BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 2326
Page 1
Date of Hearing: April 25, 2012
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Felipe Fuentes, Chair
AB 2326 (Wagner) - As Introduced: February 24, 2012
Policy Committee: Business and
Professions Vote: 8 - 0
Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program:
Yes Reimbursable: No
SUMMARY
This bill expands the type of notarized documents that require a
party signing a document to place his or her fingerprint in the
notary's journal to include all documents pertaining to real
property.
FISCAL EFFECT
Potential minor non-reimbursable local costs for investigation
and prosecution of violations, potentially offset by fine
revenue.
COMMENTS
1)Purpose . The intent of this legislation is to ensure that all
documents concerning real property are notarized, rather than
allowing for the use of a subscribing witness. According to
the author, notaries report substantial concern about the
potential for fraud when asked to notarize a document under
the subscribing witness exception to personal appearance.
Notaries public are responsible for providing credibility to
property ownership rights via the notary seals. Using a
subscribing witness, the author argues, is less effective as a
fraud deterrent than requiring a signer to provide a
thumbprint. The author asserts that the thumbprint in the
notary journal acts creates an additional cautionary signal to
the signer, thereby serving as a fraud deterrent.
2)Background . California notaries public are commissioned by the
Secretary of State, and must keep one active sequential
AB 2326
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journal at a time of all acts performed as a notary public.
The journal must include:
a) The date, time and type of each official act.
b) The character of every instrument sworn to, affirmed,
acknowledged or proved before the notary public.
c) The signature of each person whose signature is being
notarized.
d) A statement that the identity of a person making an
acknowledgment or taking an oath or affirmation was based
on satisfactory evidence.
e) The fee charged for the notarial service.
The notary must require the person signing the document to
place his or her right thumbprint in the journal if the
document to be notarized is a deed, quitclaim deed, or deed of
trust affecting real property, or a power of attorney
document.
A subscribing witness is a person who witnesses the signing of
a document and appears before a notary public on behalf of the
principal signer to attest that the principal signer has
signed the document. A notary can make a proof of execution
even if the principal signer of the document is not present,
as long as a subscribing witness testifies that the signature
is genuine.
Analysis Prepared by : Julie Salley-Gray / APPR. / (916)
319-2081