November 2015

Featured Issues Regarding Public Notices

Wisconsin, California papers report on public notice
The Hudson Star-Observer of River Falls, Wisconsin, has used a public notice it carried within its printed pages as part of its reporting on a story on the local water utility’s plan to eliminate plumbing connections that could contaminate the community’s water supply.

“According to a public notice that will be published in the Oct. 8 Star-Observer, the [Department of Natural Resources] performed ‘a detailed inspection and evaluation’ of Hudson’s drinking water system … and found that a portion of the cross-connection deficiencies … hadn’t been corrected,” Randy Hanson reports.

Meanwhile, Sandy Feretto, a reporter at the Redwood Times in Garberville, California, has reported on a public notice in that newspaper’s pages regarding a draft medical marijuana land use ordinance which appeared in the newspaper. “In addition to the public notice on the ordinance published in the Times-Standard on Sunday, Oct. 4, a notice of intent to adopt a mitigated negative declaration (MND) for medical marijuana land use ordinance was posted, and comments are being accepted,” Feretto wrote.

The Public Notice Resource Center encourages reporters around the country to report on the news contained within the many public notices carried by their newspapers by sponsoring, in partnership with state newspaper associations, the annual Public Notice Journalism Contest. The 2014 contest was won by Jim Lockwood, staff writer for The Times-Tribune of Scranton, Pennsylvania, who won for his coverage of a proposed new commuter tax. Lockwood’s story referred readers to the dates of the notices so they could read the notices themselves.
Water utility targets plumbing cross-connections – Hudson Star-Observer (River Falls, Wisconsin) (10.2.2015)
Marijuana land use ordinance hearing Nov. 5 – Redwood Times (Garberville, California) (10.12.2015)

Public notice demonstrates the power of newspapers
The Sierra Vista (Arizona) Herald has partnered with the town of Bisbee to demonstrate the power of newspapers: Instead of printing its “typical public notice offering colorful listings of business incorporations, bankruptcies and other public transactions … the Herald/Review dedicated the top of its front page to a list of Bisbee sanitation customers long overdue on their bills,” the paper explained in an editorial.

Six months after the story was published, Bisbee has collected more than 32% of its outstanding sanitation bill, a total of $416,561. The town’s finance director, Sharon Buono, said that the newspaper is the most effective media in creating awareness of the city’s former $1.4 million accounts receivable balance.

“That has really made the difference in getting people to come in and work with us on making some kind of payment on past due balances,” Buono told the newspaper.
The value of public notice – Sierra Vista (Arizona) Herald (10.25.2015)

Chancery clerk: Legal ads show proof in black and white
In a world where local governments are all-to-quick to declare the virtue of putting public notices on government websites, Josh Edwards, a writer at The Vicksburg (Mississippi) Post has found an ally for the printed word in the local government’s chancery clerk. Donna Hardy, who spoke to Edwards about public notices, told him that “publication by print, at least in the legal world, is the most important because it’s there in black and white.”

Edwards spoke to a number of people for his story on the importance of public notices, including Layne Bruce, executive director of the Mississippi Press Association. “Newspapers have for centuries been the trusted third-party watchdog on behalf of citizens,” Bruce said.

Hardy noted that public notices are highly scrutinized by lawyers and government clerks prior to publication. “When you don’t publicize it correctly, you’ve opened the door to be challenged,” she said.
Legal ads show proof in black and white – The Vicksburg (Mississippi) Post (10.6.2015)

Colorado town votes to put some public notices on town website
Castle Rock, Colorado, residents have voted in favor of changing the Castle Rock Home Rule Charter to allow public notices of ordinances to be posted on the town’s website instead of being published in a newspaper, according to sidebar data accompanying a story about the November vote.

The Douglas County (Colorado) News-Press reported the vote to publish public notices on the town’s website as data only, reporting in a sidebar to a story about the election that 64.79% of voters were in favor of the ballot measure. The newspaper did editorialize against the measure prior to the vote. (See the October issue of of Record.)
Residents vote to move Castle Rock municipal elections to November (see sidebar) – Douglas County News-Press, Highlands Ranch, Colorado (11.9.2015)
Editorial: Vote no on change to legal notices in Castle Rock – Douglas County News-Press, Highlands Ranch, Colorado (10.14.2015)

South Carolina AG confirms notices must be printed in the newspaper
In response to a request by a local town attorney, the South Carolina Attorney General’s office has confirmed through a written opinion that legal notices must be “published in a printed newspaper of general circulation.”

Williamston town attorney G. Lee Cole had asked the AG’s office whether town news sites that exist solely online would be considered within the statutes and regulations of legal notice requirements.

