HB2797eng 99TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HB2797 Engrossed LRB099 03997 JLK 29189 b

AN ACT concerning government.

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly:

Section 5. The Illinois Notary Public Act is amended by changing Sections 2-102 and 2-104 and by adding Section 2-102.5 as follows:

(5 ILCS 312/2-102) (from Ch. 102, par. 202-102)

Sec. 2-102. Application. Every applicant for appointment and commission as a notary shall complete an application in a format prescribed form furnished by the Secretary of State to be filed with the Secretary of State, stating:

(a) the applicant's official name, as it appears on his or her current driver's license or state-issued identification card which contains his or her last name and at least the initial of the first name;

(b) the county in which the applicant resides or, if the applicant is a resident of a state bordering Illinois, the county in Illinois in which that person's principal place of work or principal place of business is located;

(c) the applicant's residence address, as it appears on his or her current driver's license or state-issued identification card, and business address, if any, or any address at which an applicant will use a notary public commission to receive fees;

(d) that the applicant has resided in the State of Illinois for 30 days preceding the application or that the applicant who is a resident of a state bordering Illinois has worked or maintained a business in Illinois for 30 days preceding the application;

(e) that the applicant is a citizen of the United States or an alien lawfully admitted for permanent residence in the United States;

(f) the applicant's date of birth that the applicant is at least 18 years of age;

(g) that the applicant is able to read and write the English language;

(h) that the applicant has never been the holder of a notary public appointment that was revoked or suspended during the past 10 years;

(i) that the applicant has not been convicted of a felony; and

(i-5) that the applicant's signature authorizes the Office of the Secretary of State to conduct a verification to confirm the information provided in the application; and

(j) any other information the Secretary of State deems necessary.

(Source: P.A. 93-1001, eff. 8-23-04.)

(5 ILCS 312/2-102.5 new)

Sec. 2-102.5. Online notary public application system.

(a) The Secretary of State may establish and maintain an online application system that permits an Illinois resident to apply for appointment and commission as a notary public.

(b) Any such online notary public application system shall employ security measures to ensure the accuracy and integrity of notary public applications submitted electronically under this Section.

(c) The Secretary of State may cross reference information provided by applicants with that contained in the Secretary of State's driver's license and Illinois Identification Card databases in order to match the information submitted by applicants, and may receive from those databases the applicant's digitized signature upon a successful match of the applicant's information with that information contained in the databases.

(d) An online notary public application shall contain all of the information that is required for a paper application as provided in Section 2-102 of this Act. The applicant shall also be required to provide:

(1) the applicant's full Illinois driver's license or Illinois Identification Card number;

(2) the date of issuance of the Illinois driver's license or Illinois Identification Card; and

(3) the applicant's e-mail address for notices to be provided under this Section.

(e) For his or her application to be accepted, the applicant shall mark the box associated with the following statement included as part of the online notary public application: "By clicking on the box below, I swear or affirm all of the following:

(1) I am the person whose name and identifying information is provided on this form, and I desire to be appointed and commissioned as a notary public in the State of Illinois.

(2) All the information I have provided on this form is true and correct as of the date I am submitting this form.

(3) I authorize the Secretary of State to utilize my signature on file with the Secretary of State driver's license and Illinois Identification Card databases and understand that such signature will be used on this online notary public application for appointment and commission as a notary public as if I had signed this form personally."

(f) Immediately upon receiving a completed online notary public application, the online system shall send by electronic mail a confirmation notice that the application has been received. Upon completion of the procedure outlined in subsection (c) of this Section, the online notary public application system shall send by electronic mail a notice informing the applicant of whether the following information has been matched with the Secretary of State driver's license and Illinois Identification Card databases:

(1) that the applicant has an authentic Illinois driver's license or Illinois Identification Card issued by the Secretary of State and that the driver's license or Illinois Identification Card number provided by the applicant matches the driver's license or Illinois Identification Card number for that person on file with the Secretary of State;

(2) that the date of issuance of the Illinois driver's license or Illinois Identification Card listed on the application matches the date of issuance of that license or card for that person on file with the Secretary of State;

(3) that the date of birth provided by the applicant matches the date of birth for that person on file with the Secretary of State; and

(4) that the residence address provided by the applicant matches the residence address for that person on file with the Secretary of State.

(g) If the information provided by the applicant matches all of the criteria identified in subsection (f) of this Section, the online notary public application system shall retrieve from the Secretary of State's database files an electronic copy of the applicant's signature from his or her Illinois driver's license or Illinois Identification Card and such signature shall be deemed to be the applicant's signature on his or her online notary public application.

(5 ILCS 312/2-104) (from Ch. 102, par. 202-104)

Sec. 2-104. Oath.

(a) Every applicant for appointment and commission as a notary public shall take the following oath in the presence of a person qualified to administer an oath in this State:

"I, (name of applicant), solemnly affirm, under the penalty of perjury, that the answers to all questions in this application are true, complete, and correct; that I have carefully read the notary law of this State; and that, if appointed and commissioned as a notary public, I will perform faithfully, to the best of my ability, all notarial acts in accordance with the law.".

(b) In the event that the applicant completes a paper application for appointment and commission as a notary public, he or she shall take the oath in the presence of a person qualified to administer an oath in this State. The printed oath shall be followed by the signature of the applicant and notarized as follows:

" ................. (Signature of applicant)

Subscribed and affirmed before me on (insert date).

................... (Official signature and official seal of notary)".

(c) In the event that the applicant completes an online application for appointment and commission as a notary public, he or she shall affirm the oath electronically. An electronic affirmation of the oath in the online notary public application system shall have the same force and effect as an oath sworn and affirmed in person.

(Source: P.A. 91-357, eff. 7-29-99.)

Section 10. The Illinois Vehicle Code is amended by changing Section 6-110.1 as follows:

(625 ILCS 5/6-110.1)

Sec. 6-110.1. Confidentiality of captured photographs or images. The Secretary of State shall maintain a file on or contract to file all photographs and signatures obtained in the process of issuing a driver's license, permit, or identification card. The photographs and signatures shall be confidential and shall not be disclosed except to the following persons:

(1) the individual upon written request;

(2) officers and employees of the Secretary of State who have a need to have access to the stored images for purposes of issuing and controlling driver's licenses, permits, or identification cards;

(3) law enforcement officials for a lawful civil or criminal law enforcement investigation;

(3-5) the State Board of Elections for the sole purpose of providing the signatures required by a local election authority to register a voter through an online voter registration system; or

(3-10) officers and employees of the Secretary of State who have a need to have access to the stored images for purposes of issuing and controlling notary public commissions and for the purpose of providing the signatures required to process online applications for appointment and commission as notaries public; or

(4) other entities that the Secretary may exempt by rule.

(Source: P.A. 98-115, eff. 7-29-13.)