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1    AN ACT concerning government.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 5. The Illinois Notary Public Act is amended by
5changing Sections 2-102, 4-101, 6-104, 7-101, and 7-108 as
6follows:
 
7    (5 ILCS 312/2-102)  (from Ch. 102, par. 202-102)
8    Sec. 2-102. Application. Every applicant for appointment
9and commission as a notary shall complete an application in a
10format prescribed by the Secretary of State to be filed with
11the Secretary of State, stating:
12        (a) the applicant's official name, as it appears on his
13    or her current driver's license or state-issued
14    identification card;
15        (b) the county in which the applicant resides or, if
16    the applicant is a resident of a state bordering Illinois,
17    the county in Illinois in which that person's principal
18    place of work or principal place of business is located;
19        (c) the applicant's residence address, as it appears on
20    his or her current driver's license or state-issued
21    identification card, and business address, if any;
22        (c-5) the applicant's business address if different
23    than the applicant's residence address, if performing

 

 

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1    notarial acts constitutes any portion of the applicant's
2    job duties;
3        (d) that the applicant has resided in the State of
4    Illinois for 30 days preceding the application or that the
5    applicant who is a resident of a state bordering Illinois
6    has worked or maintained a business in Illinois for 30 days
7    preceding the application;
8        (e) that the applicant is a citizen of the United
9    States or an alien lawfully admitted for permanent
10    residence in the United States;
11        (f) the applicant's date of birth;
12        (g) that the applicant is able to read and write the
13    English language;
14        (h) that the applicant has never been the holder of a
15    notary public appointment that was revoked or suspended
16    during the past 10 years;
17        (i) that the applicant has not been convicted of a
18    felony;
19        (i-5) that the applicant's signature authorizes the
20    Office of the Secretary of State to conduct a verification
21    to confirm the information provided in the application,
22    including a criminal background check of the applicant, if
23    necessary; and
24        (j) any other information the Secretary of State deems
25    necessary.
26(Source: P.A. 99-112, eff. 1-1-16.)
 

 

 

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1    (5 ILCS 312/4-101)  (from Ch. 102, par. 204-101)
2    Sec. 4-101. Changes causing commission to cease to be in
3effect. When any notary public legally changes his or her name,
4changes his or her business address without notifying the Index
5Department of the Secretary of State in writing within 30 days
6thereof, or moves from the county in which he or she was
7commissioned or, if the notary public is a resident of a state
8bordering Illinois, no longer maintains a principal place of
9work or principal place of business in the same county in
10Illinois in which he or she was commissioned, the commission of
11that notary ceases to be in effect. When the commission of a
12notary public ceases to be in effect, his or her notarial seal
13shall and should be surrendered returned to the Secretary of
14State, and his or her certificate of notarial commission shall
15be destroyed. These individuals who desire to again become a
16notary public must file a new application, bond, and oath with
17the Secretary of State.
18(Source: P.A. 91-818, eff. 6-13-00.)
 
19    (5 ILCS 312/6-104)  (from Ch. 102, par. 206-104)
20    Sec. 6-104. Acts prohibited.
21    (a) A notary public shall not use any name or initial in
22signing certificates other than that by which the notary was
23commissioned.
24    (b) A notary public shall not acknowledge any instrument in

 

 

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1which the notary's name appears as a party to the transaction.
2    (c) A notary public shall not affix his signature to a
3blank form of affidavit or certificate of acknowledgment.
4    (d) A notary public shall not take the acknowledgment of or
5administer an oath to any person whom the notary actually knows
6to have been adjudged mentally ill by a court of competent
7jurisdiction and who has not been restored to mental health as
8a matter of record.
9    (e) A notary public shall not take the acknowledgment of
10any person who is blind until the notary has read the
11instrument to such person.
12    (f) A notary public shall not take the acknowledgment of
13any person who does not speak or understand the English
14language, unless the nature and effect of the instrument to be
15notarized is translated into a language which the person does
16understand.
17    (g) A notary public shall not change anything in a written
18instrument after it has been signed by anyone.
19    (h) No notary public shall be authorized to prepare any
20legal instrument, or fill in the blanks of an instrument, other
21than a notary certificate; however, this prohibition shall not
22prohibit an attorney, who is also a notary public, from
23performing notarial acts for any document prepared by that
24attorney.
25    (i) If a notary public accepts or receives any money from
26any one to whom an oath has been administered or on behalf of

 

 

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1whom an acknowledgment has been taken for the purpose of
2transmitting or forwarding such money to another and willfully
3fails to transmit or forward such money promptly, the notary is
4personally liable for any loss sustained because of such
5failure. The person or persons damaged by such failure may
6bring an action to recover damages, together with interest and
7reasonable attorney fees, against such notary public or his
8bondsmen.
9    (j) A notary public shall not perform any notarial act when
10his or her commission is suspended or revoked, nor shall he or
11she fail to comply with any term of suspension which may be
12imposed for violation of this Section.
13(Source: P.A. 100-81, eff. 1-1-18.)
 
