S 2083

110th CONGRESS
1st Session

S. 2083

To require any Federal or State court to recognize any notarization made by a notary public licensed by a State other than the State where the court is located when such notarization occurs in or affects interstate commerce.

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

September 21, 2007

Mr. CARPER (for himself and Mr. SUNUNU) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary

A BILL

To require any Federal or State court to recognize any notarization made by a notary public licensed by a State other than the State where the court is located when such notarization occurs in or affects interstate commerce.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the `Interstate Recognition of Notarizations Act of 2007'.

SEC. 2. RECOGNITION OF NOTARIZATIONS IN FEDERAL COURTS.

    Each Federal court shall recognize any lawful notarization made by a notary public licensed or commissioned under the laws of a State other than the State where the Federal court is located if--

      (1) such notarization occurs in or affects interstate commerce; and

      (2)(A) a seal of office, as symbol of the notary public's authority, is used in the notarization; or

      (B) in the case of an electronic record, the seal information is securely attached to, or logically associated with, the electronic record so as to render the record tamper-resistant.

SEC. 3. RECOGNITION OF NOTARIZATIONS IN STATE COURTS.

    Each court that operates under the jurisdiction of a State shall recognize any lawful notarization made by a notary public licensed or commissioned under the laws of a State other than the State where the court is located if--

      (1) such notarization occurs in or affects interstate commerce; and

      (2)(A) a seal of office, as symbol of the notary public's authority, is used in the notarization; or

      (B) in the case of an electronic record, the seal information is securely attached to, or logically associated with, the electronic record so as to render the record tamper-resistant.

SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:

      (1) ELECTRONIC RECORD- The term `electronic record' has the meaning given that term in section 106 of the Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce Act (15 U.S.C. 7006).

      (2) LOGICALLY ASSOCIATED WITH- Seal information is `logically associated with' an electronic record if the seal information is securely bound to the electronic record in such a manner as to make it impracticable to falsify or alter, without detection, either the record or the seal information.

END