Posted by Robert522TX on 3/13/13 7:16am
Msg #460901
Attention Texas Notaries...
In case you aren't a member or don't receive emails from the American Association of Notaries:
American Association of Notaries
March 12, 2013
Dear Texas notaries:
Two new notary bills are being considered by your lawmakers that, if enacted into law, may cost you hundreds of dollars.
Please take a few minutes to read this message and act:
As you know, the AAN is a passionate proponent of notary education.
We are excited that Texas lawmakers are interested in improving notary laws and that they want to assure that you and all Texas citizens benefit from improved education of Texas notaries. However, HB 1954 and SB 1037 are simply not the right bills.
Notaries must act now. HB 1954 and SB 1037 are hot and both are problematic --HB 1954 is already moving toward approval. It is critical that you let certain members of the House of Representatives know today how you stand on them.
As written, the bills could become time-consuming and expensive problems for notaries and those who employ them.
So that you may act quickly, we have provided explanations of the bills, our opinions about the proposed changes, and a form letter that you may use to contact the members of the Licensing and Administrative Procedures Committee, a committee in the House of Representatives that currently has HB 1954 under review.
-Please take this opportunity to take charge of your future!
-Share this with your employer if you perform notary services at your place of employment. Explain that costs of doing business may significantly increase if these bills are successful.
-We request that attorneys and paralegals contact the State Bar of Texas and ask members to review HB 1954 and SB 1037.
Thank you.
The American Association of Notaries
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THE BILLS
House Bill 1954 and Senate Bill 1037 are identical twins. The title of both bills is "An act relating to the education requirements for a notary public; authorizing a fee."
HB 1954 was introduced on February 27, 2013 by Representative Senfronia Thompson - Harris County (D). This bill has been assigned to the Licensing and Administrative Procedures Committee.
SB 1037 was introduced on March 4, 2013 by Senator Jose Rodriquez - El Paso (D). It has not been assigned to a committee on this date.
FOUR MAJOR PROBLEMS FOR NOTARIES IN BOTH BILLS
There are five proposed changes to Section 406, Texas Government Code and all except one of the changes to Section 406 can cause significant problems.
Proposed Change No. 1
Section 406.005 would be amended to state:
(c) The applicant shall provide satisfactory proof to the secretary of state that the applicant has completed a course of study of not less than three hours on notary laws, procedures, and ethics.
Problems
The phrase "course of study" is unacceptably vague.
The way that this is worded suggests that notaries may be required attend a live class. We are concerned that notaries from small rural areas in Texas will be required to travel to large cities to attend live classes.
This phrase must be expanded to define acceptable courses of study. We believe that it should state that notaries may complete the required course work online or through a webinar that is available 24/7.
The phrase "of not less than three hours"is also unacceptably vague.
This can mean that notaries will be required to attend classes that are greater than three hours in length.
Logistics are not clear. - Notaries and their employers cannot be certain how or where the required courses will take place.
Time commitment is not clear. - Notaries and their employers do not know if notaries will be required to sit in three hour classes, six hour classes, or even two days of classes. The length of the course must be specified.
Expense involved is not clear - Notaries and their employers cannot know whether their mandated courses will cost $10 or $500.
Test requirements. Whether tests will be administered is not clear.
Proposed Change No. 2
SECTION 2. Section 406.006, Government Code, is amended to read as follows:
Sec. 406.006.QUALIFICATION. An individual qualifies by:
(1) properly completing the application form;
(2) executing the statement;
(3) providing the bond, if required;
(4) paying the required filing fees; [and]
(5) meeting the eligibility requirements; and
(6) providing proof of completion of the course of study required by Section 406.005.
Problems
None. We do not see problems with this change.
Proposed Change No. 3
SECTION 3. Section 406.023, Government Code, is amended by adding Subsection (d) to read as follows:
(d) The secretary of state shall establish the standards of, and procedures for approving, courses of study required under Section 406.005(c), including a nonrefundable course application fee to be submitted by vendors of educational courses.
