The NNA is urging California Notaries to weigh in on important legislation to increase the maximum fees Notaries can charge and protect access to notarial services.
Assembly Bill 1597 would raise the maximum fees a California Notary may charge for notarial acts from $15 to $20 per signature or act. The bill is awaiting a hearing date in the state’s Assembly Judiciary Committee, but before that, lawmakers will review public input, making this a critical moment for California Notaries to voice their support.
What California Notaries can do to support AB 1597
Legislators give significant weight to public comments while a bill is under committee consideration. When Notary fees were last raised, California Notaries wrote over 1,400 letters of support. The National Notary Association urges California Notaries and supporters of AB 1597 to act now by submitting a letter of support before the end of February through the California Notaries Action Center at: https://www.calnotaries.org/action-center.
Why AB 1597 is needed for Notaries and consumers
The current maximum Notary fee of $15 has been raised only once in California since 1994 and has not changed since January 1, 2017. Inflation has increased by approximately 33.5 percent in the past 9 years, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, while the costs of commissioning, compliance, insurance, and transportation have continued to rise.
Updating the fees California Notaries can charge is essential to preserving consumer access to notarial services. California Notaries face some of the highest regulatory and operational costs in the nation, one of the factors contributing to a decline of more than 22,000 active Notaries since 2017. This loss has reduced access to notarial services for seniors, individuals with disabilities, wildfire survivors, and residents of rural and outlying areas who rely on accessible notarial services for mortgage, healthcare, legal, and financial transactions.
AB 1597 adjusts only the maximum fees a Notary may charge. It does not require Notaries to charge higher fees, or prevent Notaries from reducing or waiving fees, thus preserving market competition. The bill also preserves the existing prohibition against charging fees for notarial acts related to veterans’ benefits.
Taking a few minutes to participate can help ensure that essential notarial services remain accessible to the communities and industries that depend on them.
Brooke Merritt is the Director of Government & Policy Planning at the National Notary Association.