Texas 2025 - 89th Regular

Texas House Bill HB3704 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New		Differences
1		-	~~89R22461~~ MZM-D
	1	+	89R2877 MZM-F
2	2		By: Anchía H.B. No. 3704
3		-	Substitute the following for H.B. No. 3704:
4		-	By: Leach C.S.H.B. No. 3704
5	3
6	4
7	5
8	6
9	7		A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
10	8		AN ACT
11		-	relating to notaries public; creating a criminal offense;
12		-	authorizing a fee.
	9	+	relating to notaries public; creating a criminal offense.
13	10		BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
14	11		SECTION 1. Section 406.006, Government Code, is amended to
15	12		read as follows:
16	13		Sec. 406.006. QUALIFICATION. An individual qualifies by:
17	14		(1) properly completing the application form;
18	15		(2) executing the statement;
19	16		(3) providing the bond, if required;
20	17		(4) paying the required filing fees; [and]
21	18		(5) meeting the eligibility requirements; and
22	19		(6) successfully completing the education
23	20		requirements established under Section 406.023.
24	21		SECTION 2. Section 406.009(d), Government Code, is amended
25	22		to read as follows:
26	23		(d) In this section, "good cause" includes:
27	24		(1) a false statement knowingly made in an
28	25		application;
29	26		(2) the failure to comply with Section 406.017;
30	27		(3) a final conviction for a violation of a law
31	28		concerning the regulation of the conduct of notaries public in this
32	29		or another state;
33	30		(4) the imposition on the notary public of an
34	31		administrative, criminal, or civil penalty for a violation of a law
35	32		or rule prescribing the duties of a notary public; [or]
36	33		(5) performing any notarization when the person for
37	34		whom the notarization is performed did not personally appear before
38	35		the notary at the time the notarization is executed; or
39	36		(6) failure to maintain records under Section 406.014.
40	37		SECTION 3. Subchapter A, Chapter 406, Government Code, is
41	38		amended by adding Section 406.0091 to read as follows:
42	39		Sec. 406.0091. OFFENSE OF NOTARIZATION FOR PERSON NOT
43	40		PERSONALLY APPEARING. (a) A person commits an offense if, as a
44	41		notary public, the person performs any notarization with knowledge
45	42		that the signer, grantor, maker, or principal for whom the
46	43		notarization is performed did not personally appear before the
47	44		notary public at the time the notarization is executed.
48	45		(b) An offense under this section is a Class A misdemeanor,
49	46		except that it is a state jail felony if the document being
50		-	notarized involves the transfer of real property or any interest in
51		-	real property.
	47	+	notarized involves the transfer of real property.
52	48		(c) It is an affirmative defense to prosecution under
53	49		Subsection (a) that the person who personally appeared before the
54	50		notary public knowingly presented an apparently valid proof of
55	51		identification identifying the person as the signer, grantor,
56	52		maker, or principal for whom the notarization was purported to be
57	53		performed, regardless of the identity of the person.
58	54		(d) For purposes of this section, a person personally
59	55		appears before a notary public if:
60	56		(1) for a notarization other than an online
61	57		notarization, the person physically appears before the notary
62	58		public at the time of the notarization in a manner that permits the
63	59		notary public and the person to see, hear, communicate with, and
64	60		provide proof of identification to each other; and
65	61		(2) for an online notarization, the person appears at
66	62		the time of the notarization by an interactive two-way video and
67	63		audio conference technology that meets the standards adopted for
68	64		online notarization under Section 406.104.
69	65		SECTION 4. Section 406.011, Government Code, is amended by
70	66		adding Subsection (c) to read as follows:
71	67		(c) A notary public who has applied for reappointment must
72	68		successfully complete the continuing education requirements
73	69		established under Section 406.023 before being reappointed.
74	70		SECTION 5. Section 406.014, Government Code, is amended by
75	71		adding Subsection (g) to read as follows:
76	72		(g) A notary public shall retain the records required by
77	73		Subsection (a) until the 10th anniversary of the date of
78	74		notarization.
79	75		SECTION 6. Section 406.023, Government Code, is amended by
80	76		adding Subsection (d) to read as follows:
81	77		(d) The secretary of state shall adopt rules necessary to
82		-	establish education requirements for appointment and continuing
83		-	education requirements for reappointment as a notary public. The
84		-	rules:
85		-	(1) may not require a person to complete more than two
86		-	hours of education for appointment or two hours of continuing
87		-	education for reappointment;
88		-	(2) must require that the secretary of state establish
89		-	and offer education and continuing education courses and allow the
90		-	secretary of state to charge a reasonable fee;
91		-	(3) must require that the education and continuing
92		-	education course hours required for appointment or reappointment as
93		-	a notary public may only be completed through a course established
94		-	and offered by the secretary of state; and
95		-	(4) may not require a person appointed as a notary
96		-	public before September 1, 2025, to complete education requirements
97		-	required for initial appointment as a notary public on or after that
98		-	date.
	78	+	establish education requirements for appointment as a notary public
	79	+	and continuing education requirements for reappointment. The rules
	80	+	may not require a person to complete more than two hours of
	81	+	education for appointment or two hours of continuing education for
	82	+	reappointment as a notary public. The rules may not require a
	83	+	person appointed as a notary public before September 1, 2025, to
	84	+	complete education requirements required for initial appointment
	85	+	as a notary public on or after that date.
99	86		SECTION 7. Not later than January 1, 2026, the secretary of
100	87		state shall adopt rules necessary to implement the change in law
101	88		made by this Act.
102	89		SECTION 8. The change in law made by this Act applies only
103	90		to an application for a notary public appointment or reappointment
104	91		submitted on or after January 1, 2026. An application submitted
105	92		before January 1, 2026, is governed by the law as it existed
106	93		immediately before the effective date of this Act, and that law is
107	94		continued in effect for that purpose.
108	95		SECTION 9. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.