Problems
This proposed change is full of problems.
It would be a mistake to have course vendors involved. Our opinion is that the best method for training and qualifying notaries is to have the Secretary of State host the course on its website. This would streamline the process and cut delays caused by vendors' schedules.
Notary course fees would be reduced significantly by having this course provided through a state agency. Outside vendors charge as much as $200 in the states where vendors give required courses.
States in which state agencies provide online courses on their websites charge reasonable fees of $10 to $40.
A reasonable fee should be paid to the state for the course, but it should not become an enterprise for external companies to extract hundreds of dollars from the pockets of Texas notaries.
The best and only fair solution for notaries would be an online course administered through a state agency website.
Change No. 4
Addition of the following:
SECTION 4. Notwithstanding the requirements of this Act that a notary public complete a three-hour course of study on notary laws, procedures, and ethics, only a notary public who applies for a commission or a reappointment on or after the effective date of this Act must complete the required course of study.
Problems
As written, this means that all attorneys and paralegals who are notaries will also have to submit to a course of study. That is extreme overkill, in our opinion.
Also, re-appointed notaries will be required take courses.
The wording of this change is unacceptable and needs to be rewritten. Attorneys and certified paralegals should be exempt from courses and tests. Notaries in good standing who apply for re-commissioning should not have to take courses.
Change No. 5
The addition of the following is proposed.
SECTION 5. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
Act takes effect September 1, 2013.
Problems
There is no reason to rush this act into effect neither immediately or by September 1, 2013.
Proponents of HB 1954 and SB 1037 may cite mortgage fraud as a reason rush into legislation on requirements for notary education in Texas.
Consider this: California and Florida require mandatory training for notaries. California and Florida are well known for occupying the top slots for incidents of mortgage fraud for nearly a decade. In other words, they have two of the worst track records of mortgage fraud in the nation.
Texas does not appear on those lists. State required education is not the answer to mortgage fraud.
Therefore, laws that require notary education must not go into effect earlier than September 1, 2014. A better target would be January 1, 2015.
This is a big change of procedure for over 400,000 citizens in Texas, as well as their employers.
It is completely unreasonable to require that these changes take place so quickly.
PLEASE LET THEM HEAR FROM YOU--TAKE ACTIONTODAY.
Below is a form letter that you can send right away. Feel free to change the wording, but please send the letters as soon as possible.
Let the House "Licensing and Administrative Procedures Committee" know about the problems that you see with HB 1954.
HB 1954 is with this committee now. Write them today if at all possible! Send them out as soon as you can. Contact information is provided so that you may email or fax each member of the committee.
============FORM LETTER TO L.A.P Committee ============
Your Letterhead
Your Name
Your Address
City, State Zip
Your email.
Your phone number.
Date:_____
To the Honorable members of the Licensing & Administrative Procedures Committee:
Rep. Wayne Smith Via Fax to: 512-463-1323
Rep. John Kuempel Via Fax to: 512-480-0391
Rep. Charlie Geren Via Fax to: 817-738-8362
Rep. Lance Gooden Via Fax to: 512-463-2040
Rep. Ryan Guillen Via Fax to: 512-463-1012
Rep. Roland Gutierrez Via Fax to: 512-463-1447
Rep. Borris Miles Via Fax to: 512-463-0941
Rep. Senfronia Thompson Via Fax to: 512-463-6306
Rep. Walter "Four" Price Via email: [e-mail address]
SUBJECT: Opposition to HB 1954 - Requiring Notary Education
Greetings:
My name is ______________ and I live at the address stated above. I am a Texan and I want you to be aware of my very strong opposition to HB 1954. I am not opposed to notary educational requirements. However, I am strongly opposed to this bill as it is written. The reasons are below.
Point No. 1 - The bill is not clear about what a "course of study" means.
The way that this bill is worded, notaries may be required attend live classes in distant locations.
