Bill Text: NJ S2916 | 2020-2021 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Permits notaries public to take oath before legislative members during declared state of emergency.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-09-17 - Introduced in the Senate, Referred to Senate Judiciary Committee [S2916 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2020-S2916-Introduced.html
Sponsored by:
Senator RICHARD J. CODEY
District 27 (Essex and Morris)
SYNOPSIS
Permits notaries public to take oath before legislative members during declared state of emergency.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act concerning oaths of notaries public during declared state of emergency and amending P.L.1979, c.460.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. Section 5 of P.L. 1979, c.460 (C.52:7-14) is amended to read as follows:
5. a. Within three months of the receipt of his commission, each notary public shall take and subscribe an oath before the clerk of the county in which he resides, or, during a declared state of emergency, before a member of the New Jersey Legislature for the area covered by the public state of emergency, faithfully and honestly to discharge the duties of his office, and that he will make and keep a true record of all such matters as are required by law, which oath shall be filed with said clerk. The oath of office of a nonresident notary public shall be taken and subscribed before the clerk of the county in which he maintains his office or is employed in this State or, during a declared state of emergency, before a member of the Legislature for the area covered by the state of emergency.
A member of the Legislature before whom the oath of office is taken shall retain and, within 30 days of the end of the declared state of emergency, transmit the oath to the clerk of the county.
b. (1) Upon the administration of said oath, the said clerk, or, during the period when a declared state of emergency exists, the member of the Legislature, shall cause the notary public to indorse a certificate of commission and qualification and shall transmit said certificate to the State Treasurer within 10 days of the administration of said oath.
After the administration of the oath, the clerk or member of the New Jersey Legislature shall provide a notice to the person that a notary public who is not licensed as an attorney-at-law shall not use or advertise the title of lawyer or attorney-at-law, or equivalent terms, in the English language or any other language, which mean or imply that the notary public is licensed as an attorney-at-law in the State of New Jersey or in any other jurisdiction of the United States. The notice shall also state that a notary public who advertises his services, in the English language or any other language, is required to provide with such advertisement a notice which contains the following statement: "I am not an attorney licensed to practice law and may not give legal advice about immigration or any other legal matter or accept fees for legal advice."
c. The State Treasurer shall cancel and revoke the appointment of any notary public who fails to take and subscribe said oath within three months of the receipt of his commission and any appointment so canceled and revoked shall be null, void and of no effect.
d. The State Treasurer shall provide each member of the Legislature with access to the certificates of commission and notice described in subsection b. of this section.
e. It shall be the responsibility of the applicant to ensure that within 30 days of the end of a declared state of emergency, the oath of office recording fee is paid to the clerk of the county.
(cf: P.L.2014, c.48, s.5)
2. This act shall take effect on the 60th day after the date of enactment.
STATEMENT
Presently, N.J.S.A. 52:7-14 directs that within three months of the receipt of his commission, a notary public shall take and subscribe an oath before the clerk of the county in which he resides. The oath of office of a nonresident notary public should be taken and subscribed before the clerk of the county in which he maintains his office or is employed.
In the event of a declared state of emergency, such as the public health emergency and state of emergency declared by the Governor's Executive Order 103 of 2020, county level offices may not function normally, potentially resulting in delays or interruption to the vital services performed by notaries.
This bill provides an additional, alternative way for a notary public to take the required oath. Under the bill, when a period of a declared state of emergency exists, a notary public may take and subscribe the oath before a member of the New Jersey Legislature for the area covered by the state of emergency. Thus, if a local state of emergency exists, a notary public may take and subscribe an oath before any legislator whose district includes that local unit; if a countywide state of emergency exists, a notary public may take and subscribe an oath before any legislator whose district includes that jurisdictional boundary, and if a statewide state of emergency exists, a notary public may take and subscribe an oath before any member of the New Jersey Legislature. The member of the Legislature before whom the oath of office is taken shall retain and, within 30 days of the end of the declared state of emergency, shall transmit the oath to the clerk of the county for filing.
The bill directs the State Treasurer to provide each member of the Legislature with access to certificates of commission, and the notice concerning a notary public who is not licensed as an attorney-at-law for distribution to the applicant. The applicant remains responsible for the payment of the notary public application fee and oath of office recording fee.
