Vermont Secretary of State

What Vermont Secretary of State does

The Vermont Secretary of State is a constitutional office of the State of Vermont, established in 1791 when Vermont became the 14th state. It is led by Sarah Copeland Hanzas and serves as Vermont's chief elections official, chief corporate regulator, chief professional licensing authority, and state archivist. The office administers elections for 500,000-plus registered voters, regulates approximately 50 professions through the Office of Professional Regulation covering roughly 80,000 active licensees, maintains the state's business entity and UCC registry, processes trademark and apostille filings, and operates civic engagement programs including the Good Citizen Challenge, Vermont Kid Governor, and Campus Voting Challenge.

The office runs a portfolio of digital service platforms: a PRweb (Pega) Online Licensing Platform for OPR, an Online Business Service Center for corporate filings, the Vermont Voter Portal, and separate Campaign Finance and Lobbying Disclosure systems. These are complemented by a network of 255 town clerks and integrations with Microsoft Teams for scheduling and Google Translate for multilingual access. The technology posture emphasizes transactional self-service portals over AI-augmented services; no machine learning or generative AI capabilities are documented in the office's products.

The office's economic model is hybrid. It generates fee revenue from professional licensing renewals, business filings, UCC lien filings ($45 base), trademark registrations ($35), temporary officiant registrations ($100), and apostille services ($10 per document). These fees are supplemented by state appropriations, and the office's total operating budget is not publicly disclosed. The customer base spans Vermont residents, licensed professionals, registered businesses, municipalities, and political committees — with no single counterparty representing concentration risk.

Name

Vermont Secretary of State

Legal name

Vermont Secretary of State

Website

https://sos.vermont.gov

Company type

Private

Founded year

1778

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Vermont Secretary of State is a constitutional state office administering elections for 500,000-plus voters, regulating ~50 professions through 80,000 licensees, and maintaining business filings, UCC records, and state archives for Vermont residents, businesses, and 255 municipalities.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

State Government Administration Services

NAICS

Executive, Legislative, and Other General Government Support (921), Executive Offices (921110), Other General Government Support (92119)

akta.pro primary industry

Executive Office / Cabinet Secretariat (BPAIAAAA)

akta.pro secondary industry

Public Affairs & Government Relations (MPAAADAE)

Keywords

• Professional licensing services
• Election administration
• Business entity filings
• State government records
• Voter registration services

Headquarters

HQ city

Montpelier

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Professional Licensing Fees: Fees collected from professional license applications, renewals, verifications, and continuing education course approvals for approximately 50 regulated professions.
2. Business Filing Fees: Fees for business entity registration, annual/biennial reports, amendments, mergers, reinstatements, and assumed name filings.
3. UCC Lien Filing Fees: Fees for UCC-1 financing statements ($45), amendments, searches, and certified copies related to uniform commercial code filings.
4. Trademark Registration: Fees for trademark registration, renewal, and assignment filings with the state.
5. Temporary Officiant Registration: $100 filing fee for temporary authorization to officiate civil marriages in Vermont.
6. Apostille and Authentication Services: $10 per apostille/authentication certificate for Vermont notarized documents and certified public records for international use.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

The Vermont Secretary of State is a state constitutional office providing regulatory, administrative, and public service functions through its divisions: the Office of Professional Regulation (OPR) licenses approximately 80,000 professionals across 50 regulated professions; the Business Services Division processes entity registrations, UCC liens, and trademarks; the Elections Division administers voter registration, campaign finance disclosure, and lobbying registration; and the Vermont State Archives & Records Administration (VSARA) manages state records and issues apostilles. Services are delivered through walk-in offices, 24/7 online self-service portals, and a statewide town clerk network.

Product overview

The Vermont Secretary of State's office provides a portfolio of government services organized into several divisions: Office of Professional Regulation (OPR) offers online licensing for 50 professions covering approximately 80,000 licensees; Elections Division manages voter registration, elections, campaign finance, and lobbying; Business Services Division handles business filings, UCC liens, trademarks, and certificates; VSARA manages state archives, vital records, and apostille/authentication services. The services operate through multiple web portals including the OPR Online Licensing Platform, Online Business Service Center, Vermont Voter Portal, and Campaign Finance Disclosure System. Additional programs include Safe at Home (address confidentiality), temporary officiant registration, APA rulemaking services, and civic education initiatives.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Safe at Home: Address confidentiality and protected records program for survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, stalking, and human trafficking.
• Online Licensing Platform
• Vermont Voter Portal