An editorial in the Powdersville Post explained why the opinion is important: “Had the Attorney General’s office allowed it, the opinion would have set a legal precedent that allowed for all legal ads to be posted online – and only online, without ever having to be run in a traditional paper. In effect, the AG’s opinion has reaffirmed the necessity for published newspapers and their continuing role in an ever more digital society, for the time being anyway.”
Online legal ads? Not so fast. – Powdersville Post (Easley, South Carolina) (11.5.2015)
Download the attorney general’s opinion here.

State Legislation
See below for a quick recap of some of the most important bills that have seen legislative action so far this year. For a comprehensive list of public notice legislation, visit the PNRC at https://www.pnrc.net/subscribers/state-updates/

Government Notices
New Jersey: A 2399 – substitute introduced (2014 bill) – Permits local governments and schools to move notices to the Web and publish only a summary of the notice.
Wisconsin: SB 346 – referred to Committee – Eliminate newspaper notice of hearings by Wisconsin Supreme Court when considering a new rule or changing an existing rule regulating pleading, practice or procedure.

Publish & Post
Massachusetts: HB 1566 – referred to Committee (previously passed House)

UELMA
Massachusetts: HB 43 – referred to Committee

Articles & Editorials

Pennsylvania county’s CDBG notices will be in English and German
Public notices for allocations of the Pennsylvania Community Development Block Grant to Mercer County communities will now be in both English and German, The Herald of Sharon, Pennsylvania, has reported.

The bilingual notice is being required by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, which funds CDBGs. The Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED) administers the money.

“A couple of years ago, DCED came to the jurisdictions and said to look at census data to reach out to folks who speak a different language,” said Chris Conti, senior planner with the Mercer County Regional Planning Commission, the newspaper reported. Census data from 2010 showed that more than 5% of the residents in East Lackawannock, Lackawannock, Fairview, Lake and Wilmington townships speak German as their primary language, Conti told the newspaer – which is assumed to be Amish residents.

The 5% is why the state is requiring the bilingual public notice for the CDBG money this year, Conti said.
Bilingual notice reflects county’s Amish population – The Herald, Sharon, Pennsylvania (10.18.2015)

Online notices: ‘I guess you can check tomorrow’
In a column for the Idaho Press-Tribune in Nampa, Idaho, editor Scott McIntosh drew attention to what could happen should voters there approve a ballot measure which would move notices of school district elections and budget hearings to the district’s website. It’s worth repeating here:

“If the school district puts notices on its website, how will you know to go check it? When will you go check it? A legal notice could come out on a Monday, a Saturday, a Wednesday or not at all for several weeks. You never know. So under this arrangement, you’re simply going to have to get up every morning, go over to your computer, go to the school district’s website, find the place where they post legal notices and see if there are any that day. No? No legal notices today? Hmm. Maybe they just haven’t posted them yet. Better check in another hour or two. Still nothing? Well, I guess you can check tomorrow. You might have to check every day for a few weeks, though, before you see a legal notice. Then, hopefully, if there is a legal notice posted, you’ll be able to click on it and open it up, that is if the link isn’t broken.”
Why those legal notices in the paper are so important – Idaho Press-Tribune, Nampa, Idaho (11.1.2015)
Castleford School Board Wants to Put Legal Notices Online – Twin Falls (Idaho) Times-News (11.7.2015)

VPA: ‘Keep it in Print’ campaign resonates with readers
The Virginia Press Association’s “Keep It In Print” campaign to persuade Virginia lawmakers to keep the requirement to publish public notices in newspapers is resonating with readers across the state, VPA reported in its weekly online newsletter. From that report:

The VPA has received dozens of calls and emails from readers imploring the General Assembly to use newspapers as the primary vehicle to inform the public of developments involving public money.

Nancy Parr of Roanoke wrote: “I watch television news, but they are inadequate, biased, and repetitive. My local paper is much more diverse and I learn a great deal by reading it…”

Here’s what Eastville Town Council member Eleanor Gordon had to say: “I have many elderly or poor friends without Internet access who would no longer see important governmental business.

And, from Jeremy Galloway of James City County: “There are those of us that do not have computers. We are as good a citizen as any of the young people who seem to think everyone has a computer.”

See the ad here.

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October 2015

Featured Issues Regarding Public Notices

PNRC names Thompson to third full term as president
The Public Notice Resource Center (PNRC) has named Bradley L. Thompson II to his third full term as president. Thompson is chairman of Detroit Legal News Company and is a founding board member of PNRC, which was established in 2002.

