SB 51

This bill changes the criteria for a newspaper to be eligible for compensation for

publication of legal notices. Under current law, with certain exceptions, in order for

a newspaper to qualify for compensation for publication of a legal notice, the

newspaper must have bona fide paid circulation, meaning the paid circulation of a

newspaper for which 1) the publisher of the newspaper sells 50 percent or more of

the circulation of the newspaper; and 2) the publisher of the newspaper has actual

subscribers at each publication of not less than 1,000 copies in first and second class

cities (cities of 150,000 people or more and cities with between 39,000 and 150,000

people, respectively); 300 copies in third and fourth class cities (cities with between

10,000 and 39,000 people and cities with less than 10,000 people, respectively);

villages; or towns. The bill eliminates the requirement that the publisher of the

newspaper sells 50 percent or more of the circulation of the newspaper.

Under current law, in addition to bona fide circulation, a newspaper must

generally meet one of the following criteria to qualify for compensation: 1) for at least

two of the five years immediately before the date of publication of a notice, have been

published regularly and continuously in the city, village, or town where published;

2) be a successor to such a newspaper and resumed publication following succession;

or 3) have merged or consolidated with one or more other newspapers and one of the

newspapers involved has been continuously published at regular intervals of at least

once each week for at at least 50 issues each year for at least one year prior to the

first publication of the notice. The bill modifies the first qualification, eliminating

the requirement that a newspaper be published regularly and continuously in the

city, village, or town where published for at least two of the five years immediately

before the date of publication of a notice, and instead allowing a newspaper to qualify

that has been published at least once a week for at least 50 consecutive issues prior

to the first publication of the notice in the city, village, or town where published.

Under current law, if there is not a newspaper in a city, village, or town that

meets any of the general criteria, a newspaper may still qualify for compensation

under an alternative provision if the newspaper is published regularly and

continuously in the city, village, or town, publishing in the newspaper is likely to give

notice in the area or to the affected person, and the newspaper is otherwise qualified

for compensation. The bill changes the alternative criteria, modifying the “regularly

and continuously” requirement to a requirement that the newspaper be circulated

at least once each week for at least 50 issues each year for one year prior to the first

publication of the notice in the city, village or town and requiring that the newspaper

contain, on average, at least 10 percent news content per issue. The bill also provides

an exception to the definition of “newspaper” to allow newspapers to qualify under

these alternative criteria.

The bill adds a requirement that a newspaper that publishes a legal notice must

place an electronic copy of the legal notice at no additional charge on that