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New Location:
Office of Notary Commissions and Authentications - 899 North Capitol Street, NE, Suite 8100, Washington, DC 20002. Open for walk-ins 9 AM - 1 PM, Monday – Friday, except holidays. Phone: 202-727-3117.

Office of Documents and Administrative Issuances - 899 North Capitol Street, NE, Suite 8700, Washington, DC 20002.

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Frequently Asked Questions -- Office of the Secretary

Question:  Who is the Secretary of the District of Columbia?

Answer:  Kimberly A. Bassett was appointed Secretary of the District of Columbia by Mayor Muriel Bowser subsequent to DC Council confirmation effective December 11, 2018.

 

Question:  What does the Office of the Secretary of the District of Columbia do? What are the functions and responsibilities?

Answer:  The Office of the Secretary of the District of Columbia provides protocol, document management and authentication, ceremonial and public records management services on behalf of the Mayor of the District of Columbia. The Secretary is the Chief Protocol Officer of the District of Columbia.

 

Question:  What are the official symbols of the District of Columbia?

Answer:  The Secretary of the District of Columbia is the custodian of the great seal of the District of Columbia. See DC Symbols.

The great seal of the District of Columbia was approved August 31, 1871, and depicts a blind-folded woman, Lady Justice, standing in the foreground holding the United States Constitution with one hand and placing a wreath on a pedestal or statue of the first US President George Washington with the other hand. The District motto “Justitia Omnibus” meaning “Justice for All” is included at the bottom of the seal with the date 1871.

The District of Columbia flag was officially adopted on October 15, 1938, and was adapted from the family coat of arms of George Washington. The District flag is rectangular with a white background with three red five-pointed stars, called mullets that appear above two red horizontal bars in the upper white space of the flag.

The official tree of the District of Columbia is the Scarlet Oak Tree. See DC Symbols.

The official bird of the District of Columbia is the Wood Thrush. See DC Symbols.

 

Question:  When can the Secretary of the District accept service of process?

Answer:  The Office of the Secretary no longer has the authority to accept service of process on behalf of the Mayor or a business entity. The Attorney General of the District of Columbia is designated to accept service of process pursuant to Mayor’s Order 2009-91, June 2, 2009. For more information, contact the Office of the Attorney General.  

The Superintendent of Corporations at the District Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs is designated to accept service of process on the Mayor’s behalf for businesses that are defunct or fail to maintain an agency in the District of Columbia or are operating in the District, pursuant to Mayor’s Order 2009-65 dated April 24, 2009.  See the Department of Licensing and Consumer Protection.

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