Two years ago, I asserted that public notices should be in the newspaper. I did not take that position to guaranty newspapers a source of revenue, but because the reader will know where the notice will be published and will be able to find the notices section and because publication is a verifiable historical fact.
Certainly on-line publication has some advantages, such as cost and the ability to search notices.
Recently I saw an article in the New Jersey Globe which reported that the Warren County commissioners were concerned about spending taxpayer money to publish notices in newspapers that are read by only one percent of the population and suggested that some form of online publication would reach more people. (Our county government is refreshingly frugal.) The article also reported that county officials have read trouble placing notices “because newspaper employees don’t always respond to calls.”
Assuming (perhaps contrary to fact) that the purpose of the requirement that certain notices be published in to inform the public and not to subsidize newspapers, here is a non-exclusive list (in on particular order) of things to consider:
- Will the notice be in a predictable place?
- Will the notices on a website be easily found?
- How long will the notice be available? (What will the legal result be if a notice becomes unavailable prematurely?)
- Will the notices be in the same place, at least for all entities associated with the county or municipality, or will an interested member of the public have to search many websites?
- What kind of customer service will the website have for those seeking to place notices?
- What will the response time be (how quickly will an on-line notice be published after it is provided to the operator of the website)?
Jay Bohn
August 7, 2023