Commissioner of deeds
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A commissioner of deeds is an officer having authority to take affidavits, depositions, acknowledgments of deeds, etc., for use in the state by which the person is appointed.
[edit] In New York
In the state of New York, a Commissioner of Deeds is an official with duties similar to that of a notary public. It is not a paid office. He or she must file an application and pass an examination; however, the application is filed with and appointment is made by a local city government rather than the state, as is the case with notaries public. Commissioners of deeds are normally appointed en masse in periodic acts of the city council.
The powers and rules and regulations are practically identical to those of a notary public, except that the commissioner of deeds' authority exists only within the limits of the city for which he or she is appointed, and does not extend to the area of the whole state. Despite the name, their powers are not restricted to certifying signatures on property transfers. A large number of political party officials and activists apply to become commissioners of deeds to certify signatures on nominating petitions in New York's sometimes complex elections process, as the application is cheaper and the registration process slightly less cumbersome than for a notary.[1][2]
