One-stop shopping for Colorado's notaries public

DENVER, Sept. 1, 2016 -- Colorado Secretary of State Wayne Williams today upped the ante for notaries public with the release of the latest eLearning training.

Colorado state regulations require notaries to complete notary public training and pass a state-administered exam. The Secretary of State offered in-person training free of charge, but those unable to attend had to pay an approved vendor to receive the training.

Williams thought Colorado customers should be provided better service, so the Secretary of State's office developed "Notary Certification Training." The new eLearning module provides free online training certification for those unable to attend in person at the SOS office in Denver. It is the same high level of training the office offers to in-person learners.

"This online offering is part of my continuing commitment to provide common-sense solutions for Colorado," the secretary said. "This module allows anyone anywhere in the state at any time to receive free notary training."

The new option provides the more than 84,000 current notaries in Colorado with the opportunity to refresh their skills while providing a new learning format for all new and renewing notaries. Current and potential notaries now have the ability to train, test, and apply or re-apply to become a notary public in one location from any desktop or laptop computer. The only cost incurred by a person choosing this training option is the $10 application fee – the lowest in the nation to become a notary.

"Colorado is now one of five states to offer online training to notaries," said Abbas Montoya, the SOS' notary and business program manager. "And we continue to set the standard in providing high level service to our citizens at a fraction of the costs."

Williams earlier this year announced the first release in a series of eLearning tutorials aimed at providing notaries with continuing education and training opportunities. The office then released a second tutorial for notaries, involving notarial acts for Apostilles and magistrate certificates.

Notary eLearning: Go to the Colorado Secretary of State website at www.state.co.us, and under "Programs & Services" see the "Notary public" entry. Click on that, then click on "Online Training from the Secretary of State."