Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Media Accessibility topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Staff recommends Nisqually Valley News as Lacey’s official legal newspaper; council signals support
Summary
City staff briefed the council on statutory requirements for an official newspaper and recommended designating the Nisqually Valley News because it is broadly available in Lacey, less costly for residents and does not place legal notices behind a digital paywall; council members expressed support to move the item to the next consent agenda.
City staff presented a discussion‑only briefing on July 14 explaining the statutory role of an "official newspaper" (staff cited RCW 65.16) and recommended the Nisqually Valley News as the city's legal newspaper because it meets statutory qualifications and is widely available in Lacey.
The staff presentation summarized statutory requirements for a legal newspaper (weekly publication in English, at least six months of regular publication, general news content and a practice of publishing legal notices) and said the city’s current designated newspaper is The Olympian. Staff reported a recent cost comparison showing a sample public‑hearing legal notice cost the city roughly $420 in the current legal newspaper versus a Nisqually Valley News quote of $213.85 for the same notice, representing substantial savings for public notices.
Staff noted administrative considerations (Nisqually Valley News publishes weekly rather than daily) but said departments and user groups do not anticipate disruptions if publishing schedules are accounted for. Staff also reported that Nisqually Valley News does not place legal notices behind a digital paywall, increasing accessibility.
If the council supports the recommendation, staff outlined two near‑term steps: draft an ordinance to remove the existing newspaper designation from the Lacey Municipal Code and prepare a resolution to name Nisqually Valley News as the city’s official newspaper. Council members responded positively in the work session and staff said the item could be placed on the next consent agenda for formal consideration.
