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An Act
ENROLLED SENATE
BILL NO. 1028 By: Alvord of the Senate
and
Miller of the House
An Act relating to notaries public; amending 49 O.S.
2021, Sections 1 and 2, which relate to appointment
and oath, signature, bond, and seal; requiring
certain national criminal history record check;
increasing certain fees and bond requirements for
commission; updating statutory language; and
providing an effective date.
SUBJECT: Notaries public
BE IT ENACTED BY THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA:
SECTION 1. AMENDATORY 49 O.S. 2021, Section 1, is
amended to read as follows:
Section 1. The Secretary of State shall appoint and commission
in this state notaries public, who shall hold their office for four
(4) years. An applicant for a notary commission shall be eighteen
(18) years of age or older, a citizen of the United States, and
employed within this state or a legal resident of this state. A
national criminal history record check, as defined in Section 150.9
of Title 74 of the Oklahoma Statutes, shall be conducted
electronically of any applicant for a notary commission, including
any applicant for renewal. The Oklahoma State Bureau of
Investigation (OSBI) shall electronically obtain fingerprints of the
applicant and require that the person pay a search fee not to exceed
Fifty Dollars ($50.00) or the cost of the search, whichever is the
lesser amount. The fees shall be deposited in the OSBI Revolving
Fund. The Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation shall provide the
national criminal history record check to the Secretary of State
within fourteen (14) working days from the receipt of the request.
ENR. S. B. NO. 1028 Page 2
OSBI may contact the Federal Bureau of Investigation to obtain the
information requested. A felony conviction shall be grounds for
removal of a person from the office of notary public and shall
preclude a person from further applying for or renewing a notary
commission. All notary commissions shall run in the name and by the
authority of the State of Oklahoma, be signed by the Secretary of
State, and sealed with the Great Seal of the State of Oklahoma.
Commissions shall not be attested. Any person filing an application
for a new notary commission shall pay Twenty-five Dollars ($25.00)
Fifty Dollars ($50.00) to the Secretary of State with the
application. Any person filing an application for a renewal of a
notary commission shall pay Twenty Dollars ($20.00) Forty-five
Dollars ($45.00) to the Secretary of State with the application.
Any person requiring “same day filing service” shall pay Twenty-five
Dollars ($25.00) Fifty Dollars ($50.00) to the Secretary of State in
addition to the applicable filing fee. These funds shall be
deposited in the Revolving Fund revolving fund created for the
Secretary of State pursuant to the provisions of Section 276.1 of
Title 62 of the Oklahoma Statutes.
SECTION 2. AMENDATORY 49 O.S. 2021, Section 2, is
amended to read as follows:
Section 2. A. Before entering upon the duties of his or her
office and not more than sixty (60) days after issuance of a notary
commission, every notary public so appointed and commissioned shall
file in the office of the Secretary of State, the notary’s oath of
office, the notary’s loyalty oath, the notary’s official signature,
an impression of the notary’s official seal, and a good and
sufficient bond to the State of Oklahoma, in the sum of One Thousand
Dollars ($1,000.00) Ten Thousand Dollars ($10,000.00), to be
approved by the Secretary of State, conditioned for the faithful
performance of the duties of the notary’s office.
B. The bond required by subsection A of this section shall be
signed by:
1. An insurance agent licensed by the State of Oklahoma;
2. An attorney-in-fact on behalf of an insurance company with a
power of attorney attached; or
ENR. S. B. NO. 1028 Page 3
3. One or more individual sureties who are property owners in
the county of residence of the notary, or if a nonresident, the
county of employment of the notary.
C. The bond required by subsection A of this section shall be
issued for a term that commences on the bond’s effective date and
terminates on the commission’s expiration date. Upon the filing of
his or her bond with the Secretary of State, every notary public
shall pay to the Secretary of State the sum of Ten Dollars ($10.00)
Twenty-five Dollars ($25.00) to be deposited to the credit of the
Revolving Fund for the Office of the Secretary of State.
D. A notary public shall not perform any notarial act until his
or her bond, official seal, oath of office and loyalty oath, as
required by subsection A of this section, has have been received and
approved by the Secretary of State.
SECTION 3. This act shall become effective January 1, 2026.
ENR. S. B. NO. 1028 Page 4
Passed the Senate the 27th day of March, 2025.
Presiding Officer of the Senate
Passed the House of Representatives the 7th day of May, 2025.
Presiding Officer of the House
of Representatives
OFFICE OF THE GOVERNOR
Received by the Office of the Governor this ____________________
day of ___________________, 20_______, at _______ o'clock _______ M.
By: _________________________________
Approved by the Governor of the State of Oklahoma this _________
day of ___________________, 20_______, at _______ o'clock _______ M.
_________________________________
Governor of the State of Oklahoma
OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY OF STATE
Received by the Office of the Secretary of State this __________
day of __________________, 20 _______, at _______ o'clock _______ M.
By: _________________________________