Posted by Blueink_CA on 4/13/08 4:31pm
Msg #243359

Hello gang -

Thought of this site the other day while I was at the post office mailing my journals (all 32 of them) to the Sac Co Clerks office per the instructions. (I moved out of state). According to the handbook, I was to send them certified mail. Well, to send them certified, I would of had to send them priority - over $35.00. Yikes. I think the handbook has not kept up with the current mailing methods. I sent them book rate with delivery confirmation - $9.00 - I hope they accept them.

I wonder if they're scanning these and putting them on disk. It's hard to believe they have the storage space for all the thousands of journals they must be getting.

Reply by brengreen/ca on 4/13/08 4:39pm
Msg #243360

wow- how many years of journals was that n/m

Reply by Blueink_CA on 4/13/08 6:30pm
Msg #243371

Re: wow- how many years of journals was that

Since 1998, however only the last three years was signing agent. Previous was general notary work at a service counter.

Reply by Sharon Taylor on 4/13/08 7:42pm
Msg #243377

Do they even know what to do with them?

In some more rural areas, I'll bet the County Clerk wouldn't know what to do with them and would just stick them in a box in the basement. My County Clerk is pretty current on rules and regulations, but I'm sure the office does not have the manpower or equipment to scan even my journals, let alone all the journals they could receive from former notaries. And too many of those casual notaries don't even keep a journal and have never heard of keeping one.

Reply by JanetK_CA on 4/13/08 11:16pm
Msg #243386

Re: Do they even know what to do with them?

It's the law in California -- and so is returning them, as BlueInk has done. Interesting point about the cost!

Reply by Sharon Taylor on 4/14/08 12:40am
Msg #243387

You know it's the law, I know it's the law, but do they know

it's the law is a good question. Many "casual" notaries are not even aware they are supposed to surrender their notary seal to the County Clerk once their commission expires and is not renewed.
I was at an auction of land and personal property of a deceased gentleman who must have been a notary at one time or another. The auctioneer held up a box of miscellaneous odds and ends, pulling out and describing some of the contents. One of the items was a notary seal, and I immediately spoke up and let him know a notary seal cannot be auctioned off, that it must be surrendered to the County Clerk. He handed it to one of the assistants, told him to make sure it was done, and thanked me for the information.

Reply by JanetK_CA on 4/14/08 1:54am
Msg #243389

Re: You know it's the law, I know it's the law, but do they know

I shudder to think how many have no clue - but selling it at auction??? Wow! Good thing you were there!! Which reminds me... In the front of each of my old journals -- and separately in the file where I store them -- I have a note advising what should be done with them, just in case I check out before I retire. I think I will add something about destroying my notary seal.

BTW, this is an excellent example of how notary law differs from state to state. In CA, we turn in our journals, but we are required to destroy our seals at the end of each term of our commission, not hand them over the the County Clerk. With the number of notaries in each of the major counties, it's probably bad enough dealing with all the journals from retired notaries -- but seals... and every time they get renewed every four years? They would need a huge warehouse!!

Reply by Kate/CA on 4/14/08 11:33am
Msg #243404

Hi blueInk, where did you move to?

I had an interesting signing once/twice. First time I went there the man explained that his wife use to be a notary but she passed away. He wanted to know what to do with her stamp and journal. I explained that he need to destroy the stamp and told him where to take the journal. Then about a year later I did another signing for him, he asked me again what to do. I said if you want I will take care of it for you. He gave me everything. I drove the journal to the clerks office 50 miles away, when I had a signing there and got a receipt for it. Later when I had a signing near him I took him back the stamp that I had destroyed, I had take a razor to it so it could not be used and gave him the receipt for the journal. I didn't want him to ever wonder what did she really do with the stuff. My point to this story, is it is amazing how many family memebers do not know what to do with our notary journals or stamps if something happens to us. Not only do we need to know the notary law, we need to educate our loved ones if something happens to us. I wonder how many journals are never recovered. It could really throw a wrench in a court case.

Reply by Blueink_CA on 4/14/08 6:38pm
Msg #243461

Re: Hello gang - Kate

I moved to TN - the Nashville area. The cost of living here is very attractive. I was tired of the constant struggle financially in CA, plus I wanted acreage.

I thought that what you did for that man was very nice & thoughtful of you. If you had not done that, I'm sure it would never had gotten where it needed to be. Probably sold at an auction as someone had mentioned. Good Karma to you.