He is a resident of Ann Arbor, Michigan, and is a member of the fifth generation of his family to lead the publicly-traded Michigan company. The Detroit Legal News Co. publishes 10 newspapers in Michigan. Thompson is also chairman of Printing Industries of America and a director of Michigan Press Association. He has a long history of involvement in civic organizations and currently serves as vice chair of the Clements Library at the University of Michigan.

PNRC is a non-profit organization created by the newspaper industry to collect, analyze, and disseminate information on public and private notifications to the public through local newspapers, and to educate the public on the value and use of its right to know. It is supported by newspaper organizations across the United States.

PNRC also named new officers and directors to an expanded board, which will focus on best practices for public notice in newspapers in an age of both print and digital notices. 

Officers elected were: as vice president, S. Richard Gard Jr, publisher of the Chicago Daily Law Bulletin; as treasurer, Scott Sibley, publisher of the Nevada Legal News, Las Vegas, Nevada; and, as secretary, William F. Rector, publisher of The Daily Record, Little Rock, Arkansas.

Directors elected were Michael Kramer, president of the Chicago Daily Law Bulletin; Hal Cohen, vice president and group publisher; ALM regionals, New York; and Vahn Babigian, general manager of the Metropolitan News Company, Los Angeles.

Serving ex officio are Eric Barnes, publisher of the Memphis Daily News; Greg Morris, president, IBJ Media/Court and Commercial Record, Indianapolis; Matt Walsh, Editor/CEO of Observer Media Group Inc., Sarasota, FL; and Wayne Curtis, group publisher for American Lawyer Media, Atlanta.

Appointed to represent the National Newspaper Association was Robert M. Williams Jr., publisher of the Blackshear (Georgia) Times.

ACCN elects Barnes of Memphis as president
American Court and Commercial Newspapers, Inc. (ACCN), Arlington, Virginia, has elected Eric Barnes, publisher of The Memphis Daily News, as president for 2015-16. Barnes is also publisher of the Nashville Ledger, host of “Behind the Headlines” on WKNO-TV in Memphis and author of several books and short stories.

ACCN also elected Greg Morris, president, IBJ Media/Court and Commercial Record, Indianapolis, as vice president/secretary; Matt Walsh, Editor/CEO of Observer Media Group Inc., Sarasota, Florida, as vice president/treasurer; and Wayne Curtis, group publisher for American Lawyer Media, Atlanta, as vice president/programs.

American Court and Commercial Newspapers was founded in 1930 as the trade organization for legal and commercial newspapers. It is based in the Washington, D.C., metro area. Its principal mission is to protect and promote public notice in newspapers. ACCN provides funding for the newspaper industry’s Public Notice Resource Center.

Georgia property tax error illustrates danger of online-only notices
An error in Monroe County, Georgia, property tax bills – in which the county underbilled its residents by some $3 million – illustrates the danger of relying on municipal government websites for information about the government’s doings, says Will Davis, publisher of The Monroe County Register.

In a column published on October 28, Davis tells the tale of the inaccurate tax bills, but more importantly, he also tells of how the county government seemed to evade commenting on the mistake. “Except for the press release sent to us late Friday [after the error was discovered by a taxpayer], the tax office did little to alert the county’s property owners that their just-received tax bills were wrong,” Davis wrote. “There have been no robo-calls to county residents, no postings on the county website or the tax commissioners website.”

Davis sees the lack of communication from the county government on its own websites as a portent of what’s to come if some legislators get their way and allow municipal governments to remove printed public notices from newspapers. “To think that some lawmakers want to let counties handle their own public notices on their websites rather than making them report to newspapers!” he wrote.
Damage control (column) – The Monroe County Times, Forsyth, Georgia (10.28.2015)
County: Do not pay your property tax bill – The Monroe County Times (10.28.2015) | Jump

Canadian governments ‘madly in love with digital’
Newspapers in Canada are facing many of the same challenges with public notices and the internet as are newspapers closer to home.

“The government is moving away from advertising what they do and offer, to this kind of broad brush branding that ‘Canada is great,'” said John Hinds, president and CEO of Newspapers Canada.

According a report by Newspapers Canada, internet spending has gone from less than one percent in the 2002-03 fiscal year to 27 percent in 2013-2014. The increases have been primarily at the expense of advertising in newspapers. Hinds says that this trend is indicative of a government that has “fallen madly in love with digital,” adding that, on the surface, digital makes sense because, unlike automobile companies, the government can’t quantify returns on its investments in advertising.