14    (5 ILCS 312/7-101)  (from Ch. 102, par. 207-101)
15    Sec. 7-101. Liability of Notary and Surety. A notary public
16and the surety on the notary's bond are liable to the persons
17involved for all damages caused by the notary's official
18misconduct. Upon the filing of any claim against a notary
19public, the entity that has issued the bond for the notary
20shall notify the Secretary of State of whether payment was made
21and the circumstances which led to the claim.
22(Source: P.A. 84-322.)
 
23    (5 ILCS 312/7-108)  (from Ch. 102, par. 207-108)
24    Sec. 7-108. Reprimand, Suspension, and Revocation of

 

 

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1Commission.
2    (a) The Secretary of State may revoke the commission of any
3notary public who, during the current term of appointment:
4        (1) (a) submits an application for commission and
5    appointment as a notary public which contains substantial
6    and material misstatement or omission of fact; or
7        (2) (b) is convicted of any felony, misdemeanors,
8    including those defined in Part C, Articles 16, 17, 18, 19,
9    and 21, and Part E, Articles 31, 32, and 33 of the Criminal
10    Code of 2012, or official misconduct under this Act.
11    (b) Whenever the Secretary of State believes that a
12violation of this Article has occurred, he or she may
13investigate any such violation. The Secretary may also
14investigate possible violations of this Article upon a signed
15written complaint on a form designated by the Secretary.
16    (c) A notary's failure to cooperate or respond to an
17investigation by the Secretary of State is a failure by the
18notary to fully and faithfully discharge the responsibilities
19and duties of a notary and shall result in suspension or
20revocation of the notary's commission.
21    (d) All written complaints which on their face appear to
22establish facts which, if proven true, would constitute an act
23of misrepresentation or fraud in notarization or on the part of
24the notary shall be investigated by the Secretary of State to
25determine whether cause exists to reprimand, suspend, or revoke
26the commission of the notary.

 

 

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1    (e) The Secretary of State may deliver a written official
2warning and reprimand to a notary, or may revoke or suspend a
3notary's commission, for any of the following:
4        (1) a notary's official misconduct, as defined under
5    Section 7-104;
6        (2) any ground for which an application for appointment
7    as a notary may be denied for failure to complete
8    application requirements as provided under Section 2-102;
9        (3) any prohibited act provided under Section 6-104; or
10        (4) a violation of any provision of the general
11    statutes.
12    (f) After investigation and upon a determination by the
13Secretary of State that one or more prohibited acts has been
14performed in the notarization of a document, the Secretary
15shall, after considering the extent of the prohibited act and
16the degree of culpability of the notary, order one or more of
17the following courses of action:
18        (1) issue a letter of warning to the notary, including
19    the Secretary's findings;
20        (2) order suspension of the commission of the notary
21    for a period of time designated by the Secretary;
22        (3) order revocation of the commission of the notary;
23        (4) refer the allegations to the appropriate State's
24    Attorney's Office or the Attorney General for criminal
25    investigation; or
26        (5) refer the allegations to the Illinois Attorney

 

 

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1    Registration and Disciplinary Commission for disciplinary
2    proceedings.
3    (g) After a notary receives notice from the Secretary of
4State that his or her commission has been revoked, that notary
5shall immediately deliver his or her official seal to the
6Secretary.
7    (h) A notary whose appointment has been revoked due to a
8violation of this Act shall not be eligible for a new
9commission as a notary public in this State for a period of at
10least 5 years from the date of the final revocation.
11    (i) A notary may voluntarily resign from appointment by
12notifying the Secretary of State in writing of his or her
13intention to do so, and by physically returning his or her
14stamp to the Secretary. A voluntary resignation shall not stop
15or preclude any investigation into a notary's conduct, or
16prevent further suspension or revocation by the Secretary, who
17may pursue any such investigation to a conclusion and issue any
18finding.
19    (j) Upon a determination by a sworn law enforcement officer
20that the allegations raised by the complaint are founded, and
21the notary has received notice of suspension or revocation from
22the Secretary of State, the notary is entitled to an
23administrative hearing.
24    (k) The Secretary of State shall adopt administrative
25hearing rules applicable to this Section that are consistent
26with the Illinois Administrative Procedure Act.

 

 

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1(Source: P.A. 84-322.)
 
2    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect January
31, 2019.