By Simon Crittle
A law that will allow Coloradans to have documents notarized remotely is a step closer to becoming permanent now that Secretary of State Jena Griswold has adopted amendments to Colorado Notary Program Rules, including remote notarization rules to implement Senate Bill 20-096.
The rules will become temporarily effective on December 31, 2020, and then permanently effective 20 days after publication in the Colorado Register.
In the interim, the emergency remote notarization rules adopted on October 15, 2020, will continue to enable Coloradans to have access to notary services without in-person contact up to December 31, 2020.
For the Notice of Permanent and Temporary Adoption for the Colorado Notary Program Rules (8 CCR 1505-11), please click here. The notice includes the adopted rules, a statement of basis, and statement of justification. For an unofficial copy of the notary rules as adopted December 1, 2020 and effective December 31,2020, please click here.
For the Provider Protocols (December 1, 2020 version), standards that are incorporated by reference in the proposed rules, please click here.
The provider application will be available here. On December 15, 2020, the remote notary application, training and exam information, and updated FAQs will also be available on the Notary Program webpage. To access the remote notary application, notaries may login to their notary accounts.
To have questions answered on rulemaking, email sos.rulemaking@sos.state.co.us.
For general notary public inquiries and questions concerning implementation of the new rules, contact the notary program at 303-894-2200 and notary@sos.state.co.us.
This blog first reported on the new remote notary law in June, reversing the long-standing practice of requiring people to be in a notary’s physical presence.
“This legislation provides certainty to Colorado’s people and businesses that remote notary services will continue to be available in the future,” says Jena Griswold, Colorado Secretary of State, said at the time.