the rental property that is subject to the rental-purchase agreement. See California Civil Code 1812.622
• Counterclaim: A claim that a defendant makes against a plaintiff.
• County: includes "city and county. See California Public Resources Code 14
• Credit report: A detailed report of an individual's credit history prepared by a credit bureau and used by a lender in determining a loan applicant's creditworthiness. ^{Source: OCC}
• Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
• Deed: The legal instrument used to transfer title in real property from one person to another.
• Defendant: In a civil suit, the person complained against; in a criminal case, the person accused of the crime.
• Discovery: Lawyers' examination, before trial, of facts and documents in possession of the opponents to help the lawyers prepare for trial.
• Docket: A log containing brief entries of court proceedings.
• Electronic device: means a desktop or laptop computer, handheld device, tablet, smartphone, or other electronic product or device that has a platform on which to download, install, or run any software program, code, script, or other content. See California Civil Code 1812.622
• eligible bank: means a state or national bank located in this state, selected by the Treasurer for the safekeeping of money belonging to or in the custody of the state, that has received an overall rating of not less than "satisfactory" in its most recent evaluation by the appropriate federal financial supervisory agency of the bank's record of meeting the credit needs of the state's communities, including low- and moderate-income neighborhoods, pursuant to Section 2906 of Title 12 of the United States Code. See California Government Code 16500
• Embezzlement: In most states, embezzlement is defined as theft/larceny of assets (money or property) by a person in a position of trust or responsibility over those assets. Embezzlement typically occurs in the employment and corporate settings. ^{Source: OCC}
• Energy settlement agreement: means any agreement arising from the energy crisis of 2000-02, where the State of California or a division of the State of California, is a party in a complaint or any action relating to the operation and management of any generation facilities, any sale or purchase or transmission of natural gas, any sale or purchase or transmission of electricity or other utility or energy goods and services, or a violation of the Federal Power Act (16 U. See California Government Code 16428.2
• Entitlement: A Federal program or provision of law that requires payments to any person or unit of government that meets the eligibility criteria established by law. Entitlements constitute a binding obligation on the part of the Federal Government, and eligible recipients have legal recourse if the obligation is not fulfilled. Social Security and veterans' compensation and pensions are examples of entitlement programs.
• Equitable: Pertaining to civil suits in "equity" rather than in "law." In English legal history, the courts of "law" could order the payment of damages and could afford no other remedy. See damages. A separate court of "equity" could order someone to do something or to cease to do something. See, e.g., injunction. In American jurisprudence, the federal courts have both legal and equitable power, but the distinction is still an important one. For example, a trial by jury is normally available in "law" cases but not in "equity" cases. ^{Source: U.S. Courts}
• Escrow: Money given to a third party to be held for payment until certain conditions are met.
• Executor: A male person named in a will to carry out the decedent
• Express consent: means the affirmative agreement to any use or installation of geophysical location tracking technology or remote technical assistance. See California Civil Code 1812.622
• Fair market value: The price at which an asset would change hands in a transaction between a willing, informed buyer and a willing, informed seller.
• Federal Reserve System: The central bank of the United States. The Fed, as it is commonly called, regulates the U.S. monetary and financial system. The Federal Reserve System is composed of a central governmental agency in Washington, D.C. (the Board of Governors) and twelve regional Federal Reserve Banks in major cities throughout the United States. ^{Source: OCC}
• Fee: means any payment, charge, fee, cost, or expense, however denominated, other than a rental payment. See California Civil Code 1812.622
• Fiduciary: A trustee, executor, or administrator.