I believe that such a bill should specify that notaries may complete the required coursework online in a written test, through a webinar that is available 24/7, or in a live course. A live course must not be a notary's only choice to take this test.
Point No. 2 - Length (hours) of course must be clarified.
The bill indicates that the course must be at least three hours long. That means it could be any number of hours greater than three. Ideally, the time should be capped at three hours, but certainly limited to no more than five hours in length.
Point No. 3 - Additional expense for notaries and notary employers.
The bill indicates that course vendors will provide the courses. Notaries in other states, such as California, that use course vendors pay as much as $200 for training. This is not acceptable. Texas should follow a model like Florida.
Point No. 4 - Attorneys who apply to be notaries and re-commissioning notaries must take the course.
This is wrong and it is overkill.
Point No. 5 - Keep the course on the website of the Secretary of State.
Notary education should be between a notary and his or her state's notary administrator. The fee should be reasonable and should be between $20 and $40.
Consider this:
I estimate that at least 50,000 notaries apply annually. At $40 per notary, that would create an annual stream of revenue for the Secretary of State in the amount of $2,000,000. That is reasonable! It would provide additional budget monies to handle this change.
However, $5,000,000 to $10,000,000 would go to a notary course vendor that charges $100 or $200 to those same notaries.
A multi-million dollar enterprise for course providers that comes out of the pockets of notaries for is absolutely NOT acceptable!
Point No. 6- This must not be rushed-September 1, 2013 is too soon.
There is no reason to rush this act into effect neither immediately nor by September 1, 2013.
Proponents of HB 1954 may cite mortgage fraud as a reason for rushing laws about requirements for notary education in Texas. That is not an issue. Here is why.
The states of California and Florida require mandatory training for notaries.
California and Florida are well known for occupying the top slots for incidents of mortgage fraud, which they have held for nearly a decade.
Texas has never even made an appearance on a list of the top 20 states with mortgage fraud problems.
Thank you for your time. I am a notary [or, notary employer/other person affected] and HB 1954 affects me.
Please send a note of confirmation that you have heard my concerns on this bill.
Your name
Signature
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It would also be very helpful if you could send copies of this letter to your own state representatives. If you do not know how to contact your lawmakers, go to this link. You will be able to locate your representatives' and senators' names.
When we have more information, we will get it out to you as soon as possible.
Please take this unique opportunity to act, TODAY!
Share your success! Post on our Facebook page -- tell us what you think, and let others know that you have voiced your concerns in Austin.
Thank you.
American Association of Notaries
8811 Westheimer Suite 207 Houston, Texas 77063 • 800-721-2663
www.usnotaries.com | [e-mail address]
© American Association of Notaries, Inc. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy.
| Reply by Linda_H/FL on 3/13/13 7:49am
Msg #460904
I don't see why mandatory notary education is a
problem - the course of study will be determined by your SOS - however long that take..well, so be it.
"(d) The secretary of state shall establish the standards of,
and procedures for approving, courses of study required under
Section 406.005(c), including a nonrefundable course application
fee to be submitted by vendors of educational courses "
I, personally, think all notaries should be required to complete a course of study before commission, and the standards should be fairly high. I also think we should have renewal testing (which we don't here). Perhaps this higher standard of testing, along with its associated costs, would separate the wheat from the chaff and only the best of the best would obtain and retain their commission.
JMO
| Reply by SheilaSJCA on 3/13/13 8:26am
Msg #460908
the point is that they want the cost to be controlled by SOS
instead of vendors, like here in CA. If the state provides the education, directly to the notaries, it has less impact financially on the notary. Glad to see they are considering education requirements. All states should.
| Reply by Linda_H/FL on 3/13/13 9:30am
Msg #460913
Here in FL we can do the education online - no cost n/m
| Reply by BrendaTx on 3/13/13 9:36am
Msg #460915
BINGO!!!! n/m
| Reply by BrendaTx on 3/13/13 9:31am
Msg #460914
TY, Sheila...that is correct.
