Section 176.215  Applicants’ and Providers’ Requirements for Notary Public Course of Study and Examination

 

a)         The Secretary will deny, suspend, or revoke a provider certification when:

 

1)         The Secretary determines that the applicant/provider is not of good moral character.  In determining good moral character, the Department is not limited to but may consider the following:

 

A)        Whether the applicant/provider has been convicted of a felony or a misdemeanor.  The Department will consider:

 

i)          The relationship of any crime of which the applicant/provider has been convicted to the ability to operate a notary public course of study and examination;

 

ii)         The length of time that has elapsed since the applicant’s/provider's last criminal conviction;

 

iii)        Whether the applicant/provider successfully completed any sentence imposed with the convictions;

 

iv)        Whether the applicant/provider has multiple convictions for felony or misdemeanor offenses.

 

B)        Whether the applicant/provider has been indicted, formally charged, or otherwise charged with a felony or a misdemeanor. In this case, the certification will be temporarily either denied or revoked.

 

i)          If the applicant/provider whose certification has been denied or revoked under this Part is adjudicated "guilty" by the court, the denial or revocation previously entered on the person's record in accordance with this Section will stand.  This action does not preclude further suspension or revocation of the certification under another Section of this Subpart or the Act.

 

ii)         If the applicant/provider whose certification has been denied or revoked under this Part is adjudicated "not guilty" by the court, the denial or cancellation previously entered on the person's record in accordance with this Section will be rescinded.  This action does not preclude further suspension or revocation of the certification under another Section of this Subpart C or the Act.

 

iii)        If the applicant/provider whose certification has been denied or revoked under this Part is granted a disposition of "court supervision" by the court, the denial or revocation previously entered on the person's record in accordance with this Section will be rescinded.  This action does not preclude further suspension or revocation of the certification under another Section of this Subpart C or the Act.

 

2)         Any owner or employee of the provider who, while interacting with students:

 

A)        Engaged in an activity that puts the student in danger; or

 

B)        Engaged in reckless behavior; or

 

C)        Failed to maintain a professional relationship with students at all times.

 

3)         The applicant/provider fails to file and maintain with the Department a continuous surety bond in the principal sum of $50,000, underwritten by a company authorized to do business in the State of Illinois, for the protection of the contractual rights of students.  However, the aggregate liability of the surety for all breaches of the condition of the bond in no event will exceed the principal sum of $50,000.  The surety on any bond may cancel the bond upon giving 30 days’ notice in writing to the Secretary of State and will be relieved of liability for any breach of any conditions of the bond that occurs after the effective date of cancellation.  All bonds filed under this provision must be in substantially the same form as Illustration B.

 

4)         The Secretary is not satisfied that the applicant/provider has established adequate procedures for verifying the identity of the student taking the course and ensuring that the student completes the course in its entirety;

 

5)         The applicant fails to submit a copy of its course content, conforming with this Section, to the Department for review and approval, including the questions and answers on the quizzes and final examination;

 

6)         The provider fails to immediately report to the Department any unauthorized access to consumer information, including computer breaches, or fails to comply with the Illinois Personal Information Protection Act [815 ILCS 530];

 

7)         The applicant/provider is an Illinois corporation that is not in good standing with the Illinois Secretary of State, Department of Business Services;

 

8)         The applicant/provider is a foreign corporation that is not authorized to transact business in Illinois, as evidenced by the submission of an Application for Authority to Transact Business in Illinois and acceptance of that application by the Illinois Secretary of State, Department of Business Services;

 

9)         The applicant/provider is a foreign limited liability company that is not authorized to transact business in Illinois, as evidenced by the submission of an Application for Admission to Transact Business and acceptance of that application by the Illinois Secretary of State, Department of Business Services;

 

10)        The owner or any employee of the applicant/provider is a current salaried or contractual employee of the Secretary of State;

 

11)        An applicant/provider, owner, or manager engages in fraudulent activity;

 

12)        An applicant, owner, or employee has been found to have engaged in fraudulent activity within the 5 years before applying for certification;

 

13)        An applicant/provider or owner owes outstanding fees to the Secretary of State in either a personal, official, or professional capacity;

 

14)        An applicant/provider sells or discloses any consumer information or fails to post a statement indicating consumer information will not be sold or disclosed on its website, except as authorized by Section 176.240(e);

 

15)        An applicant/provider requests the Social Security number of students, except as authorized by Section 176.240(e);

 

16)        The provider fails to provide a toll-free customer service hotline that is answered, at a minimum, between the hours of 9:00 am and 5:00 pm Central Time, Monday through Friday;

 

17)        The applicant/provider fails to supply the Department with a detailed description of each position involved in every facet of the notary public course of study and examination, with contact information for each employee.  If the course is taught in person, the provider must report any staffing changes to the Department within 5 business days after the change. If the course is taught online, the provider must report any change in the person responsible for creating and managing the online course to the Department within 5 business days;

 

18)        The provider uses voice recognition as a method of verification, unless the provider furnishes a toll-free number for providing the required voice exemplars.

