Federal Remote Notary Legislation
Mississippi is one of only six states that do not allow remote notarizations. When the state was under an emergency declaration because of COVID-19, remote notarizations were permitted by the governor’s emergency proclamation. But since that proclamation expired, no authority exists for using remote notarizations in Mississippi. Bills have been introduced in the Mississippi legislature to permit remote notarizations, but none have passed so far.
Legislation to permit remote online notarizations has been introduced in the United States Congress. The title of the bills is the “Securing and Enabling Commerce Using Remote and Electronic Notarization Act” or SECURE Act. There are several bills that appear to be identical, but the one that has made it furthest through the legislative process is H.R. 1059. The bill has passed the House of Representatives and has been referred to the Senate Judiciary Committee. The American Land Title Association is supporting H.R. 1059. So it is possible that Mississippi will get remote notarizations by federal law rather than by state law. You can find more information about H.R. 1059 on Congress’s website by clicking here.