But, the report notes, it’s not just that the federal government’s preferred media has changed. There has also been a dramatic shift in its strategy for disseminating important information through paid public notices and this change is being imitated by some provincial governments, the Battlesfords (Saskatchewan) News-Optimist reports. “Rather than paying for ad space in newspapers, governments have sharply increased the number of press releases they issue. This is reflected in a two percent decrease in federal spending on public notices in newspapers, as total spending for 2013-14 fell to C$3.4 million (US$2.58 million),” the newspaper reported.

According to Newspapers Canada, many of these press releases are public notices masquerading as news items. Furthermore, many of these releases remain paid public notices on other media, leaving community newspapers to bear the brunt of the federal government’s attempts to reduce their ad spend.

Data collected in 2014 largely mirrors data in the US. Studies found that more than 70 percent of Canadian adults, and more than 75 percent of women, continue to read community newspapers, meaning that newspapers remain one of the most efficient means of reaching citizens – both north and south of the border.
Governments have fallen madly in love with digital – The Battlefords (Saskatchewan) News-Optimist (9.22.2015)

Wisconsin Mayor surprised to see his home on foreclosure notice
The mayor of Cottage Grove was “surprised” to see his home listed in a foreclosure notice published in the South Washington County Bulletin, the newspaper reported in a story following up the notice, which had been published on the newspaper’s website and in its print edition.

“A legal notice of mortgage foreclosure sale posted to the Bulletin website Monday and in this week’s print edition says the home at 7788 Jasmine Ave. owned by Bailey and his wife, Cindy, is in default and is set for a sheriff’s sale Nov. 5,” wrote Scott Wente, the newspaper’s editor.

The Public Notice Resource Center encourages reporters around the country to report on the news contained within the many public notices carried by their newspapers by sponsoring, in partnership with American Court and Commercial Newspapers and state newspaper associations, the annual Public Notice Journalism Contest.

The village mayor told the newspaper that he wasn’t losing his house, and that the notice was the result of a paperwork error between his former mortgage holder and the company which bought his mortgage. “It’s very convoluted,” he told the newspaper.
Cottage Grove mayor: ‘Our house is not going to be foreclosed on’ – South Washington County (Wisconsin) Bulletin (9.23.2015)

‘Fixing’ after the fact is tough, says publisher
Longtime publisher Robert M. Williams, Jr., has taken a Georgia legislator to task for his role in a decision to end the town of Waycross’s efforts to annex 400 acres of land in which it has invested in water and sewer infrastructure.

Rep. Chad Nimmer, writes Williams, at the request of a few Pierce County leaders — elected and un-elected — pushed legislation through the General Assembly to end Waycross’s city limits claim.

“Ultimately, it was the very authority Nimmer looked to for guidance that let him and every resident of our two communities down: the General Assembly’s office of legislative counsel. They’re the ones who advised Nimmer a so-called ‘public notice’ of his legislation was sufficient to alert affected parties. It wasn’t. The so-called ‘notice’ was so vague no one could know what was about to happen and it failed miserably in serving its purpose, to inform affected citizens. The resulting impact has wasted much time and many taxpayer dollars. It’s not the first time legislation has been passed without sufficient knowledge given those affected. It won’t be the last,” Williams wrote in a recent column.

“Georgia’s General Assembly has long been averse to open government and legislators have deliberately undermined public notice more and more over the years. The result is seldom good. Rep. Nimmer now sees clearly how adequate public notice might have helped avoid much of this turmoil and possibly saved thousands in legal fees.”
Williams: ‘Fixing’ after the fact is tough – The Blackshear (Georgia) Times (9.1.2015)

City attorney says telephone poll of council members doesn’t violate law
Joplin, Missouri, city attorney Peter Edwards maintains that there was no violation of the state’s open meetings/records law when he conducted a telephone poll of city council members without public notice, but The Joplin Globe says an attorney for the Missouri Press Association disagrees.

Edwards posted a notice that the council had voted to accept a settlement agreement involving an ethics violation charge. “The city attorney said he contacted council members by telephone and took the vote because there was not time to hold an open meeting on the decision,” the newspaper reported. “He also said that a meeting, if one had been held, would have been conducted in a session closed to the public because it involved communication between the council and the city attorney regarding a settlement matter.”

The newspaper asked Edwards if minutes were kept of the telephone discussions, the city attorney said he memorialized that he conveyed the settlement offers and the votes. The Globe filed an open records request the following day asking for the minutes of the telephone conversations with council members and any emails between council members or between Edwards and the council members regarding the settlement.

Missouri Press Association attorney Jean Maneke told the newspaper that the telephone poll likely violated state law. “The only time you can have all of them on the telephone is if it is not an elected body,” such as an appointed committee, she said. But even then, there would still have to be public notice, she said, and an accommodation for the public to attend.

