Vermont has never required a journal, and still won't when the new law goes into effect. Many other RULONA states do require a journal.
Unlike CA and FL, RULONA does not require the witness to swear that the signer doesn't have acceptable ID and it would be hard for the signer to get it. The non-binding commentary says
"Subsection (b)(2) recognizes that an individual may require the performance of a notarial act even though that individual is not known to a notarial officer and does not have one of the identification credentials listed in subsection (b)(1), or at least the individual does not have the identification credential currently available...."
The way this is phrased, it implies that personal knowledge or identification credentials are preferred, and a credible witness is only allowed because otherwise some people wouldn't be able go get a notarization. But the actual text of the law does not indicate that a credible witness is less desirable than other methods. If I knew and trusted the credible witness, I could use the credible witness and never even ask if the signer had a driver license.
The version from the Uniform Law Commission with comments may be found at
https://www.uniformlaws.org/HigherLogic/System/DownloadDocumentFile.ashx?DocumentFileKey=aec212eb-a1e8-183a-13dd-587c7604666e&forceDialog=0 |