• Finance charge: The total cost of credit a customer must pay on a consumer loan, including interest. The Truth in Lending Act requires disclosure of the finance charge. ^{Source: OCC}
• Foreclosure: A legal process in which property that is collateral or security for a loan may be sold to help repay the loan when the loan is in default. ^{Source: OCC}
• Fund: means the Ratepayer Relief Fund established in Section 16428. See California Government Code 16428.2
• Garnishment: Generally, garnishment is a court proceeding in which a creditor asks a court to order a third party who owes money to the debtor or otherwise holds assets belonging to the debtor to turn over to the creditor any of the debtor
• Geophysical location tracking technology: means hardware, software, or an application that collects and reports data or information that identifies the precise geophysical location of an item, including technologies that report the GPS coordinates of an electronic device, the WiFi signals available to or actually used by an electronic device to access the Internet, the telecommunication towers or connections available to or actually used by an electronic device, the processing of any reported data or information through geolocation lookup services, or any information derived from any combination of the foregoing. See California Civil Code 1812.622
• Germane: On the subject of the pending bill or other business; a strict standard of relevance.
• Indebtedness: means the net obligations of a county arising from contract or through the operation of law, other than short-term operational expenses, but including and not limited to obligations arising under general obligation bonds, leases, joint powers agreements, and similar obligations or contracts entered into by the county prior to the date on which a petition is filed. See California Government Code 23301
• Injunction: An order of the court prohibiting (or compelling) the performance of a specific act to prevent irreparable damage or injury.
• Interest rate: The amount paid by a borrower to a lender in exchange for the use of the lender's money for a certain period of time. Interest is paid on loans or on debt instruments, such as notes or bonds, either at regular intervals or as part of a lump sum payment when the issue matures. ^{Source: OCC}
• Lease: A contract transferring the use of property or occupancy of land, space, structures, or equipment in consideration of a payment (e.g., rent). ^{Source: OCC}
• Lessor: means any person or entity that provides or offers to provide personal property for use by consumers pursuant to a rental-purchase agreement. See California Civil Code 1812.622
• Liabilities: The aggregate of all debts and other legal obligations of a particular person or legal entity.
• Lien: A claim against real or personal property in satisfaction of a debt.
• Local agency: means a city, county, city and county, special district, school district, county board of education, or community college district which levied a property tax during the 1977-78 fiscal year or for which a property tax was levied. See California Government Code 16493
• Markup: The process by which congressional committees and subcommittees debate, amend, and rewrite proposed legislation.
• Membership camping contract: means an agreement offered or sold within the State of California by a membership camping operator or membership camping broker evidencing a purchaser's right or license to use for more than 14 days in a year, the campgrounds of a membership camping operator and includes a membership which provides for this use. See California Civil Code 1812.300
• Membership camping operator: means any enterprise, other than one that is tax exempt under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954, as amended, that has as one of its purposes the ownership or operation of campgrounds which include or may include use of camping sites, that solicits membership paid for by a fee or periodic payments, such as annual dues, and the contractual members are the primary intended users. See California Civil Code 1812.300
• month: means a calendar month, unless otherwise expressed. See California Civil Code 14
• Mortgage: The written agreement pledging property to a creditor as collateral for a loan.
• National Bank: A bank that is subject to the supervision of the Comptroller of the Currency. The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency is a bureau of the U.S. Treasury Department. A national bank can be recognized because it must have "national" or "national association" in its name. ^{Source: OCC}
• Nolo contendere: No contest-has the same effect as a plea of guilty, as far as the criminal sentence is concerned, but may not be considered as an admission of guilt for any other purpose.
• Nondisturbance agreement: means an instrument in recordable form by which the holder of a blanket encumbrance agrees to all of the following:

  California Civil Code 1812.300

• Notice: includes all papers and orders required to be served in any proceedings before any court, board, or officer, or when required by law to be served independently of such proceeding. See California Government Code 26660
• Offer: means any solicitation reasonably designed to result in entering into a membership camping contract. See California Civil Code 1812.300
• Open-end credit: A credit agreement (typically a credit card) that allows a customer to borrow against a preapproved credit line when purchasing goods and services. The borrower is only billed for the amount that is actually borrowed plus any interest due. (Also called a charge account or revolving credit.) ^{Source: OCC}
• Person: means any individual, corporation, partnership, limited liability company, trust, association, or other organization other than a government or a subdivision thereof. See California Civil Code 1812.300
• Personal property: All property that is not real property.