Edwards, the newspaper says, maintains that he can speak to the council, his client, by telephone at any time, particularly when an emergency arises at a time when City Hall is not open.
City attorney says telephone poll of council was not a violation – The Joplin (Missouri) Globe (9.16.2015)

Des Moines Register: Notice in newspaper alone was not enough
Polk County, Iowa, residents are angry about the public notice they received regarding a soybean processing plant on the east side of Des Moines, an editorial in The Des Moines Register says. “Neighbors of the plant asked the Iowa Department of Natural Resources to extend a 30-day period for public comment on [the] request for construction permits,” the editorial says.

The Register called the permit-approval process “convoluted” and said that notice the public – which “was limited to a legal notice published in this newspaper” – was not adequate.

The notice provided a 30-day period for comment; the public hearing on the matter took place on day 28, which gave residents who learned of the construction plans through media coverage of the hearing had only one or two days to make their feelings know. To make matters worse, the DNR told residents at the hearing that the purpose of the meeting was to collect comments, not to answer questions.

“The process for public notice and public hearings is dictated by state and federal regulations. But since that process clearly results in citizens being unable to provide informed comments, the DNR should have immediately agreed to extend its deadline for public input,” the editorial said.
Editorial: DNR didn’t listen to citizens over soy plant – The Des Moines Register (10.2.2015)
Soy processing expansion raises concerns for east side residents – The Des Moines Register (9.24.2015)

State Legislation
See below for a quick recap of some of the most important bills that have seen legislative action so far this year. For a comprehensive list of public notice legislation, visit the PNRC at https://www.pnrc.net/subscribers/state-updates/

Government Notices
New Jersey: A 2399 – substitute introduced (2014 bill) – Permits local governments and schools to move notices to the Web and publish only a summary of the notice.
Wisconsin: SB 346 – referred to Committee – Eliminate newspaper notice of hearings by Wisconsin Supreme Court when considering a new rule or changing an existing rule regulating pleading, practice or procedure.

Publish & Post
Massachusetts: HB 1566 – referred to Committee (previously passed House)

UELMA
Massachusetts: HB 43 – referred to Committee

Articles & Editorials

PNRC is now accepting entries for the 2015 Public Notice Journalism Award
State press associations are urged to begin reviewing their Better Newspaper Contest entries to nominate stories for the 2015 Public Notice Journalism award. Stories from 2014 or 2015 are eligible. Editorials are not considered. Entries should be news or feature stories that highlight the importance of public notice. Judges give positive weight to the use or linking of the public notice involved when there was one.

Entries may be submitted by email any time before February 1.

The award will be presented in Washington, DC, on March 16, 2016.

North Carolina county cancels meeting, citing need for more public notice
County commissioners in Jackson County, North Carolina, canceled a Sept. 22 public hearing on proposed changes to the county’s steep-slope ordinance, saying they needed to do a better job publicizing the event, the Sylva (N.C.) Herald reported.

The development follows what appeared to be a self-directed decision by permitting and code enforcement director Tony Elders to query a public-notice expert about county advertising requirements.

University of North Carolina School of Government lawyer David Owens told Elders that “it may well be prudent” for the county to adhere to more rigorous public-notice rules for zoning ordinances and not just publish two public notices, the standard for routine hearings, as done in this case.

“I think the potential risk would be if someone later challenged the validity of the new amendments since we did not follow the notice requirements associated with a zoning ordinance,” county manager Chuck Wooten said.
Public hearing is delayed by county – Sylva (N.C.) Herald (9.23.2015)

Chicago-area foreclosure firms shrinking
Two Chicago-area law firms are cutting staff members at a rapid pace, says Crain’s Chicago Business. Chicago-based Pierce & Associates has shed some 200 employees since 2013, while Burr Ridge-based Codilis & Associates has dropped about 100 employees, including seven lawyers.

The firms were particularly busy around 2010 at the peak of the foreclosure crisis. Illinois had a reported 151,000 foreclosures that year, compared to just 73,000 in 2014.

The reduction in staff at the firms suggests that the bulk of foreclosure cases have worked their way through the legal system, Steven Bashaw, a real estate attorney who defends homeowners in foreclosure, told the newspaper.
Headcount shrinks at Chicago-area foreclosure law firms – Crain’s Chicago Business  (10.15.2015)

Colorado town: Online notices are ‘free’
A Colorado newspaper has urged its readers to vote against a measure which would allow the town of Castle Rock’s website to become the only place where the town will publish public notices. The town has told residents that online publication of public notices is “free.”

