BILL ANALYSIS Ó
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | SB 997|
|Office of Senate Floor Analyses | |
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UNFINISHED BUSINESS
Bill No: SB 997
Author: Lara (D)
Amended: 8/11/16
Vote: 21
PRIOR VOTES NOT RELEVANT
SENATE JUDICIARY COMMITTEE: 7-0, 8/29/16 (Pursuant to Senate
Rule 29.10)
AYES: Jackson, Moorlach, Anderson, Hertzberg, Leno, Monning,
Wieckowski
ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 79-0, 8/18/16 - See last page for vote
SUBJECT: Notaries public
SOURCE: California Indian Legal Services
DIGEST: This bill allows the identity of the signer of an
acknowledgement to be established by a notary public's
reasonable reliance on an identification card issued by a
federally recognized tribal government.
Assembly Amendments delete the Senate version of the bill and
amend in the current contents of the bill that allow the
identity of the signer of an acknowledgement to be established
by a notary public's reasonable reliance on an identification
card issued by a federally recognized tribal government.
ANALYSIS:
SB 997
Page 2
Existing law:
1)Authorizes the proof or acknowledgment of written instruments
before specified officers of the state, including notaries
public.
2)Provides that the acknowledgment of an instrument may not be
taken unless the officer (notary public) taking it has
satisfactory evidence that the person making the
acknowledgment is the individual who is described in and who
executed the instrument.
3)Provides that "satisfactory evidence" means the absence of any
information, evidence, or other circumstances that would lead
a reasonable person to believe that the person making the
acknowledgment is not the individual he or she claims to be
plus the use of any one of various specified ways of
establishing the proper identity of the person making the
acknowledgment (such as the oath or affirmation of a credible
witness or the presentation of a specified identifying
document).
4)Provides that the officer (notary public) may reasonably rely
on the presentation of any one of the following, provided that
the document is current or has been issued within five years:
a) An identification card or driver's license issued by the
California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV);
b) A passport issued by the Department of State of the
United States;
c) An inmate identification card issued by the Department
of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR), if the inmate is
in custody in prison; or
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d) Any form of inmate identification issued by a sheriff's
department, if the inmate is in custody in a local
detention facility.
5)Provides that the officer (notary public) may reasonably rely
on the presentation of any one of the following, provided that
the document is current or has been issued within five years
and contains a photograph and description of the person named
on it, is signed by the person, and bears a serial or other
identifying number, and, in the event that the document is a
passport, has been stamped by the United States Citizenship
and Immigration Services of the Department of Homeland
Security:
a) A passport issued by a foreign government;
b) A driver's license issued by a state other than
California, or by a Canadian or Mexican public agency
authorized to issue driver's licenses;
c) An identification card issued by a state other than
California;
d) An identification card issued by any branch of the Armed
Forces of the United States; or
e) An employee ID card issued by an agency or office of the
State of California, or by an agency or office of a city,
county, or city and county in this state.
6)Provides that an Indian tribe may become federally recognized
by an Act of Congress, administrative procedures under 25
C.F.R. Part 83, or a decision of a United States court. A
tribe which has been recognized in one of these three manners
may not be terminated except by an act of Congress.
7)Provides an administrative procedure by which an American
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Indian group can establish itself as a federally recognized
Indian tribe. (25 C.F.R. Part 83.)
This bill provides that the officer (notary public) may
reasonably rely on the presentation of an identification card
issued by a federally recognized tribal government, provided
that the identification card is current or has been issued
within five years and contains a photograph and description of
the person named on it, is signed by the person, and bears a
serial or other identifying number.
Background
A notary public is a public officer appointed and commissioned
by the Secretary of State to serve the public in non-contentious
matters generally concerning estates, deeds, powers of attorney,
foreign and international business, and other written
instruments. Occasionally, an individual who is party to a more
sensitive formal agreement, such as a child custody agreement, a
confidential marriage license, or an advance healthcare
directive, must have the agreement notarized before it can enter
into force. A notary's main functions are to take
acknowledgements of various written instruments, administer
oaths and affirmations, take depositions and affidavits, certify
copies of powers of attorney under the Probate Code, demand
acceptance and payment of foreign and inland bills of exchange
or promissory notes, and to protest nonpayment and nonacceptance
of bills and notes. (Gov. Code Sec. 8205.)
