Oklahoma Sen. George Young files bill modifying notary requirement
Published: January 29th, 2021
State Senator Georgie Young, D-Oklahoma City, is a leader in the Oklahoma Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty. (OK-CADP). In this file photo, he is speaking at a state Capitol press conference of death penalty reformers.
CapitolBeatOK.com is an independent news organization based in Oklahoma City, focused on covering a wide range of public policy issues, particularly news from the state government. The site also includes coverage of the Oklahoma City government, state and local culture, and national policy issues of broad interest.
State Senator George Young, pictured here in his current official state Legislature photograph.
An ordained minister of the Gospel, Dr. George E. Young is also a member of the Oklahoma State Legislature. He is shown here early in his legislative service, in a state House official photograph.
The City Sentinel is an independent, locally-owned newspaper based in Oklahoma City. George Young, featured in this story, represents much of the newspaper's core readership area.
OKLAHOMA CITY – State Sen. George Young, D-Oklahoma City, has filed Senate Bill 480, which would modify the state’s requirement to become a public notary.
Under the measure, a felony conviction would not be grounds for disqualifying a person or removing a person as a notary unless the conviction was for a felony crime that relates to the provisions of notarial services.
Under current state law, those with a felony record are unable to become public notaries, as noted in a legislative staff press release sent to CapitolBeatOK, The City Sentinel, and other news organizations.
“People make mistakes, but it doesn’t mean that they should be discriminated against once they’ve served their time and are re-entering the workforce,” Young said in a statement included in the press release .
“Prior felons often times run into challenges finding a job due to their previous record. Qualifying this group of people to become notaries can help break the cycle of poverty, allowing them to provide income to help improve their own life and the lives of their families.”
In order to qualify as a notary under current state law, an applicant must be at least 18 years old, a citizen of the United States and employed within Oklahoma or be a legal resident of the state.
“As absentee voting is becoming more and more common due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we need to ensure we have plenty of Oklahomans who are able to become notaries and notarize these ballots,” Young said.
“Lifting this out-of-date law and allowing more citizens to serve as notaries is just common sense,” Senator Young concluded.