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Currently, in 35 states, such as also selects the Secretary of State, but to a two-year term. {Link without Title} The actual duties of a state’s Secretary of State vary greatly from state to state. In most states, the Secretary of State’s office is a creation of the original draft of the State Constitution . However, in many cases responsibilities have been added by Statute or Executive Order . DUTIES IN MOST STATES The most common, and arguably the most important, function held by Secretaries of State is to serve as the state’s chief elections official. In 38 states, ultimate responsibility for the conduct of elections, including the enforcement of qualifying rules, oversight of finance regulation, establishment of actual election-day procedures, falls on the Secretary of State. (Florida is one of the many states in which this is true, and for this reason Florida’s Secretary of State in 2000 , Katherine Harris , became one of the few people holding this position to become known outside of her own state.) In the vast majority of states, the Secretary of State is also responsible for the administration of the Uniform Commercial Code , an act which provides for the uniform application of business Contracts and practices across the United States, including the registration of Liens on Personal Property . Hand in hand with this duty, in most states the Secretary of State is responsible for chartering businesses (usually including Partnerships and Corporations ) that wish to operate within their state. Accordingly, in most states, the Secretary of State also maintains all records on business activities within the state. And in some states, the Secretary of State has actual wide-ranging regulatory authority over businesses as well. Along with record keeping on businesses, in perhaps a majority of states, the Secretary of State’s office is the primary repository of official records. This includes in most states the official copies of state documents including the actual official copy of the state’s constitution (and in s issued by the governor, and regulations and interpretations of statutes issued by state regulatory agencies. In at least a half-dozen states, this record keeping authority extends to Civil Act s, such as Marriage s, Birth Certificate s, and Adoption and Divorce decrees. Many states also require the Secretary of State's office to also maintain records of land transactions and ownership. In at least 35 states, the Secretary of State is also responsible for the administration of Notaries Public . And almost all states also designate (almost always in the state constitution itself) that the Secretary of State shall be the “Keeper of the Great Seal ” of the state. Ostensibly this requires the Secretary of State to make decisions as to where the state seal shall be affixed, whether it be onto legislation, state contracts, et cetera. LESS COMMON DUTIES About a dozen states give the Secretary of State the task of issuing professional licenses. This includes Doctor s, Plumber s, Cosmetician s, General Contractor s, and, in at least two states, Minister s (to perform Marriage s). In Nevada , Pennsylvania , and West Virginia , the Secretary of State must clear anyone who wishes to act as a Sports Agent for a Professional Athlete . In Illinois , Maine , and Michigan , the Secretary of State is in charge of the issuance of Driver's License s. In several states the Secretary of State is also in charge of monitoring the activities of Lobbyist s. While some might regard this as a natural extension of the role as chief elections officer, the Secretary Of The Commonwealth Of Virginia , who is ''not'' in charge of elections in that state, is nonetheless responsible for regulating lobbying. In about five states, the Secretary of State is the official in charge of the official state museum. In some of these states, and also some states without official museums, the Secretary of State is designated as the official with responsibility for maintenance of the state’s historical records. A few states place the Secretary of State in charge of the use of public property. In most cases this means only public buildings (usually the State Capitol ), but in Mississippi it also includes some lands that are legally defined as belonging to the state, such as Tidal Plain s. {Link without Title} Several states grant a technical statutory authority to the Secretary of State in the realm of with the governor, and the Secretary of State commands equal authority with the governor in any pardoning decisions that are issued. Since the early 1980s, many states have increased efforts to develop direct commercial relations with foreign nations. In several of these states, the state's Secretary of State has been given primary responsibility in this area. Despite this, there should be no confusion of the duties of a particular state's Secretary of State and those of the United States Secretary Of State . The prohibition of the United States Constitution against individual states having Diplomatic Relations with foreign states is absolute; these recently-evolved duties are of a purely commercial nature. UNIQUE RESPONSIBILITIES Several states have given their Secretary of State at least one responsibility that is shared by none of her colleagues from other states. Here are a few examples.
LIST OF SECRETARIES OF STATE This is an incomplete list of Secretaries of State for each state in the United States. As indicated above, three states (Alaska, Hawaii, and Utah) have no such position, although some of the duties that might normally be performed by the Secretary of State are responsibilities of the Lieutenant Governor of those states. TRIVIA
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