The Douglas County News-Press told its readers that public notices, when published in a newspaper, are independent, archivable, accessible and verifiable. “Publishing a legal notice in the News-Press is independent from the town and is archived, verified and easily accessible. Plus, the News-Press provides a signed affidavit from the publisher, eliminating any concerns as to whether or not proper access and notice has been given before approving an ordinance. The News-Press also uploads all town legal notices to the newspaper website and to the important, easily-searched statewide legal notice website. All of this would be lost if voters approve 2C,” the editorial said.

The newspaper said that the town has asserted 2C would be a cost-cutting measure. “The Blue Book the town is sending to residents says publishing online at the city would be free. But programmers would need to be hired. Staff members would need to upload the notice to the website, check it, and prove the notice was available on the website for an adequate advanced notice. And, finally, the town would need to be prepared to verify this if questioned. Currently, the News-Press does all of this – and achieves the four key elements of a public notice – for $4,400 per year.”
Editorial: Vote no on change to legal notices in Castle Rock – Douglas County (Colorado)  News-Press (10.14.2015)

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August/September 2015

Featured Issues Regarding Public Notices

Few Visit Indiana’s New Online Budget Website
Indiana has started to feel the effects of a bill passed in the state’s 2014 legislative session. The law eliminated the publication requirement that placed state and local budget information in local newspapers in favor of placing them on the state Department of Local Government Finance. The Goshen News reports that only 4,633 unique visitors clicked onto the portion of the DLGF website where local government budgets are posted during the last six months of 2014.

“Paid published notice of the date and time the various [local governments] will allow you to speak out on their budgets is no longer required of these units,” the paper wrote in an editorial. “They now are only required to post the notice at their office location and inform media outlets of meeting times so that editors can determine whether they have a reporter available to cover the public meeting.”
Our View: Indiana legislature is failing us with public notices – Goshen News (9.2.2015)
Indiana state budget notices website

US Copyright Office’s Online Registration Offline for a Week
The United State Copyright Office’s online registration was down for more than a week – from August 28 to September 6 – following a computer failure at the Library of Congress, which operates the Copyright Office in addition to overseeing the national library and providing Congress with research advice.

The Washington Post reported that scheduled maintenance on a data center in the library’s James Madison Building resulted in building-wide power outages. Library officials were unable to restore technology systems, and the office is estimated to have lost at least $650,000 in registration fees during the extended outage.

In March, the Government Accountability Office report was critical of the library’s IT system. “The library does not have a comprehensive process for tracking its IT spending and does not have an accurate inventory of its IT assets,” the report said. “Consequently, the library does not know how much it spends annually on IT or what kinds of equipment it is currently using.”

“This is pretty significant, and we have to do everything to make sure this never happens again,” U.S. Register of Copyrights Maria Pallante told the Post. “It’s ridiculous.”

On Sunday morning, Washington time, the Copyright Office posted on its website that its systems had been restored and that it was once again able to accept registration applications electronically.

During the outage, potential copyright applicants were told that they would have to wait until the system was restored – or use the office’s paper-filing system, with a processing time of up to 13 months, or twice as long as e-filing.
Copyright Office’s online registration hasn’t worked for almost a week – Washington Post (9.3.2015)
America’s ‘national library’ is lacking in leadership – Washington Post (3.31.2015)
The March 2015 GAO report

Michigan Press Scores Points in Debate Over ‘Online-only’ Bill
The Michigan Press Association defended itself well in a story over Michigan House Bill 4183, which would require that public notices be published solely online. The bill was postponed on June 18 and has not been taken up since.

Crain’s Detroit Business examined the bill – and how it would affect newspapers and other media sources in the state – in a well-balanced July 5 story. Among other things, the story noted that the bill’s opponents cite “a large swath of the state without reliable Internet or cellphone service” and that “some townships and small cities, especially in rural areas, have rudimentary websites and older populations that still rely on newspapers for information.”

More importantly, perhaps, the newspaper quoted Lisa McGraw, public affairs manager for the Michigan Press Association, as saying that newspapers believe they have an advantage over TV and radio because they have a permanent record built into their business model.

McGraw told the newspaper that MPA doesn’t oppose cities and townships from hosting their own public notices, but that they shouldn’t be the only source.

“People don’t go to local government websites for news. We feel that we’re a better source for this kind of information,” McGraw said. “I just don’t think the broadcasters can do what we do because they can’t provide a print source.”