A certificate of acknowledgment is the form most frequently
completed by a notary. In the certificate of acknowledgment,
the notary certifies: 1) that the signer personally appeared
before the notary public on the date indicated in the county
indicated; 2) the identity of the signer; and 3) that the signer
acknowledged executing the document.
Under current law, the identity of the signer of an
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acknowledgment may be established by a notary public's
reasonable reliance on any one of a number of specified
documents. (Civ. Code Sec. 1185.) Certain government documents
that are current or have been issued within five years, such as
a California driver's license or identification card, or a
United States passport, provide sufficient proof of identity
without having to meet separately specified criteria. Other
documents, including a foreign passport stamped by the United
States Citizenship and Immigration Services, a government
employee identification card, and a driver's license issued by
another state, or a Canadian or Mexican public agency authorized
to issue driver's licenses, must meet certain threshold criteria
before a notary can reasonably rely on them to establish
identity. Documents within this latter category must contain a
photograph, description of the person, signature of the person,
and an identifying number, in order to constitute a valid proof
of identity for obtaining notarization of an instrument.
A federally recognized tribe is an American Indian or Alaska
Native tribal entity that is recognized as having a
government-to-government relationship with the United States,
with the responsibilities, powers, limitations, and obligations
attached to that designation, and is eligible for funding and
services from the Bureau of Indian Affairs. (Bureau of Indian
Affairs, Frequently Asked Questions
Page 6
card is current or has been issued within five years and
contains a photograph and description of the person named on it,
is signed by the person, and bears a serial or other identifying
number. This bill also contains double-jointing language to
address a chaptering-out issue with AB 2566 (Nazarian).
Comments
The author writes:
SB 997 would allow tribal identification cards to be accepted
for notary public services. Tribal identification cards must
meet the same criteria as documents issued by foreign
governments, other states, the Armed Forces, and city, county,
and state offices and agencies.
[ . . . ]
In addition to the many situations in which all California
residents must obtain notarizations, Native Americans often
require notarizations relating to business with the Bureau of
Indian Affairs (BIA) and Office of the Special Trustee (OST),
both sub-agencies under the Department of the Interior.
[ . . . ]
[California Indian Legal Services, sponsor of this bill,] has
been providing legal services to low-income Native Americans
since 1967. On many occasions, they have seen elderly or
impoverished Native Americans living in rural areas prevented
from, or delayed in, executing . . . documents, due to having
only a tribally-issued identification card rather than a
driver's license or other currently-accepted form of
identification. For such individuals, the burden of obtaining
such identification is not inconsiderable, given the financial
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and/or travel requirements involved. A delay in executing
one's will or in obtaining housing or income assistance
benefits [ . . . ] is a problem easily remedied by a minor
change to the Civil Code.
Accepting the identification issued by federally recognized
tribal governments respects their nationhood status and inherent
powers of self-government.
A federally recognized tribe is an American Indian or Alaska
Native tribal entity that is recognized as having a
government-to-government relationship with the United States,
with the responsibilities, powers, limitations, and obligations
attached to that designation, and is eligible for funding and
services from the Bureau of Indian Affairs. (Bureau of Indian
Affairs, Frequently Asked Questions
Page 8
Existing law allows a notary to confirm identity by relying on
the presentation of a passport issued by a foreign government, a
driver's license issued by an authorized Canadian or Mexican
public agency, or a number of other state or locally issued
employee identification cards. Given the extensive process
required in order for a tribe to become federally recognized,
and that federally recognized tribes possess nationhood status
with powers of self-government, it is consistent with existing
law that a notary would also be able to rely on an
identification card issued by these federally recognized
governments.
Related/Prior Legislation
AB 2566 (Nazarian, 2016) allows the identity of the signer of an
acknowledgement to be established by a notary public's
reasonable reliance on a valid consular identification document
issued by a consulate from the signer's country of citizenship
or a valid passport from the signer's country of citizenship.
The bill passed both houses of the Legislature and is in
engrossing and enrolling.
AB 1036 (Quirk, Chapter 42, Statutes of 2015) amended Civil Code
Section 1185 to add inmate identification issued by a sheriff's
department to the list of documents presumed to prove the
identity of an individual in custody in a local detention
facility who executes a written instrument.
