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Virginia bills · 2026 Regular Session

Virginia HB 1262

Notaries; prohibition on certain advertising, investigation by Attorney General.

  1. Introduced
  2. In committee
  3. Passed House
  4. Passed Senate
  5. To Governor
  6. Became law

Sponsors

Cosponsors (7)

Summary

Official abstract published by the Virginia legislature· SUMMARY AS PASSED

Notaries; prohibition on certain advertising; investigation by Attorney General; civil penalties. Provides that the Attorney General may issue a civil investigative demand whenever he has reasonable cause to believe that any notary public has, in violation of law, (i) offered or provided legal advice on immigration or other legal matters or represented any person in immigration proceedings or (ii) has assumed, used, or advertised the title "notario," "notario publico," or "licenciado," or other term in a language other than English that indicates that such notary is authorized or licensed to practice law. The bill increases the civil penalties for a violation of clause (ii) from up to $500 to up to $2,500 for a first violation and from up to $1,000 to up to $5,000 for a second or subsequent violation. The bill also provides that the Attorney General may seek to enjoin any such violation and may recover restitution, reasonable expenses, and reasonable attorney fees.

Text versions

Roll-call votes

State vote data last updated Oct 15, 2026, 8:04 PM.

DateVoteResultYour legislators
Mar 2, 2026
Senate		Passage RpassSet your home in Virginia to see
Feb 27, 2026
Senate		Constitutional reading dispensed (on 2nd reading)passSet your home in Virginia to see
Feb 25, 2026
Senate		Reported from Courts of JusticepassSet your home in Virginia to see
Feb 23, 2026
Senate		Rereferred from Commerce and LaborpassSet your home in Virginia to see
Feb 12, 2026
House		H VOTE:passSet your home in Virginia to see
Feb 6, 2026
House		Subcommittee recommends reporting with substitutepassSet your home in Virginia to see
Feb 6, 2026
House		Reported from Public Safety with substitutepassSet your home in Virginia to see

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