McGraw also told Crain’s Detroit Business that the revenue newspapers gain from government notices is not significant, but that it might fund a position, particularly at a smaller daily or weekly publication.
Newspapers take notice of legislative threat to revenue – Crain’s Detroit Business (7.5.2015)

Newspaper Consultant Urges: ‘Pay More Attention to Public Notices’
Newspaper design consultant Ed Henninger says that newspapers must pay more attention to the public notices they carry in their pages. Henninger suggests a number of ways to make your public notices more readable for your audience, including adding headlines and art, increasing the type size and designing the page. “That’s not gonna be so easy because you can’t trim the text, as you can with most stories. But if you’re serious about keeping your legal advertising, you can find a way to do it,” Henninger writes.

He also suggests doing something we say frequently: “READ THEM! Often, your news staff will catch wind of a major story just by reading the notices in your own newspaper. Make sure you check the content of legals consistently.”

The Public Notice Resource Center encourages reporters around the country to report on the news contained within the many public notices carried by their newspapers by sponsoring, in partnership with American Court and Commercial Newspapers and state newspaper associations, the annual Public Notice Journalism Contest. The 2014 contest was won by Jim Lockwood, staff writer for The Times-Tribune, Scranton, Pennsylvania, who won for his coverage of a proposed new commuter tax. Lockwood’s story referred readers to the dates of the notices so they could read the notices themselves.
Design for Readers (8.2015)

Montana District Court Notes ‘Seniors Do Not Use the Internet’
Montana District Court Judge Jeffrey Langton ruled against Ravalli County Commissioners in a lawsuit brought by the Bitterroot Star over the commissioners’ failure to provide public notice before agreeing to settle a lawsuit stemming from zoning decisions. The commissioners settled the suit with the developer of a subdivision for $675,000.

Langton was critical of the commissioners, noting that the county received a copy of the signed settlement agreement on Tuesday, May 6, and that discussion of the settlement was placed on the agenda for Monday, May 12, but that the agenda was not posted on the county website until 4:30 pm Friday, and that it was not sent to the media until after business hours on Friday. The meeting was scheduled for 8:30 Monday morning.

In regards to the late Friday posting on the web site, Langton wrote: “It is common knowledge that a large number of Montana’s senior citizens live on fixed incomes and do not use the Internet, and that the potential for property tax increases due to the Commission’s approval of the settlement would hold high interest to these citizens.”
Star wins public notice lawsuit against county commissioners – Bitterroot Star, Stevensville, Montana (7.28.2015)

Minnesota Newspaper Association Produces Public Notice House Ads
The Minnesota Newspaper Association has developed a series of print and online house ads for member newspapers to use to promote the association’s public notice website. The ads come in a variety of sizes and include themes about increased property taxes, public works projects and open government.
The Minnesota Newspaper Association’s public notice website
The MNA’s public notice house ads

 

State Legislation

See below for a quick recap of some of the most important bills that have seen legislative action so far this year. For a comprehensive list of public notice legislation, visit the PNRC at:  https://www.pnrc.net/subscribers/state-updates/

Government Notices
New Jersey: A 2399 – substitute introduced (2014 bill) – Permits local governments and schools to move notices to the Web and publish only a summary of the notice.

Publish & Post
Massachusetts: HB 1566 – referred to Committee (previously passed House)

UELMA
Massachusetts: HB 43 – referred to Committee

Articles & Editorials

FCC Commissioner Says Internet ‘Not a Necessity’
While the Federal Communications Commission has moved recently on consumer-friendly measures to preserve net neutrality and extend phone subsidies for low-income Americans, one of the FCC’s five commissioners has said that the internet isn’t something Americans need fair and equal access to.

“It is important to note that internet access is not a necessity in the day-to-day lives of Americans and doesn’t even come close to the threshold to be considered a basic human right,” said Republican commissioner Michael O’Rielly, speaking in late June to the Internet Innovation Alliance. “People do a disservice by overstating its relevancy or stature in people’s lives. People can and do live without internet access, and many lead very successful lives.”

Ignoring for a moment that O’Rielly apparently believes that only “many” – but not “most” – people without internet access lead successful lives, it is worth noting that even in the agency charged with regulating the internet, there are those who don’t particularly believe in it. Should this attitude become a prevailing one at the FCC, and should state governments continue to try to pass laws removing public notices from newspapers, the combination could make it virtually impossible for some Americans to know what their state and local governments are doing.
FCC Commissioner Says Internet Access is “Not a Necessity” – Slate.com (6.29.2015)

Tulsa Legals Proofreader Retires After 30 Years
A recent feature highlighting the retirement of a Tulsa Business & Legal News has given us a closer look into to the behind-the-scenes work that goes in to publishing public notices.

