I think there is an issue here with many of the county recorders as
well, in that they have forgotten the purpose of county recording in the
first place: to serve as an impartial and trusted record holder of
agreements between two parties (a critical element in developing the
sanctity of contracts in emerging capitalist societies, where contracts
were often violated, altered or ignored with impunity), as well as a
trusted repository for records to be maintained for posterity. This is
what those fees are paying for. And while we want recording functions to
be efficient, efficiency should not be bought at the cost of undermining
the ability of a recorder to serve as an impartial record holder. 

Unfortunately, I think there are county recorders who see themselves as
adjuncts of the mortgage/title/real estate industries and nothing more.
To give but one example: recorders who populate their imaging systems
with images purchased from title companies or other third parties to
avoid the cost of scanning their own backlogs. In my opinion, such
images should not be presented as "official copy" for certification
purposes (they are not in Multnomah County), as there has been a break
in the chain of custody, undermining the claim of impartiality. 

Dwight Wallis, CRM
Records Administrator
Multnomah County Records Management Program
1620 SE 190th Avenue
Gresham, OR 97233
phone: (503)988-3741
fax: (503)988-3754
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