Assigned to GOV                                                                                                        AS PASSED BY THE SENATE

ARIZONA STATE SENATE

Forty-eighth Legislature, First Regular Session

AMENDED

FACT SHEET FOR S.B. 1639

notaries; citizenship requirement

Purpose

            Requires a notary public to be a citizen or permanent legal resident of the United States.

Background

            A notary public is a person appointed by state government to witness the signing of important documents and administer oaths. A notary public is considered an impartial witness and ensures that the signers of documents are who they say they are and not imposters and is a method of deterring fraud. The notary also questions signers to make sure that signers have entered into agreements knowingly and willingly.

            For a document to be notarized, it must contain text committing the signer in some way, an original signature of the document signer and a notarial certificate. The notary fills in the certificate, signs it and then applies his/her seal to complete the notarization process.

            In the State of Arizona, there are three basic qualifications an applicant must comply with to receive an Arizona Notary Commission. First, the applicant must be at least 18 years of age. Second, the applicant must be a resident of the State of Arizona for income tax purposes. Third, the applicant cannot have been convicted of a felony.

            In 2004, further provisions were passed that:

a) clarify the definition of incomplete document to include a document that lacks a notarial certificate.

b) require notaries to keep as a reference a manual that is approved by the Secretary of State that describes the duties, authority and ethical responsibilities of notaries public.

c) mandate that notaries respond to any requests for information and comply with any investigations that are initiated by the Secretary of State or Attorney General.

d) specify that a notary’s failure to respond to an investigation is a failure by the notary to fully and faithfully discharge the duties of a notary.

e) stipulate that a notary’s failure to notify the Secretary of State within 30 days of the notary’s change of name due to marriage is evidence of the notary’s failure to fully and faithfully discharge the duties of a notary.

f) stipulate that the Secretary of State may either revoke or suspend a notary’s commission if the notary violates statutorily prescribed prohibited acts.

g) authorize the Secretary of State to revoke or suspend the commission of a notary public if the notary notarizes a document that contains no notarial certificate.

h) enable the Secretary of State to suspend a notary’s commission for a period of at least 30 days and not more than 180 days.

i) states that if a person has had his/her notary commission in this state revoked, then the Secretary of State may refuse to appoint the person as notary public four years from the date of revocation.

j) specify that upon suspension of a notary’s commission, the Secretary of State shall give notice to the notary public and shall provide the person with notice of the opportunity for a hearing on the suspension.

k) clarify that the suspension of a notary public’s commission may be appealed by the agency.

            There is no anticipated fiscal impact to the state General Fund.

Provisions

1. Requires a notary public to be a citizen or permanent legal resident of the United States.

2. Makes conforming changes.

3. Becomes effective on the general effective date.

Amendments Adopted by Committee of the Whole

· Allows a notary public to be a permanent legal resident of the United States.

Senate Action

GOV               2/12/07     DP     7-0-0-0

3rd Read         2/27/7                 30-0-0-0

Prepared by Senate Research

February 27, 2007

CN/JA/ac