 

b)         The Secretary of State may deny, suspend or revoke a certification:

 

1)         For any violation of the Act;

 

2)         For any violation of this Part;

 

3)         If the provider's certification to provide any type of notary public course of study and examination has been denied, suspended, or revoked by any other state or jurisdiction;

 

4)         For misrepresentation of a notary public's duties and authority under Illinois law;

 

5)         For deviation from the lesson plan for an approved course of instruction;

 

6)         For making representations that the Secretary of State endorses, recommends, or mandates the use of any of the vendor's products, goods, or services;

 

7)         For conviction of any entity, person, or principal closely associated with any provider for any felony or misdemeanor involving fraudulent activity;

 

8)         For engaging in any fraudulent activity or deceptive business practices; or

 

9)         For failure to timely respond to the Secretary of State's request for communication or otherwise cooperate with an investigation.

 

c)         Only one provider certification will be issued to any one individual, group, association, partnership, or corporation, and the Department will deny an application for certification as a course provider if any of the applicants are unqualified, are already certified, or have applied as another provider.

 

d)         Course providers must comply with the following requirements:

 

1)         If the course provider seeks certification for an in-person course of study at the course provider's physical location, the location of the course provider's premises and facilities must be adequate, safe, and sanitary and shall comply with all relevant statutory provisions, rules, regulations and local ordinances concerning fire, health, safety, and sanitation.

 

2)         The equipment, supplies, and instructional materials of the course provider must be satisfactory and adequate in type, quality, and amount, and shall be suitable for use in administering the course of instruction.  They must also comply with all relevant statutory provisions and local ordinances concerning fire, health, safety, and sanitation.

 

e)         Before being certified, each applicant must provide the Department with all necessary information to allow the Department to participate in a complete course, without fee to the Department, so that the Department may determine if the course complies with this Part.  If the proposed course content meets the requirements of this Subpart, it will be approved by the Department.

 

f)         The requirements of subsection (d) are not intended to limit the ways course providers may offer courses of study or the locations at which course providers may offer courses of study.  Live webinars with real-time instruction and courses provided at an employer or business location with an in-person instructor may also be considered for certification by the Secretary of State.

 

g)         When determining whether to approve a submitted course of study, the Department will consider and review the following:

 

1)         The course lesson plan and syllabus or storyboard.

 

2)         A detailed description of how the final examination will be administered.  The entity administering the final exam may use either a paper test or an online format.  The entity must notify the Department which format they will be using.  A notary public course of education provider must offer multiple curriculum tests so that there is not one uniform test in circulation.

 

3)         The process for grading students.

 

4)         How the course educates students regarding the notary public or electronic notary public commission application process, forms, and procedures.

 

5)         A list of course instructors, if applicable.

 

6)         A description of the interaction capabilities between the instructor and the students in an electronic environment or another means of ensuring that students actively participate, if the course of study and examination are to be conducted electronically.

 

7)         Actual time spent by students and instructors online and in class.

 

8)         A video, CD, or DVD of the course, or a copy of or access to any text-based course, or in the case of an interactive asynchronous online course of study and examination, a uniform resource locator (URL) and login credentials to access the course.

 

h)         Upon receipt of a properly executed application for certification, the Department will investigate the qualifications of the applicant to determine whether the application should be granted or denied.

 

i)          Certifications may only be issued by the Department.

 

j)          Providers must follow the course content submitted to and approved by the Department at the time of application for certification. 

 

k)         If a provider wishes to substantially change the course content, a copy of the proposed revisions must be sent to the Department for approval.  The provider shall also provide the Department with all necessary information to allow the Department to participate in a complete course, as revised, without fee to the Department.  After review, the Department will send a letter to the provider either approving or rejecting the proposed changes.

 

l)          An entity whose certification has been denied, suspended, or revoked under this Subpart may request an administrative hearing under Subpart K.

 

m)        A certificate issued to a course of study and examination provider will be valid for one year.  The course provider must submit the course of study to the Department for approval annually.  Department approval of the course of study will extend from January 1 through December 31.  A course provider desiring to be approved must submit an application for course approval or renewal on or before October 1 of each year.  The application shall be accompanied by the following information:

 

1)         All information required as part of an application for initial certification as set forth in Sections 176.205, 176.210, 176.215, 176.235, 176.240, and 176.255; and

 

2)         Any supplemental information necessary to bring information on the course provider up to date.

 

n)         A provider may elect not to provide training that includes electronic notarization only if the application of the provider clearly and conspicuously states that the course submitted for approval will not include training with response to electronic notarizations and the provider includes a statement on its website that its training will not include electronic notarizations and will not suffice for an electronic notary public commission application.

 

(Source:  Added at 47 Ill. Reg. 8640, effective June 5, 2023)