AB293,1,10 1An Act to renumber and amend 137.01 (1) and 137.01 (9); to amend
2subchapter I (title) of chapter 137 [precedes 137.01], 137.01 (2), 137.01 (3) (a),
3137.01 (4) (a), 137.01 (4) (b), 137.01 (6) (a), 137.01 (6m), 137.01 (7), subchapter
4II (title) of chapter 137 [precedes 137.11], 137.11 (8), 137.19, 179.14 (1g) (b),
5180.0103 (7k), 181.0103 (10p), 183.0107 (1g) (b), 193.005 (11p), 610.60 (4) (e),
6706.001 (1), 706.25 (1) (d), 706.25 (2) (c) and 801.18 (1) (f); and to create 137.01
7(1c), 137.01 (2m), 137.01 (3) (c), 137.01 (9) (bm), 137.01 (10), 137.01 (11), 137.01
8(12), 137.01 (13), 137.195, 706.001 (2m) and 706.07 (8m) of the statutes;
9relating to: online notaries public and electronic notarizations, granting
10rule-making authority, and providing a penalty.

This bill allows a notary public holding a commission from the Department of
Financial Institutions to obtain an additional commission as an online notary public,
which authorizes the notary public to perform online notarial acts for persons who
are not in the same physical location as the notary public. The bill also authorize any
notary public to use an electronic seal in addition to an electronic signature. The bill
further requires registration of online notarization system providers.

Under current law, DFI issues commissions to notaries public. The commission
of an attorney is permanent and the commission of a nonattorney is for a term of four
years. A notary public must maintain an official seal or stamp that, applied to paper,
leaves a legible impression or imprint stating “Notary Public,” “ State of Wisconsin,”
and the name of the notary. Among a notary public's powers, a notary public may
administer oaths and take acknowledgements of deeds or other written instruments.
Every official act of a notary public must be attested by the notary public's written
signature or electronic signature, and the seal or stamp must be applied to notarized
deeds or other written instruments that are acknowledged or sworn to. Under the
Uniform Electronic Transactions Act, as adopted in this state, if a law requires a
person's signature or a record (which may be tangible or electronic) to be notarized,
this requirement is satisfied if the electronic signature of a notary public, together
with any other information required to be included, is attached to or logically
associated with the person's signature or the record.

Current law also includes the Uniform Law on Notarial Acts, as adopted in this
state, which applies to notaries public and others authorized by law to perform
notarial acts. Under the uniform law, a “notarial act” includes, among other actions,
1) taking an acknowledgment (which is a declaration that a person has executed an
instrument and, if executed in a representative capacity, that the person signed the
instrument with proper authority), 2) administering an oath or affirmation, 3)
taking a verification upon oath or affirmation (which is a declaration that a
statement is true, made by a person upon oath or affirmation), and 4) witnessing or
attesting a signature. The uniform law specifies certain requirements for
performing notarials acts, including verification of the identity of the person for
whom the notarial act is performed. When performed by a notary public, a notarial
act must be evidenced by a certificate of notarial act signed and dated by the notary
public that includes identification of the jurisdiction in which the notarial act is
performed and the date of expiration, if any, of the notary public's commission. The
uniform law includes various forms for certificates of notarial acts that provide for
the notary public's seal or stamp to be affixed and include other information. By
executing a certificate of a notarial act, a notary public certifies that he or she has
satisfied the requirements for performing that notarial act.

Under this bill, a person who holds a commission from DFI as a notary public
and who meets certain eligibility requirements may obtain an additional commission
as an online notary public. The term of this commission is four years. An online
notary public who is physically located in this state may perform an online notarial
act for a person who is physically located in the United States or for a person who is
physically located outside the United States if certain conditions are satisfied. An
online notarial act is a notarial act, as described above, performed by means of
communication technology that meets standards established by DFI.
“Communication technology” means an electronic device or process that allows an
individual physically in one location and a notary public physically located at
another location in this state to communicate with each other in real time by sight
and sound. An online notary public must verify the identity of the person for whom
the notarial act is performed (principal) using certain prescribed procedures. A

person for whom an online notarial act is performed is considered to appear
personally before the online notary public at the time of the online notarial act. An
online notary public must use an electronic notarial seal for an online notarial act
and must prepare an electronic certificate of notarial act that satisfies certain
requirements. An online notary public must keep specified electronic records for
online notarized documents and must maintain the security of these records. The
online notary public must also create an audio and video copy of the performance of
the online notarial act. The online notary public must take reasonable steps to
ensure the integrity and security of online notarizations, maintain a backup for all
electronic records, and protect the backup records from unauthorized use. The
online notary public may, however, designate a repository to maintain the electronic
records and the audio and video recordings, and if such a designation is made the
repository is subject to these requirements.

The bill also requires any person that offers the services of an electronic
notarization system (online notarization system provider) to register with DFI. An
online notarization system provider may authorize only DFI-commissioned online
notaries public to use its electronic notarization system and must notify DFI of each
online notary public authorized to use its system. The system must incorporate
security measures.