The COVID Project
The record
- Jurisdiction
- Texas (Governor) · Texas
- Level
- State
- Authority
- Tex. Gov't Code sec. 418.016 (suspension of regulatory statutes during a declared disaster); March 13, 2020 disaster declaration, renewed monthly
- Issued
- 2020-04-08 Apr. 8, 2020
- Effective
- 2020-04-08
- End
- 'This suspension will remain in effect until terminated by the Office of the Governor or until the March 13, 2020 disaster declaration is lifted or expires' (the disaster declaration was renewed monthly through and beyond September 30, 2021) (read as 2021-09-30)
- In force
- Apr. 8, 2020 to Sept. 30, 2021
- Quarters
- 2020 Q22020 Q32020 Q42021 Q12021 Q22021 Q3
2020 Q22020 Q32020 Q42021 Q12021 Q22021 Q3
- Limitation types
- Courts and public officesOther
- Addressees
- notaries public
- persons executing self-proved wills, durable and medical powers of attorney, directives to physicians, oaths of executors, administrators and guardians
- Functions reached
- CL estate-planning and fiduciary documents executed remotely (law firms, banks, hospitals)
- OF
- CB
- Collection
- State motor-vehicle offices, secretaries of state and recorders AGY-ST-DMV-SOS-RECORDERS
Operative words
Governor Greg Abbott today suspended certain statutes concerning appearance before a notary public to execute a self-proved will, a durable power of attorney, a medical power of attorney, a directive to physician, or an oath of an executor, administrator, or guardian. These suspensions temporarily allow for appearance before a notary public via videoconference when executing such documents... A notary public shall verify the identity of a person signing a document at the time the signature is taken by using two-way video and audio conference technology.... This suspension will remain in effect until terminated by the Office of the Governor or until the March 13, 2020 disaster declaration is lifted or expires.
Enforcement
Tex. Gov't Code sec. 418.016 suspension (force of law); documents executed under the suspension 'will remain valid after the termination of this suspension'
Notes
Texas already had permanent online notarization for other documents (Tex. Gov't Code ch. 406, subch. C; AGY-ST-DMV-SOS-RECORDERS-049); the suspension reached the estate and fiduciary instruments the statute excluded. A 2021 Q3 instrument by its terms.
Retrieval noteThe exhibit is the Office of the Governor's own release stating the suspension and its conditions; the Governor's suspension letters to the Secretary of State are not separately published.