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House approves bill to move legal notices online, phases out print in larger counties
Summary
The House approved third-substitute Senate Bill 208 to create a public legal-notice website coordinated with newspapers, with web-only posting in first- and second-class counties after a two-year dual-posting period; vote was 38–32 with five absences.
On March 11 the Utah House passed the third substitute of Senate Bill 208, a measure to publish many legal notices on a publicly accessible website maintained in coordination with Utah newspapers. The third substitute passed this House by a vote of 38 yes, 32 no, with five absences; it will be returned to the Senate for further consideration.
Sponsor remarks described the reform as an effort to modernize the publication of legal notices — items ranging from articles of incorporation and license-application notices to public-hearing announcements and notices of noxious-weed hearings — by posting them online to increase access, allow mapping and images, and enable automatic notification to interested parties. The sponsor said the site would be operational no later than Jan. 1, 2010, that there would be a two-year period during which notices are posted in both print and online, and that counties of the first and second class would move to web-only posting after the dual-posting window ends in 2012.
The bill was developed in consultation with newspaper publishers and press associations. The sponsor told the House he had worked with the Deseret News and regional papers and had letters of support from local editors incorporated in the third substitute.
Key implementation details on the floor included a posting cap so that the maximum charge to post a notice would not exceed $10, and that for most users posting is free. Representatives raised concerns about elderly residents and internet access; sponsors said the bill includes protections for small communities and options to continue print posting where circulation or access requires it. The House adopted technical amendments on the floor to correct line-number errors and the bill's long title before final passage.
After passage on a recorded vote, the bill will return to the Senate. Sponsors said they intend to work with newspapers and the press association on implementation and on an outreach approach to ensure residents retain access to notices.