Pro: Education....yes, yes, yes. Like Florida--online.
Anti-
-notaries required to drive 100 miles to a "live" class.
-notary dollars lining pockets of big out of state businesses who credible sources say have brought this bill forward.
| Reply by JanetK_CA on 3/13/13 9:34pm
Msg #461081
Re: TY, Sheila...that is correct.
If they don't dictate fees for classes and leave it up to "approved vendors", you might end up with low- or no-cost options available like we have in CA, including right here on Notary Rotary. Seems to me that if it's competitive, and if online options are allowed, that will likely give TX notaries the most choices in terms of price, convenience and quality. Shortly after the education law was passed here, there were lots and lots of people who got involved in the notary training game, in addition to one big organization that is "out of state" to Texans. 
| Reply by BrendaTx on 3/13/13 9:45pm
Msg #461082
Thanks for your input, Janet.
But, no...sadly, it won't work like that in Texas for several reasons.
| Reply by JanetK_CA on 3/14/13 12:38am
Msg #461099
Re: Thanks for your input, Janet.
I trust your judgment (and I should have read the original post more completely before I commented), so I hope Texas notaries are successful in stopping this. I'd hate to see a certain out-of-state organization become an even more powerful influence with certain other special interests than it already is. I don't think it would bode well for the whole rest of the country, if past experience is any indication. Good luck!
| Reply by VT_Syrup on 3/13/13 9:53am
Msg #460920
What kind of change is best to push for?
Most here seem to agree some kind of check on abilities for those who don't already have suitable education (members of the bar and, in states that have them, certified paralegals) is a good idea. Should it be education, test, or both?
I like the system used by the FCC to test amateur radio operators. For the easiest license, there is a 35 question closed-book test, administered by volunteer examiners. The questions are randomly chosen from a question pool of 350 questions. The question pool is published, so candidates have the choice of either learning the answers to all 350 questions, or learning the principles so they can handle whatever question comes along.
Having the question pool published allows any interested knowledgeable person to contact the association that maintains the question pool to argue that the "answer" to a question is wrong; if the association agrees the question is removed from use until a new question pool is created, which is about every 5 years or so. Questions are also dropped from use if a change in the law or rules makes a question obsolete.
| Reply by BrendaTx on 3/13/13 12:47pm
Msg #460981
Re: What kind of change is best to push for?
Education is good. One way or another, it will come. There are over 420,000 notaries in Texas. I work in a quasi-state agency. I know what it takes to get things like this done. The bill is written to put into effect immediately. That will force the SOS to contract it out.
I want it to be handled at the state level. It will cost a reasonable fee.
I would say that one solution is to write a test based on what we already have to draw from on the SOS site.
That would be so simple. Sigh.
| Reply by SharonMN on 3/13/13 11:16am
Msg #460946
Re: I don't see why mandatory notary education is a
I think the law as written is good. Laws are often "vague" (not overly proscriptive) in order to provide flexibility for situations that arise. That's why it says "a course" instead of specifically "a live, in-person course" - it would allow for online courses, teleconferences, etc.
Anyone who thinks a lawyer-notary should be exempt from the education requirement is nuts. I work with lots of lawyers and hardly any of them can draft a correct notary certificate!
| Reply by MW/VA on 3/13/13 10:55am
Msg #460939
I'm not involved in this but guessing the NNA is behind
this & will set up their courses to make money.
| Reply by MikeC/TX on 3/13/13 6:13pm
Msg #461045
Requiring education is not a bad idea - the current requirements in TX are that you can fog a mirror and may have to pass a random background check (after receiving your commission). Having notaries actually understand what their responsibilities are would be a good thing.
But, as I've learned since moving here about 18 months ago, it's tough to get Texans to agree to more government control over what they do - so I would expect the chances of these laws passing to be somewhere between slim and none..
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