Sandy Moore, who worked at the newspaper for 30 years, says that the countless phone calls she has made to lawyers’ offices over the years have been, mostly, appreciated. “I had just started working for [the newspaper] when I caught an error in a legal filed by an Oklahoma City attorney,” she said. “[My supervisor] told me to call their office – collect. The secretary answering the call had a fit and couldn’t imagine anyone from a newspaper placing a collect call to their office. The attorney asked who the call was from and when he found out, he quickly said, ‘My God, put that call through.’”

Moore says that the work has been demanding, and that one day, the newspaper published more than 100 notices. “I couldn’t guess the number of legals that I have read during the past 30 years,” she said.
Sandy Moore retiring after three decades at TB&LN – Tulsa Business & Legal News (6.23.2015)

Lack of Actual Notice Leads School Board to Make Things Up
In a clumsy attempt to confess to and make amends for previous violations of the state Open Meetings Act, the Las Cruces, New Mexico, Public Schools Board of Education appears to have violated the state Open Records Act, the Las Cruces Sun-News says in an editorial.

During a retreat, the board decided to hire an investigator to look into complaints about the district’s alternative middle school, and negotiated a contract, but none of it happened in a public meeting, the newspaper says. Two weeks later, the board defunded the middle school, again without providing notice to the public. To make up for the mistakes, the board then had attorneys draw up public notices that would have been published in local newspapers, and amended the record to reflect a 3-2 vote in favor of hiring an investigator, even though the vote never actually occurred.
Editorial: School Board not yet square with sunshine law – Las Cruces Sun-News (6.13.2015)

Disbarred Florida Foreclosure Lawyer Sells Land for $10 Million
The former “foreclosure king” of Florida, disbarred lawyer David J. Stern, has sold oceanfront land he owned for $10 million, the South Florida Business Journal reports. Stern was disbarred by the Florida Supreme Court after the court found he ran a law firm that robo-signed court documents as it filed thousands for foreclosures across the state, allegedly taking away the due process rights of many homeowners.
Disbarred ‘foreclosure king’ Stern sells oceanfront land for $10M – South Florida Business Journal (7.7.2015)
Stern trust sells Hillsboro Mile lot for $10 million – SunSentinel (7.7.2015)
Broward foreclosure lawyer David Stern disbarred – South Florida Business Journal (1.10.2014)

San Diego Daily Transcript Receives Reprieve, Acquired by L.A. Paper
Several weeks after the San Diego Daily Transcript announced its closure, it was granted a reprieve through the purchase of its name and masthead by the Los Angeles-based Daily Journal Corp, the company has announced. The Transcript has been published 130 years as the city’s newspaper for industry news and public notices. The newspaper, which is the city’s official newspaper of record, announced its closure in July and was scheduled to print its last edition on September 1, and to cease operations on September 21.

According to a statement by publisher Robert L. Loomis, overhead costs, health care costs and an uncertain future of the news industry contributed to the paper’s closing. “The changing publishing paradigm has made the maintenance of a news organization of the size and scope represented by the Daily Transcript/San Diego Source in a market of San Diego’s size problematic,” he wrote in July.

The Daily Journal Corp., which operates small business and legal newspapers in California and Arizona, has hired four Transcript reporters and is expected to publish its first version of the new Transcript on Wednesday, Loomis told the San Diego Union-Tribune in late August. Meanwhile, the Transcript’s website, sddt.com, will continue indefinitely as the company searches for someone to buy the domain name and continue to operate the online site.
Daily Transcript gets new life – San Diego Union-Tribune (8.27.2015)
Daily Transcript to close after 130 years – San Diego Union-Tribune (7.22.2015)

Marin County Officials Reject Grand Jury Decision
Marin County, California, officials have rejected a grand jury report which concluded that county officials repeatedly broke the law by approving pension benefits without providing public notice. In late June, county officials said the pension benefits cannot be withdrawn because the county was in “substantial compliance” with the law, but that the county would follow the law in the future. “We definitely will do it going forward,” County Administrator Matthew Hymel told the Marin Independent Journal. “We will follow every statutory required procedure.”

County officials relied on a report by the Meyers Nave law firm which largely dismissed the grand jury’s disclosure of wrong doing.

Members of the public, including several outspoken critics of the increased benefits, criticized the county’s response at a Board of Supervisors meeting. “The public was denied the right to analyze and oppose … pension increases,” despite government code requiring it, the newspaper reported one man as saying. Another observed that county officials seem to follow a double standard by requiring that others follow the law, while giving themselves leeway to be in “substantial compliance” with it. “You need to follow the letter of the law, whatever that is,” he said.
Marin OKs report dismissing grand jury pension criticism – Marin Independent Journal (6.30.2015)