Dear Notary Public,

On July 1, 2019, Act 160 (2018), the Uniform Law on Notarial Acts (the Act), took effect.  While the Vermont Office of Professional Regulation (OPR) began issuing notary public commissions in December, 2018, the other provisions of the Act, with a few exceptions*, did not take effect until July 1, 2019.   The following provisions of the Act are now in effect and apply to notaries public in the State of Vermont:

• Requirements for performance of acknowledgements and verifications, attesting to signatures, and making or noting protests, set forth at 26 V.S.A. § 5363
• The definition of and requirements for personal appearances, set forth at 26 V.S.A. § 5364
• Required forms and processes for identification of individuals, set forth at 26 V.S.A. § 5365
• Process for performance of notarial acts when an individual is physically unable to sign a record, set forth at 26 V.S.A. § 5366
• Requirements for the certification of notarial acts, set forth at 26 V.S.A. §5367, and acceptable short forms of certificates, set forth at 26 V.S.A. § 5368
• Requirements for stamping devices, if used, set forth at 26 V.S.A. § 5370
• Conditions in which a notary public may refuse to perform a notarial act, set forth at 26 V.S.A. § 5372
• Conditions in which notarial acts will be valid despite errors, and methods for challenging or curing defects in notarial acts, set forth at 26 V.S.A. § 5373

Further, beginning on July 1, 2019, OPR may, with timely notice and an opportunity for hearing, deny, refuse to renew, suspend, or impose a condition on a notary public commission for any act or omission that demonstrates the individual lacks honesty, integrity, competence or reliability to act as a notary public, including the acts and omissions set forth in 26 V.S.A. § 5342 and at 3 V.S.A. § 129a.

During the 2019 legislative session, further changes were made to the Act that also took effect on July 1, 2019.  (See Act 30, 2019.)  These changes include the following:

• Town Clerks:  Provisions in Act 30 make clear that performing notary public services is within the scope of a Town Clerk’s duties.  Town Clerks, their assistants and their staff must obtain a notary public commission to provide notary public services to the public but these individuals do not have to pay a fee to get the commission. 

• Judiciary-Related Employees:  The judiciary-related employees listed below still need to obtain a notary public commission to perform notarial acts.   However, when applying for a commission to perform notarial acts within the scope of their official duties, these employees need only answer application questions regarding age, citizenship and residence or place of business, and submit a signed oath or affirmation.  Judiciary-related employees, when performing notarial acts as part of their official duties, are exempt from all other commission application requirements in the Notary Public Law, including continuing education requirements, examination requirements, and fee requirements.  These employees may not perform notarial acts outside of work unless the employee obtains a separate notary public commission by completing the full notary public commission application.  The following jobs are judiciary-related:
  • Judges
  • Superior Court clerks
  • Court operations managers
  • Probate registers
  • Case managers
  • Docket clerks
  • Assistant judges
  • County clerks
  • After-hours relief from abuse contract employees
  • Other judiciary employees

• Law Enforcement-Related Employees:   The law enforcement-related employees listed below do not need to obtain a notary public commission to perform notarial acts as part of their official duties.  These law enforcement-related employees may not perform notarial acts outside of work unless he or she obtains a notary public commission. The following jobs are law enforcement-related:
  • Law enforcement officers certified under 20 V.S.A. Chapter 151
  • Non-certified constables
  • Vermont law enforcement agency employees
  • Vermont Department of Public Safety employees
  • Vermont Department of Fish and Wildlife employees
  • Vermont Department of Motor Vehicles employees
  • Vermont Department of Liquor Control employees
  • Vermont Department of Children and Families employees
  • Office of the Defender General employees
  • Office of the Vermont Attorney General employees
  • State’s Attorney employees
  • Sheriff employees

Thank you for your time and attention to this matter.  If you have any questions or concerns, you may contact Danielle Rubalcaba in the Office of Professional Regulation at danielle.rubalcaba@sec.state.vt.us.

*Continuing education for renewal of commissions and examination requirements of new notary public commission applicants, respectively, do not take effect until February 1, 2021. Additional information on continuing education requirements will be outlined in the administrative rule.

Statutory amendments may not be reflected in the Vermont Statutes Online for several months.  Complete information on your profession can be found on OPR’s website at:

https://www.sec.state.vt.us/professional-regulation/list-of-professions/notaries-public.aspx

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