Products and services

• OPR Online Licensing Platform Web-based platform for professional licensure allowing individuals and businesses to apply for individual or business licenses, check application status, request verification, renew licenses, and submit continuing education requests. Supports 50 regulated professions with approximately 80,000 licensees; processes applications within 5 business days.
• Find a Professional Public search tool allowing verification of education, training, examination history, and licensing/disciplinary information for any current or former licensee of OPR-regulated professions.
• Online Business Service Center Electronic portal for business filings including domestic/foreign formation, annual reports, amendments, mergers, dissolutions, and reinstatements. Also supports UCC lien filings and trademark registrations at bizfilings.vermont.gov.
• UCC Lien Services Statewide registry for Uniform Commercial Code filings including UCC-1 financing statements ($45 base fee), UCC-3 amendments, UCC-5 information statements, and UCC-11 search requests for secured transactions.
• Elections Division Services Comprehensive elections administration covering voter registration, election results, campaign finance disclosure, lobbying registration, town clerk resources, and candidate filing services.
• Vermont Voter Portal Online portal for voters to check registration status, update information, request early/absentee ballots, locate polling places, view sample ballots, and access candidate information at vote.vermont.gov.
• Campaign Finance Disclosure System Online system for tracking and disclosing campaign finance information for candidates and political committees.
• Voter Registration System Online voter registration service allowing eligible persons to register to vote, with options for online, paper, and in-person registration through town clerks.
• Lobbying Disclosure System Online registration and disclosure system for lobbyists and lobbying activities in Vermont.
• Safe at Home Address Confidentiality Program Address confidentiality and protected records service for survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, stalking, human trafficking, and providers/patients of legally protected healthcare. Provides substitute address and mail forwarding.
• Temporary Officiant Registration Online registration service for individuals to become temporary officiants to solemnize civil marriages in Vermont, with $100 filing fee per ceremony registration.
• Apostille and Authentication Services Issues apostille and authentication certificates for Vermont notarized documents and certified public records for use abroad, at $10 per document.
• Vermont State Archives & Records Administration (VSARA) Manages state government records, provides archival research services, issues apostilles and authentications for documents for international use, and maintains vital records including certified marriage and divorce records.
• Administrative Procedure Act (APA) Rulemaking Services Manages rulemaking process for state agencies including receiving filings, publishing notices, maintaining the Code of Vermont Rules, and providing electronic filing tools.
• Open Meeting Law Compliance Services Provides guidance on Vermont's Open Meeting Law including Act 133 (2024) which addresses hybrid and remote access to municipal public meetings.

Quantifiable outcome

• Processing applications within 5 business days
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles6 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration2 records

Feature3 records

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Accela (Civic Platform): Government technology vendor offering civic engagement, licensing, and regulatory SaaS to state and local governments — a broad incumbent serving the same digital modernization use case Vermont pursues with its online portals.
• Corporation Service Company (CSC): Private-sector provider of business formation, UCC filing, and registered agent services — an adjacent private competitor for the same business-filing workflows Vermont's Business Services Division performs statutorily.
• Tyler Technologies (Civic Services / Odyssey): Large government-software vendor providing licensing, regulatory, and records management platforms to state agencies — relevant as a broader incumbent whose technology stack competes for the same RFP dollars as Vermont's in-house Pega system.

Direct peers

• California Secretary of State: California's state constitutional officer performing the same triad of election administration, business filings (bizfile.sos.ca.gov), and professional/trademark oversight — directly comparable to Vermont's role but at vastly larger scale.
• Texas Secretary of State: Texas's state constitutional officer responsible for elections, business formations (direct.sos.state.tx.us), and uniform commercial code filings — performs the same core statutory functions as the Vermont Secretary of State.
• Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth: Massachusetts's state constitutional officer running the Corporations Division, election division, and public records services — a small-state New England peer with very similar scope of statutory duties.
• New York Department of State: New York's executive department handling business filings (opencorporates.com), professional licensing oversight, and records management — directly comparable to Vermont's Business Services and licensing functions at much larger scale.
• Florida Department of State, Division of Corporations: Florida's Division of Corporations provides business entity registration, UCC filings, and elections administration, mirroring Vermont's Business Services Division and Elections Division responsibilities.
• Colorado Secretary of State: Colorado's Secretary of State operates a notably modern digital platform for business filings and elections administration, serving as a comparable peer on both the regulatory scope and digital modernization dimensions relevant to Vermont.
• Pennsylvania Department of State: Pennsylvania's Department of State administers professional licensing through Bureau of Professional and Occupational Affairs, business filings, and election administration — directly analogous to Vermont's multi-division structure.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/vermontsos
• Facebookfacebook.com/100089369359457
• Instagraminstagram.com/vtsecretaryofstate

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Subsidiaries6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Vermont Secretary of State