• personal property: include money, goods, chattels, things in action, and evidences of debt. See California Civil Code 14
• Plaintiff: The person who files the complaint in a civil lawsuit.
• Power of attorney: A written instrument which authorizes one person to act as another's agent or attorney. The power of attorney may be for a definite, specific act, or it may be general in nature. The terms of the written power of attorney may specify when it will expire. If not, the power of attorney usually expires when the person granting it dies. ^{Source: OCC}
• Principal county: means the county from which it is proposed that territory with the greatest proportion of assessed value, as shown on the last equalized assessment roll, relative to the total amount of taxable property within the boundaries of a proposed county, is to be transferred to create, in part, that proposed county. See California Government Code 23301
• Principal county: means the county with the greatest proportion of assessed value, as shown on the last equalized assessment roll, to the total amount of taxable property in the county. See California Government Code 23501
• Probate: Proving a will
• Process: includes a writ or summons issued in the course of judicial proceedings of either a civil or criminal nature. See California Government Code 22
• property: includes property real and personal. See California Civil Code 14
• Purchaser: means a person who enters into a membership camping contract and thereby obtains the right to use the campgrounds of a membership camping operator. See California Civil Code 1812.300
• Quorum: The number of legislators that must be present to do business.
• Real property: Land, and all immovable fixtures erected on, growing on, or affixed to the land.
• Remainder: An interest in property that takes effect in the future at a specified time or after the occurrence of some event, such as the death of a life tenant.
• Remote technical assistance: means collaborative access by the user and technician to connect to an electronic device for the purpose of providing technical support to the user. See California Civil Code 1812.622
• Rental-purchase agreement: except as otherwise provided in this subdivision, means an agreement between a lessor and a consumer pursuant to which the lessor rents or leases, for valuable consideration, personal property for use by a consumer for personal, family, or household purposes for an initial term not exceeding four months that may be renewed or otherwise extended, if under the terms of the agreement the consumer acquires an option or other legally enforceable right to become owner of the property. See California Civil Code 1812.622
• Rescission: The cancellation of budget authority previously provided by Congress. The Impoundment Control Act of 1974 specifies that the President may propose to Congress that funds be rescinded. If both Houses have not approved a rescission proposal (by passing legislation) within 45 days of continuous session, any funds being withheld must be made available for obligation.
• Restitution: The court-ordered payment of money by the defendant to the victim for damages caused by the criminal action.
• Right of rescission: Right to cancel, within three business days, a contract that uses the home of a person as collateral, except in the case of a first mortgage loan. There is no fee to the borrower, who receives a full refund of all fees paid. The right of rescission is guaranteed by the Truth in Lending Act (TILA). ^{Source: OCC}
• sell: means entering into, or other disposition, of a membership camping contract for value. See California Civil Code 1812.300
• seller: means membership camping operator. See California Civil Code 1812.300
• Service of process: The service of writs or summonses to the appropriate party.
• state agency: includes every state office, officer, department, division, bureau, board, and commission. See California Government Code 11000
• Subpoena: A command to a witness to appear and give testimony.
• Testimony: Evidence presented orally by witnesses during trials or before grand juries.
• Total of payments: means the total amount of periodic payments necessary to acquire ownership of the property that is the subject of the rental-purchase agreement if the consumer makes all regularly scheduled payments. See California Civil Code 1812.622
• Town: includes "unincorporated town" and "village. See California Government Code 21
• Trial: A hearing that takes place when the defendant pleads "not guilty" and witnesses are required to come to court to give evidence.
• Trust account: A general term that covers all types of accounts in a trust department, such as estates, guardianships, and agencies. ^{Source: OCC}
• Trustee: A person or institution holding and administering property in trust.
• Trustor: The person who makes or creates a trust. Also known as the grantor or settlor.
• will: includes codicil. See California Civil Code 14