NEWSFLASH

Senate Bill 111 was signed into law and became effective on July 16, 2009. Below are highlights of important changes.

• Non-residents working in Delaware will no longer be required to complete and submit the Affidavit of Nonresident Applicant. The information is required in the Notary Public application only.



• Fees for Notary Public applications are non-refundable.



• Any false or fraudulent statements or misrepresentations in notary applications will be considered an act of perjury.



• The Oath of Office is no longer required to be recorded in the Recorder of Deeds Office. Notaries Public are still required to take the Oath of Office but are now required to return a copy to the Secretary of State, Notary Public Section prior to performing any notarial act. Full instructions can be found under Post Commission Instructions and will also be provided to Notaries Public when Commissions are issued.



• This law now provides for the appointment of Limited Governmental Notaries Public. This category of Notaries allows employees of Delaware State government as well as employees of police agencies (State, county, municipal or local) to become notaries with no application fee, no expiration of term during this qualified employment and limitations as to the powers of these notaries, to be set by the agencies according to their needs. This category of notary requires both an employer approval form and a notary public application. It also provides for notaries appointed under this category who transfer to another agency which qualifies under this category to retain their commission upon receipt of an updated approval form. Instructions and forms for this category of notary are located on the "Application Instructions" page for Limited Governmental Notary Applicant.



• The signatures of both the Governor and the Secretary of State which appear on the Commission may be an electronic or facsimile signature.



• This legislation also makes additional changes to electronic notarization. Please note, however, that electronic notary commissions are currently not being issued at this time to allow for the establishment of guidelines as well as the development and implementation of a new notary commissioning system. As more information becomes available, it will be posted to this website.