AB 625 (Quirk, Chapter 159, Statutes of 2013) amended Civil Code
Section 1185 to add inmate identification cards issued by the
CDCR to the list of documents presumed to prove the identity of
an incarcerated individual who executes a written instrument.
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AB 60 (Alejo, Chapter 524, Statutes of 2013) required the DMV to
issue a driver's license to an undocumented Californian if he or
she provides satisfactory proof of his or her identity and
California residency. Required the DMV to accept a valid,
unexpired consular identification document issued by a consulate
from the applicant's country of citizenship, or a valid,
unexpired passport from the applicant's country of citizenship
to prove identity.
SB 461 (Correa, 2009) would have amended Civil Code Section 1185
to add a matrícula consular, issued through a consulate office
of the Mexican Government, as an allowable form of
identification to prove the identity of an individual who
executes a written instrument. SB 461 died in the Senate
Judiciary Committee.
AB 442 (Arambula, 2009) would have amended Civil Code Section
1185 to add a Matricula Consular, issued through a consulate
office of the Mexican Government, as an allowable form of
identification to prove the identity of an individual who
executes a written instrument. The bill was vetoed by Governor
Schwarzenegger.
AB 2452 (Davis, Chapter 67, Statutes of 2008) added specified
government employee identification cards as an allowable form of
identification to prove the identity of an individual who
executes a written instrument before a notary public. The bill
also deleted a provision allowing a witness to an individual's
identification who is personally known to the notary to serve as
evidence for an acknowledgment by a notary public.
AB 886 (Runner, Chapter 399, Statutes of 2007) required, among
other things, notaries public to determine by satisfactory
evidence only that a person acknowledging an instrument is the
individual who is described in and who signed the instrument,
and to certify the document under penalty of perjury. The bill
also required notaries to obtain the thumbprint of a party
signing a document where the document to be notarized is a deed,
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quitclaim deed, deed of trust affecting real property, or a
power of attorney.
AB 2062 (Nakano, Chapter 539, Statutes of 2004) required a
notary public to use a jurat (i.e., an official declaration
similar to an affidavit) form to certify the identity of persons
signing documents.
AB 1090 (Tucker, Chapter 1044, Statutes of 1993), among other
things, revised the criteria for determining whether an
individual has presented satisfactory evidence of identity for a
notary public to take an acknowledgment of an instrument.
FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: No Fiscal
Com.:NoLocal: No
SUPPORT: (Verified8/29/16)
California Indian Legal Services (source)
Bear River Band of Rohnerville Rancheria
California Indian Manpower Consortium, Inc.
Enterprise Rancheria Estom Yumeka Maidu
Jamul Indian Village A Kumeyaay Nation
Mooretown Rancheria
Northern California Tribal Court Coalition
Santa Rosa Band of Cahuilla Indians
Yurok Tribe
OPPOSITION: (Verified8/29/16)
None received
ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 79-0, 8/18/16
AYES: Achadjian, Alejo, Travis Allen, Arambula, Atkins, Baker,
Bigelow, Bloom, Bonilla, Bonta, Brough, Brown, Burke,
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Calderon, Campos, Chang, Chau, Chávez, Chiu, Chu, Cooley,
Cooper, Dababneh, Dahle, Daly, Dodd, Eggman, Frazier, Beth
Gaines, Gallagher, Cristina Garcia, Eduardo Garcia, Gatto,
Gipson, Gomez, Gonzalez, Gordon, Gray, Grove, Hadley, Harper,
Holden, Irwin, Jones, Jones-Sawyer, Kim, Lackey, Levine,
Linder, Lopez, Low, Maienschein, Mathis, Mayes, McCarty,
Medina, Melendez, Mullin, Nazarian, Obernolte, O'Donnell,
Olsen, Patterson, Quirk, Ridley-Thomas, Rodriguez, Salas,
Santiago, Steinorth, Mark Stone, Thurmond, Ting, Wagner,
Waldron, Weber, Wilk, Williams, Wood, Rendon
NO VOTE RECORDED: Roger Hernández
Prepared by:Margie Estrada / JUD. / (916) 651-4113
8/29/16 18:49:51
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