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NV Senate Bill 419

Legislation

State: Nevada
Signed: May 29, 2013

Effective: October 01, 2013
Chapter: 264

Summary

SB 419 authorizes Notaries Public in good standing with the Secretary of State to apply for a certificate of permission to perform marriages with the clerk of the county in which the Notary resides. 

Affects

Amends Sections 122.006, 122.030, 122.050, 122.062, 122.064, 122.066, 122.0665, 122.068, 122.071, 122.090, 122.110, 122.120, 122.181, 122.185, 122.220, 4.060, 240.100 and 240.150 of the Nevada Revised Statutes.

Changes
  1. Authorizes Notaries in good standing with the Secretary of State to perform marriage ceremonies if a couple presents a valid marriage license obtained from the county clerk of any county in Nevada.
  2. Requires Notaries who want to perform marriage ceremonies to apply for a certificate of permission with the county clerk of the county in which the Notary resides.
  3. Provides that the initial application submitted by a Notary to the county clerk for a certificate of permission must: (a) be in writing; (b) include the date of the appointment of the Notary by the Secretary of State; (c) be accompanied by a verification issued by the Secretary of State within the 3 months immediately preceding the date of the application which states that the applicant has been appointed and in good standing with the Secretary; (d) include the Notary’s Social Security number; and (e) include a $25 application fee.
  4. Requires the county clerk to refuse to issue a certificate of permission if the appointment of the Notary is suspended or revoked and states the clerk may refuse to issue a certificate of permission if the Notary has committed any violations of NRS chapter 240.
  5. Provides that the county clerk with whom an application for certificate of permission to perform marriages is filed may require an investigation of the Notary’s background and present activities, and require the Notary to pay for the background screening.
  6. Provides that the county clerk not later than 30 days after issuing a certificate of permission to a Notary, must submit to the Secretary of State the name of the Notary to whom the certificate has been issued.
  7. Provides that if a Notary who holds a certificate of permission changes his or her mailing address, the Notary must submit to the Secretary of State a request for an amended certificate of appointment pursuant to NRS 240.036.
  8. Provides that a certificate of permission is valid until the appointment as a Notary has expired or has been canceled, revoked or suspended.
  9. Provides that if the county clerk in the county where the certificate of permission was issued has reason to believe that the Notary is no longer in good standing with the Secretary of State or that the Notary’s appointment has expired, the county clerk may require satisfactory proof of the good standing of the Notary, and, if such proof is not presented within 15 days, the county clerk shall revoke the certificate of permission by amending the electronic record of the Notary in the statewide database.
  10. Requires a Notary granted a certificate of permission to comply with the laws of Nevada governing the solemnization of marriage and conduct of Notaries.
  11. Provides that after the expiration of the Notary’s appointment and upon reception of a new appointment, the Notary may reapply for a certificate of permission to perform marriages, without charge, if the reapplication occurs within 3 months after the expiration of the previous Notary appointment.
  12. Provides that if any Notary to whom a certificate of permission has been issued moves from the county in which his or her certificate was issued, the certificate shall expire immediately upon such move.
  13. Directs the Secretary of State to include Notaries who are approved to perform marriage ceremonies in the statewide directory of officials authorized to perform marriages.
  14. Provides that a Notary may submit to the county clerk in the county in which a marriage is to be performed an application to perform a “specific marriage” in the county, and further provides that the application must: (a) Include the full names and addresses of the persons to be married; (b) include the date and location of the marriage ceremony; (c) include the information and documents required pursuant to subsection 1 of NRS 122.064; and (d) be accompanied by an application fee of $25.
  15. Provides that a county clerk may grant authorization to perform a “specific marriage” to a Notary Public, if the Notary is in good standing with the Secretary of State.
  16. Provides that a Notary may not receive more than 5 authorizations to perform a specific marriage ceremony in the same year and the Notary must acknowledge that he or she is subject to the jurisdiction of the county clerk with respect to the provisions of NRS chapter 122 governing the conduct of Notaries Public to the same extent as if he or she had obtained a certificate of permission to perform marriages.
  17. Provides that a Notary may charge $75 to perform a marriage.
  18. Provides that after a marriage is solemnized, the Notary shall give to each couple being married a certificate of marriage.
  19. Provides that any Notary marries a couple without the couple presenting a valid marriage license is guilty of a misdemeanor.
  20. Provides that if the Secretary of State revokes the commission of a Notary, the Secretary must notify the county clerk who issued the 1. Authorizes Notaries in good standing with the Secretary of State to perform marriage ceremonies if a couple presents a valid marriage license obtained from the county clerk of any county in Nevada.
Analysis
Senate Bill 419 was the result of a lawsuit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union against Clark County Clerk Diana Alba in 2007 concerning the constitutionality of allowing marriages to be performed by ministers and not by sectarian individuals. Ms. Alba has been trying to resolve that lawsuit by coming up with a compromise and the compromise was to seek the legislature to authorize Notaries Public to perform marriages. The ACLU pledged to drop the lawsuit if SB 419 became law. SB 419 authorizes Notaries Public in good standing with the Secretary of State to apply for a certificate of permission to perform marriages with the clerk of the county in which the Notary resides. Upon being granted a certificate, the Notary may perform marriages for any couple who presents a valid marriage license issued by any clerk of a Nevada county. In addition, SB 419 allows Notaries to apply with the county clerk up to five times per year to perform a specific marriage. The Notary applying to perform a specific marriage must acknowledge that he or she is subject to the jurisdiction of the county clerk with respect to the provisions of NRS 122 governing the conduct of Notaries Public in relation to performing marriages to the same extent as if he or she had obtained a certificate of permission to perform marriages.
 
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