Relating to notaries public; creating a criminal offense; authorizing a fee.
Summary
SB 693 revises Texas law governing notaries public by adding new training, recordkeeping, and enforcement requirements. The bill requires applicants for appointment or reappointment as a notary public to complete education and continuing education established by the secretary of state, with the rules limited to no more than two hours for initial appointment and two hours for reappointment. It also directs the secretary of state to create and offer the required courses, authorizes a reasonable fee, and delays application of the new requirements until applications submitted on or after January 1, 2026.
The bill also strengthens the definition of misconduct and creates a new criminal offense for notarizing a document when the signer, grantor, maker, or principal did not personally appear before the notary. That offense is generally a Class A misdemeanor, but it becomes a state jail felony if the notarized document involves a transfer of real property or an interest in real property. The bill further extends the retention period for notary records to 10 years and requires reapplicants to complete continuing education before reappointment.
Impact
SB 693 amends multiple provisions in Chapter 406 of the Government Code affecting notary qualifications, discipline, record retention, and criminal liability. It adds education prerequisites for appointment and reappointment, expands grounds for disciplinary action, and creates a new offense tied to improper notarizations. The bill also gives the secretary of state rulemaking authority to implement the education program and to charge a fee for the courses. Its practical effect is to impose additional compliance obligations on notaries public and to increase penalties for remote or fraudulent notarizations, especially those involving real property transactions.
Sentiment
The bill appears to have received generally favorable legislative support, with strong passage in both chambers and final Senate concurrence in the House amendments. The vote margins suggest broad agreement on the need to tighten notary standards and address improper notarizations, while still preserving a limited and structured education requirement. There is no committee transcript available here indicating sustained opposition, but the recorded votes show some dissent in the House, suggesting at least some concern about the bill’s added regulatory and criminal consequences.
Contention
The main points of contention likely centered on the creation of a criminal offense for notarizing without personal appearance and the escalation to a state jail felony for real-property-related documents. Those provisions raise concerns for notaries about inadvertent violations, proof of identity issues, and the severity of penalties. Another possible point of debate is the mandatory education and continuing education requirement, including the requirement that the secretary of state be the sole provider of the course content and the authorization to charge a fee. Supporters likely viewed these changes as necessary to prevent fraud and improve notary integrity, while opponents may have seen them as burdensome or overly punitive.