So You Became a Texas Notary, How Exciting! But Now You're Drowning in Paper (Figuratively, We Hope)
Congratulations, superstar! You've officially joined the ranks of Texas notaries, a group of folks with the power to witness signatures and basically make things official with a fancy stamp. But with great power comes...well, not exactly laundry, but some record-keeping responsibilities.
One of these is your trusty notary journal, that ever-growing record of your official acts. But like that overstuffed sock drawer, you might be wondering: when can I finally purge this thing?
The Law Lays Down the Lowdown (But We Translate it into English)
Texas law, bless its bureaucratic heart, has some rules about how long you gotta hold onto your notary journal. But fear not, intrepid notary, because we're here to decode it for you. Here's the skinny:
- You gotta keep those precious notary journal entries for the longer of two things:
- The term of your commission: Basically, how long you were officially a notary rockstar for.
- Three years after the date of your last notarization: Think of it as the three-year anniversary of your most recent stamp-a-roonie.
Bold and underlined for emphasis: Whichever of these is longer is your golden rule.
So, Do I Need a Time Machine or Can I Recycle Already?
Now, the law says what it says, but here's a friendly notary pro-tip: keeping your notary journal forever is a really good idea. Why? Because you never know when a legal document from your past might come knocking. Imagine the chaos if you needed proof of that epic car sale notarization you did in 2023, and your trusty journal is but a faint memory (or worse, lost in a recycling bin).
Think of it like a notary superhero cape – a symbol of your responsibility and preparedness. Besides, a digital copy doesn't hurt either. Cloud storage is your friend, my friend.
But Seriously, Don't Panic
Listen, we all know life can get messy. If you're a notary who's been around the block for a while, and your basement is starting to resemble the National Archives, don't fret. There's no notary police kicking down your door for a misplaced journal entry from five years ago (although that would be a great sitcom concept).
Just do your best to keep those records safe and sound, and if something gets misplaced, well, hey, you're a notary – you can probably notarize a new copy, right? (Just kidding...maybe).
