The term of office of a notary public is four years from the date of commission.

The lieutenant governor may appoint and commission notaries public for the state.

Every person appointed a notary public after July 1, 1961, shall execute an official bond of $1,000.

A notary and the sureties on the official bond are liable to persons injured for the damages sustained on account of misconduct or neglect of the notary.

A notary public shall require oaths and affirmations to be given in the notary's presence and require persons appearing before the notary to produce identification.

A fee of $40 shall be paid to the lieutenant governor for each commission issued to a person other than a state employee.

A certified copy of the record of the official bond with all affidavits, acknowledgments, endorsements, and attachments may be read in evidence with the same effect as the original, without further proof.

Repealed or Renumbered

The lieutenant governor shall keep the bond for one year after the end of the term of the commission for which the bond is issued. Disposition of the bond after the end of the commission does not affect the time for starting an action on the bond.

A person appointed as a notary public must be, at the time of submitting an application, a resident of this state and at least 19 years of age. In this section, 'resident' means a person who maintains a permanent place of abode in the state, and is in fact living in the state.

If a notary public dies, resigns, is disqualified, removed from office, or removes from the state, all the notary's public papers shall be delivered to the lieutenant governor.

The procedures set out in Section 44.62 (Administrative Procedure Act) shall be followed in the revocation of the commission of a notary public.

The protest of a notary public, under the notary's hand and official seal, of a bill of exchange or promissory note for nonacceptance or nonpayment is prima facie evidence of the facts recited in it, if the protest recites (1) the time and place of presentment; (2) the fact that presentment was made and the manner of presentment; (3) the cause or reason for protesting the bill; (4) the demand made and the answer given, or the fact that the drawee or acceptor could not be found.

This chapter may not be construed as to effect the release or extinguishment of a liability or forfeiture incurred or right accruing under a previous law regulating notaries. All commissions in effect on July 1, 1961 continue until they expire or are terminated by death, disqualification, resignation, removal from the state, or until the notary is removed from office by the lieutenant governor under Section 44.62 (Administrative Procedure Act).

(a) An application for a notary public commission must include a statement under oath that the applicant is a resident, as defined in Section 44.50.020.

(b) A person appointed a notary public shall file a bond and the oath set out in Section 39.05.045 with the lieutenant governor. The oath must be notarized and signed by the appointee.

(a) Each postmaster in the state may perform the functions of a notary public in the state.

(b) Each official act of a postmaster as a notary public shall be signed by the postmaster, with a designation of the person's title as postmaster, shall have the cancellation stamp of the post office affixed, and shall state the name of the post office and the date on which the act was done.

(c) The postmaster may charge and receive the same fees as a notary for similar services.

(d) Nothing in this chapter requires a postmaster to post a bond or to have a commission.

(a) A notary public shall provide and keep an official seal, upon which must appear the words, 'State of Alaska' and 'Notary Public,' together with the name of the notary. The notary shall authenticate all official acts with the seal.

(b) The seal of every notary public whose commission is issued on or after July 1, 1972 may be affixed by a seal press or stamp that will print or emboss a seal which legibly reproduces under photographic methods the words 'State of Alaska' and 'Notary Public' and the name of the notary. The seal may be circular not over two inches in diameter, or may be a rectangular form not more than an inch in width by two and one-half inches in length, and must contain the information required by this section.

A notary public shall

(1) when requested, demand acceptance and payment of foreign and inland bills of exchange, or promissory notes, protest them for nonacceptance and nonpayment, and exercise the other powers and duties that by the law of nations and according to commercial usages, or by the laws of any other state, government, or country, may be performed by notaries;

(2) take the acknowledgment or proof of powers of attorney, mortgages, deeds, grants, transfers, and other instruments of writing, and give a certificate of the proof or acknowledgment, endorsed on or attached to the instrument; the certificate shall be signed by the notary in the notary's own handwriting;

(3) take depositions and affidavits, and administer oaths and affirmations, in all matters incident to the duties of the office, or to be used before a court, judge, officer, or board in the state; a deposition, affidavit, oath, or affirmation shall be signed by the notary in the notary's own handwriting, and the notary shall endorse after the signature the date of expiration of the notary's commission.

(a) The lieutenant governor may appoint and commission state employees as notaries public of the state to act for and in behalf of a department of the state government as the lieutenant governor considers proper. If a state employee is appointed and commissioned, the head of the department shall execute a certificate that the appointment is made for the purposes of the department. When the certificate is filed with the lieutenant governor, the notary may not charge fees for filing or issuing a document in connection with the appointment.

(b) A department for which a notary public is appointed and commissioned under this section may pay from funds available for its support the premiums on the bond and the cost of stamps, seals, or other supplies required in connection with the appointment, commission, or performance of the duties of the notary public.

(c) Fees collected or obtained by a notary public whose documents have been filed without charge and for whom bond premiums have been paid by a state agency shall be remitted by the notary to the state department by which the notary is employed and paid into the general fund of the state. Notwithstanding Section 44.50.030 , the termination of employment revokes the commission of a notary whose documents have been filed without charge and for whom bond premiums have been paid by a state agency.