Congress modernizes notary law to enable remote signings across state lines
H.R. 1777 — SECURE Notarization Act of 2025 · Filed by Cliff Bentz (R-OR) · 8 cosponsors · Introduced Mar 3, 2025 · Referred to committee
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What it does
This bill authorizes notaries public nationwide to perform notarizations electronically and remotely (via video) for documents affecting interstate commerce, sets minimum standards for how those notarizations must be conducted and recorded, and requires federal courts and all states to recognize notarizations performed by notaries in other states under the same conditions. It also protects notaries from liability for technical failures and prevents notaries from falsely claiming to be lawyers or immigration consultants.
Why we flagged it
The bill's core function is to harmonize notarial law across state lines and enable remote/electronic notarization for interstate transactions. It is a procedural modernization bill, not a substantive rights expansion or restriction, and serves broad commercial and citizen convenience rather than a narrow sector.
What the text implies
- Remote notarization may increase vulnerability to identity fraud if notaries fail to properly verify identity through the two-factor process or credible witness requirement; however, the bill's recording and retention mandate (5–10 years) creates an audit trail for dispute resolution.
- States retain authority to impose additional requirements (endorsements, special commissions) for electronic/remote notarization, potentially creating a patchwork of state-level restrictions that could undermine the bill's harmonization goal.
- The bill's preemption of state law is limited to sections 3–4 (electronic and remote notarization standards); states can still modify or supersede these if they adopt the Revised Uniform Law on Notarial Acts (2018 or 2021 version), creating a carve-out that may fragment compliance.
Section numbers refer to the bill text the analysis read — linked under Primary records below.
Who it affects
Citizens gain convenience and cost savings by being able to use notaries across state lines and perform notarizations remotely without traveling. The bill includes safeguards (identity verification, audio-visual recording, retention requirements) to prevent fraud, and explicitly preserves remedies for fraud, forgery, and other invalidating causes, so citizens retain full legal recourse if a notarization is abused.
Who stands to gain
- Online notarization service providers
- Document preparation and filing services
- Real estate transaction platforms
- Financial institutions processing remote loan closings
Named in the bill
Notary public, Notarial officer, Federal courts, State courts, National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws, Revised Uniform Law on Notarial Acts, Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce Act (ESIGN)
Where it stands
8 cosponsors: 5 Democrats, 3 Republicans.
- Mar 3, 2025 — Introduced · Congress.gov: “Introduced in House”
- Mar 3, 2025 — Referred to House Committee on the Judiciary and House Committee on Energy and Commerce · Congress.gov: “Referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committee on the Judiciary, for a…”
Dates and quoted wording are Congress.gov's action record; the timeline shows status changes, not every procedural step.
Money around this bill
16 lobbying clients named this bill on 28 disclosure filings across 2 quarters, Dec 2025 to Jun 2026. Those filings disclosed $24,765,837 in lobbying spend. A filing names 14 bills on average, so that figure is what each filing reported, not a share belonging to this bill.
More lobbying clients named this bill than 95% of bills with at least one filing.
Cliff Bentz, the sponsor, reported $611,750 in PAC receipts in the 2026 cycle.
- National Association of Realtors — $14,580,000 on 1 filing
- American Council of Life Insurers — $4,085,837 on 3 filings
- Mortgage Bankers Association — $1,220,000 on 1 filing
- Finseca — $1,080,000 on 2 filings
- Rocket Lp Fka Rkt Holdings — $970,000 on 2 filings
Lobbying Disclosure Act filings through Jul 20, 2026. A filing shows who paid to lobby on a bill it names, not what changed.
How this was measured
Analysis — Quorum's AI read the bill text published by Congress.gov (20,349 characters) on Sep 23, 2026. Section numbers in the findings refer to that text, linked below; transparency and hidden-provision scores are compared against the median of 14,784 analysed bills.
Status and sponsors — Congress.gov's bill record — actions, committee referrals and cosponsors — loaded nightly. The timeline shows status changes, not every procedural action.
Money — Senate Lobbying Disclosure Act filings whose specific-issue field names this bill for quarters ending Dec 2025 to Jun 2026. A filing's amount is reported whole beside the median number of bills a filing names; it is never divided across them. PAC receipts are FEC-reported contributions to the sponsor's candidate committee in the 2026 cycle.
As of — lobbying records through Jul 20, 2026 · page rendered 2026-09-24.
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