CHAPTER 1. [Repealed.]
CHAPTER 2. Duties and Powers
CHAPTER 3 through 6 {Repealed.]
CHAPTER 7. Notary Public Law of 1953.
§ 147. Short title.
§ 148. Appointment of notaries.
§ 149. Eligibility.
§ 150. Disqualification; exception.
§ 151. Application to become a notary public.
§ 152. Application for reappointment.
§ 153. Vacation of office; change of residence.
§ 154. Oath of office; bond; recording.
§ 155. Registration of notary's signature; fee.
§ 156. Change of name.
§ 157. [Repealed.]
§ 158. Notarial Seal.
§ 159. [Repealed.]
§ 160. [Repealed.]
§ 161. Register; copies of records.
§ 162. Power to administer oaths and affirmations.
§ 163. Power to take acknowledgement of instruments of writing relating to commerce or navigation and to make declarations.
§ 164. Power to take depositions, affidavits and acknowledgement of writings relative to lands.
§ 165. Limitation on powers; fees.
§ 166. [Repealed.]
§ 167. Fees of notaries public.
§ 168. Rejection of application; removal.
§ 168.1. Surrender of seal.
§ 169. Revocation of commission of notaries issuing checks without funds on deposit.
This act shall be known and may be cited as "The Notary Public Law".
The Secretary of the Commonwealth is hereby authorized to appoint and commission, for a term of four years from the date of appointment, as many notaries public as, in his judgment, the interest of the public may require, whose jurisdiction shall be co-extensive with the boundaries of the Commonwealth, irrespective of their place of residence within the Commonwealth.
Any citizen of Pennsylvania, being eighteen (18) years of age or over, of known character, integrity and ability, shall be eligible to the office of notary public, if he shall have resided within this Commonwealth for at least one (1) year immediately preceding the date of his appointment, and if he shall be a registered elector in the Commonwealth.
The following persons shall be ineligible to hold the office of notary public:
Applications for appointment to the office of notary public shall be made to the Secretary of the Commonwealth, on forms prescribed and furnished by him, and shall be accompanied by a non-refundable filing fee of twenty-five dollars ($25), payable to the order of "State Treasurer," by money order, check, or draft. Each application shall bear the endorsement of the Senator of the district in which the applicant resides, or, in the case of a vacancy in that senatorial district, shall be endorsed by the Senator of an adjacent district.
Before issuing to any applicant a commission as notary public, the Secretary of the Commonwealth shall satisfy himself that the applicant is of good moral character, and is familiar with the duties and responsibilities of a notary public. Such qualifying requirements may be waived in the case of reappointment or appointments of persons making application within six (6) months after the expiration of a previous term as notary public, or appointments of persons who were prevented from applying for reappointment or from applying for appointment, within the six (6) month extension period mentioned above, by reason of their induction or enlistment in the armed forces of the United States, if application is made within one (1) year after military discharge of the applicant, under conditions other than dishonorable.
Applications for reappointment to the office of notary public shall be filed at least one month prior to the expiration of the commission under which the notary is acting.
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Notaries shall have power to administer oaths and affirmations, according to law, in all matters belonging or incident to the exercise of their notarial office. Any person who shall be convicted of having wilfully and knowingly made or taken a false oath or affirmation before any notary in any matters within their official duties shall be guilty of perjury and shall be subject to the penalties in such case made and provided.
[to be inserted.]
Notaries shall have power to take depositions and affidavits, to take and receive the acknowledgement or proof of all deeds, conveyances, mortgages, or other instruments or writing touching or concerning any lands, tenements or hereditaments, situate, lying and being in any part of this State.
[to be inserted.]
The fees of notaries public shall be fixed by the Secretary of the Commonwealth with the approval of the Attorney General.
NOTARY PUBLIC FEE SCHEDULE
AS OF MAY 18, 1996
THE SECRETARY OF THE COMMONWEALTH
REVISED NOTARY FEES
| Executing affidavits | $2.00 |
| Executing acknowledgements | $2.00 |
| in executing acknowledgements, each additional name | $1.00 |
| Executing certificates | $2.00 |
| Administering oaths | $2.00 |
| Taking depositions, per page | $2.00 |
| Making protests, per page | $2.00 |
The Secretary of the Commonwealth may, for good cause, reject any application, or revoke the commission of any notary public, but such action shall be taken subject to the right of notice, hearing and adjudication, and the right of appeal therefrom, in accordance with the provisions of the Administrative Agency Law, approved the fourth day of June, one thousand nine hundred forty-five (Pamphlet Laws 1388), or any amendment or reenactment thereof, relating to adjudication procedure.
The act of June 4, 1945 (P.L. 1388) has been repealed. Its subject matter is now covered by Title 2 of the Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes.
Should an application or renewal be rejected, or should a commission be revoked or recalled for any reason, the applicant or notary shall deliver the seal of office to the Department of State within ten (10) days after notice from the department.
Any person who violates the provisions of this section shall be guilty of a summary offense and upon conviction thereof shall be sentenced to pay a fine not exceeding three hundred dollars ($300.00) or to imprisonment not exceeding ninety (90) days, or both.
The Secretary of the Commonwealth shall, upon written complaint of any aggrieved applicant, revoke the commission of any notary public who issues to the order of any State agency a personal check without funds on deposit in payment of moneys due the agency that were received by him from applicants. Any action taken by the Secretary of the Commonwealth shall be subject to the right of notice, hearing and adjudication and the right of appeal therefrom, in accordance with the provisions of the Administrative Agency Law, approved the fourth day of June, one thousand nine hundred forty-five (Pamphlet Laws 1388).
The act of June 4, 1945 (P.L. 1388) has been repealed. Its subject matter is now covered by Title 2 of the Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes.
The complete Pennsylvania Statutes are not yet available on the web. However, selected portions have been made available and can be accessed by CLICKING HERE. These statutes, though available instantaneously over the web, may not be the current law. Court decisions overturning them, later statutes amending them, and a host of other factors come into play when interpreting them. They are provided here as a resource. They should provide some information about the state of the law. However, a competent lawyer, who from other sources will research the law to insure what is current, should always be employed in matters of importance.