Bill Text: TX HB255 | 2023-2024 | 88th Legislature | Enrolled

---

Bill Title: Relating to notaries public; increasing the amount of certain fees.

Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill

Status: (Passed) 2023-06-10 - Effective on 9/1/23 [HB255 Detail]

Download: Texas-2023-HB255-Enrolled.html

---

H.B. No. 255

AN ACT
relating to notaries public; increasing the amount of certain fees.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 406.013, Government Code, is amended by
adding Subsection (e) to read as follows:
(e) A notary public may not:
(1) provide a copy of the notary public's seal to
another person; or
(2) affix or attach the notary public's seal to any
document except to authenticate the notary public's official act.
SECTION 2. Section 406.014, Government Code, is amended by
adding Subsection (f) to read as follows:
(f) A notary public may record the expiration date of an
identification card issued by a governmental agency or passport
issued by the United States if the signer, grantor, or maker of an
instrument or document presents the card or passport to the notary
public as identification.
SECTION 3. Section 406.024, Government Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 406.024. FEES CHARGED BY NOTARY PUBLIC. (a) A notary
public or its employer may charge the following fees:
(1) for protesting a bill or note for nonacceptance or
nonpayment, register and seal, a fee of $4;
(2) for each notice of protest, a fee of $1;
(3) for protesting in all other cases, a fee of $4;
(4) for certificate and seal to a protest, a fee of $4;
(5) for taking the acknowledgment or proof of a deed or
other instrument in writing, for registration, including
certificate and seal, a fee of $10 [$6] for the first signature and
$1 for each additional signature;
(6) for administering an oath or affirmation with
certificate and seal, a fee of $10 [$6];
(7) for a certificate under seal not otherwise
provided for, a fee of $10 [$6];
(8) for a copy of a record or paper in the notary
public's office, a fee of $1 [50 cents] for each page;
(9) for taking the deposition of a witness, $1 [50
cents] for each 100 words;
(10) for swearing a witness to a deposition,
certificate, seal, and other business connected with taking the
deposition, a fee of $10 [$6]; and
(11) for a notarial act not provided for, a fee of $10
[$6].
(b) A notary public may charge a fee only for an
acknowledgment or official act under Subsection (a). The fee
charged may not exceed the fee authorized by Subsection (a), as
adjusted under Subsection (c).
(c) Once every five years, the secretary of state shall
adjust the fees provided under Subsection (a) by the amount that
results from applying the inflation rate, as determined by the
comptroller on the basis of the increase, if any, in the Consumer
Price Index for All Urban Consumers published by the Bureau of Labor
Statistics of the United States Department of Labor, to the current
fee amounts.
SECTION 4. The secretary of state shall make the first
adjustment in fees under Section 406.024(c), Government Code, as
added by this Act, not later than December 31, 2028.
SECTION 5. This Act takes effect September 1, 2023.
______________________________ ______________________________
President of the Senate Speaker of the House
I certify that H.B. No. 255 was passed by the House on April
14, 2023, by the following vote: Yeas 107, Nays 36, 2 present, not
voting.
______________________________
Chief Clerk of the House
I certify that H.B. No. 255 was passed by the Senate on May
17, 2023, by the following vote: Yeas 27, Nays 4.
______________________________
Secretary of the Senate
APPROVED: _____________________
Date
_____________________
Governor