When Notarize opened its doors in 2015, only Virginia allowed its notaries to connect with signers online. Today, we're excited to share the news that Colorado and Oregon have become the 26th and 27th states, respectively, to sign remote online notarization legislation into law.
Combined, these states will allow 122,000 additional notaries to access technology that will help them serve signers in a safer and more secure way.
The addition of Colorado and Oregon increases the number of states to pass RON legislation in 2020 to five – following Wisconsin, Alaska, and Louisiana, which passed earlier this month.
In Colorado, Governor Jared Polis signed Senate Bill 20-096 into law on June 26. The bill is scheduled to go into effect December 31, 2020.
SB 20-096 was the result of four-plus years of meticulous, back-and-forth negotiation between lawmakers, advocates, and industry leaders – which has left members on both sides of the aisle pleased with the final product.
“After multiple long years, I am so excited to finally pass the authorization of remote notaries in Colorado," said State Senator Robert Rodriguez, the primary sponsor of the bill. "Although it took a pandemic, I am no less inspired by Notarize and all the stakeholders working together to get this done in a strong bi partisan fashion. This bill was so desperately needed in our current environment with COVID.”
"The availability of remote notary is great news for Coloradans--particularly now when business transactions must be done virtually, said State Senator Bob Gardner, who originally championed RON legislation in Colorado beginning in 2016. Many people, and especially Notarize, have worked for almost five years now to ensure that Colorado embraces the future of remote notarization."
Oregon Governor Kate Brown signed House Bill 4212 on June 30 – four days after it passed through the State Senate by a 21-4 margin. The enrolled bill did not state an effective date.
Additionally, at time of publication, Missouri House Bill 1655 has passed both chambers of its state legislature and is awaiting the signature of Governor Mike Parson.
