What a Notary Is or Is Not Marc L. Aronson President and CEO Pennsylvania Association of Notaries July 14, 2012

Application  Appointing authorities Secretary of State Governor Lt. governor, county clerk, judge Other state department  Application fee $5 to $120 Average is $25 - $30

Qualifications  Age of applicant 18 years of age NEBRASKA requires applicant to be 19  U.S. citizenship 18 states require U.S citizenship or legal residency  Criminal background check California, Minnesota, New Hampshire, Oregon, South Dakota

Qualifications  Language Proficiency 22 states require applicants to be able to read and write English  Bond 31 states require a bond; $500 to $25, states do not require a bond

Education and Testing STATE EDUCATION TESTING CALIFORNIA X X COLORADOXX CONNECTICUT X DISTRICT OF COLUMBIAX FLORIDAX HAWAI’IX LOUISIANAX MONTANAX NEBRASKAX NEVADAX NEW YORKX NORTH CAROLINAXX OREGONXX PENNSYLVANIAX UTAHX WISCONSINX

Commissioning  Length of commission 32 states commission notaries for four years Range is two years to 10 years  Non-resident commission 29 states permit non-residents to hold a notary commission

Stamp or Seal  Rubber stamp 41 states require or permit a rubber stamp NEW JERSEY – stamp or seal is optional  Embossing seal Only D.C. requires an embossing seal 28 = YES; 14 = NO; 9 = OPTIONAL  Ink color 10 states specify dark or black ink UTAH requires purple

Records and Fees  Journal or register 17 states require a journal or register 34 states do not require a journal or register  All states recommend the practice  Fees Minimum of 10 cents; maximum of $10 10 = $2; 13 = $5; 6 = $10 Six states do not specify fees

PRIA White Paper “Notary Best Practices for Recordable Documents”

PRIA White Paper  Notary Best Practices for Recordable Documents Expedite processing of recordable documents; Encourage consistency, accuracy and completeness of notarial certificates; Ensure readability of documents and the signatures, dates and notarial seals placed on them; and Reduce rejections of documents submitted for recording.

PRIA White Paper  Notary Best Practices for Recordable Documents “Whether the document is on paper or in electronic form, the notary’s essential function is the same.”

PRIA White Paper  Notary Best Practices for Recordable Documents “Because the enforceability of a recorded document may be affected by the quality of its acknowledgment, the significance of a proper notarization cannot be overstated.”

PRIA White Paper  Notary Best Practices for Recordable Documents “PRIA encourages specific standards for notaries who handle recordable documents and for commissioning authorities who appoint, oversee and discipline notaries.”

PRIA White Paper  Notary Best Practices for Recordable Documents “Uniform state laws would be helpful to the property records industry.”

RULONA  Revised Uniform Law on Notarial Acts Seven Years in the Making 2005 – Had an idea in the shower …

RULONA  Revised Uniform Law on Notarial Acts Seven Years in the Making 2005 – Had an idea in the shower … 2006 – Study Committee approved; first conference call – Drafting Committee meetings/calls 2010 – Final draft approved – Adopted in North Dakota, Iowa 2012 – Bills in Oklahoma, Pennsylvania and Tennessee

RULONA  Revised Uniform Law on Notarial Acts Retains existing notary practices and procedures Strengthens the law in problem areas Raises the bar on notary education Expands grounds for denying, refusing to renew, revoking or suspending notary commissions Repeals the Uniform Acknowledgment Act

RULONA  Revised Uniform Law on Notarial Acts What’s in it for recorders of deeds? Notaries who understand duties and responsibilities Documents that are recordable Secretary who can sanction and/or remove errant notaries Clearer path to e-Notarization in the future

PRIA White Paper  Notary Best Practices for Recordable Documents Best Practices for Notaries Public What the notarial form should look like What the notary should do What the notarial seal should look like Making corrections

PRIA White Paper  Notary Best Practices for Recordable Documents Best Practices for Commissioning Authorities Screening of applicants for commission Need for recordkeeping as evidentiary tool Physical presence and proper identification of the signer

PRIA White Paper  Notary Best Practices for Recordable Documents Best Practices for Commissioning Authorities Notary education and testing Bonding Sanctions

PRIA White Paper  Notary Best Practices for Recordable Documents E-Notarization e-Recording systems are mainstream Most common model is “Model 2” “Wet ink signature” prevents a fully electronic document RULONA should allow transition to “Model 3”

Long Distance Notarization  A Virginia law passed in the spring of 2011 took effect on July 1.  The law allows individuals to "appear" via video- conference instead of visiting a notary's office.  Online Virginia notaries can provide the service for individuals in any part of the U.S.  There is an audio and video record of the transaction.  The signed, notarized documents, typically PDFs, are tamper-evident.

Thanks for coming! Marc L. Aronson President and CEO Pennsylvania Association of Notaries , Ext. 113