HB4505 103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY

LRB103 36140 LNS 66231 b

103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2023 and 2024
HB4505

Introduced 1/31/2024, by Rep. Travis Weaver

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:

715 ILCS 5/3.1	from Ch. 100, par. 3.1
715 ILCS 5/5	from Ch. 100, par. 5
715 ILCS 10/1	from Ch. 100, par. 10
715 ILCS 10/2	from Ch. 100, par. 10.1

Amends the Notice By Publication Act and the Newspaper Legal Notice Act. Provides, in both of the Acts, that the term "newspaper" also includes any digital publication that (1) is posted on a public-facing website, web application, or digital application, including, but not limited to, a social network, ad network, or search engine, that has 3,000 or more unique monthly United States visitors or users with at least 50% of those visitors from the geographic area for which the notice is required to be published during the immediately preceding 12 months; (2) regularly gathers, prepares, collects, photographs, records, writes, edits, reports, investigates, or publishes news or information that concerns local, national, or international events or other matter of public interest for dissemination to the public; and (3) is paid for by subscribers to the digital publication.

A BILL FOR

AN ACT concerning civil law.

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly:

Section 5. The Notice By Publication Act is amended by changing Sections 3.1 and 5 as follows:

(715 ILCS 5/3.1) (from Ch. 100, par. 3.1)

Sec. 3.1. When any notice is required by law, or order of court, to be published in any newspaper, publication of such notice shall, except in the case of a digital publication, include the printing of such notice in the total circulation of each edition on the date of publication of the newspaper in which the notice is published; and the newspaper publishing the notice shall, at no additional cost to government, cause the notice to be placed on the statewide website established and maintained as a joint venture of the majority of Illinois newspapers as a repository for such notices. All notices required for publication by this Act shall remain legal and valid for all purposes when any error that occurs pursuant to the requirements of this Section for placement of the notice on the statewide website is the fault of the printer.

(Source: P.A. 100-72, eff. 1-1-18.)

(715 ILCS 5/5) (from Ch. 100, par. 5)

Sec. 5. When any notice is required by law or contract to be published in a newspaper (unless otherwise expressly provided in the contract), it shall be intended to be in a secular newspaper of general circulation, published in the city, town or county, or some newspaper specially authorized by law to publish legal notices, in the city, town, or county. If there is no newspaper published in the county in which the city or town is located, notice shall be given in a secular newspaper, as defined in this Act, that is published in an adjoining county having general circulation within the city or town.

Unless otherwise expressly provided in the contract, the term "newspaper" means a newspaper

(1) (a) which consists of not less than 4 pages of printed matter and contains at least 100 square inches of printed matter per page; and

(2) (b) which is printed through the use of one of the conventional and generally recognized printing processes such as letterpress, lithography or gravure; and

(3) (c) which annually averages at least 25% news content per issue; or which annually averages at least 1,000 column inches of news content per issue, the term "news content" meaning for the purposes of this Act any printed matter other than advertising; and

(4) (d) which publishes miscellaneous reading matter, legal or other announcements and notices, and news and information concerning current happenings and passing events of a political, social, religious, commercial, financial or legal nature, and advertisements or bulletins; and

(5) (e) which has been continuously published at regular intervals of at least once each week with a minimum of 50 issues per year, for at least one year prior to the first publication of the notice; or which is a successor to a newspaper as herein defined with no interruption of publication of more than 30 days; or which is a merged or consolidated newspaper formed by the merger or consolidation of two or more newspapers, one of which has been continuously published at regular intervals of at least once each week with a minimum of 50 issues per year, for at least one year prior to the first publication of the notice. A newspaper shall be considered as continuously or regularly published although its publication has been suspended, where such suspension was caused by fire or an Act of God or by a labor dispute or by its owner, publisher, managing editor or other essential employee entering the active military service of the United States, if the newspaper was continuously or regularly published for at least one year prior to its suspension and if its publication is resumed at any time not later than 12 months after such fire or Act of God, or if its publication is resumed at any time within 12 months after the termination of the labor dispute, or if its publication is resumed at any time within 12 months after the termination of the war in connection with which such persons entered such military service; and

(6) (f) which has the capability of placing notices required pursuant to this Act on a daily or weekly basis on the statewide website as required by Section 2.1.

"Newspaper" also includes any digital publication that:

(1) is posted on a public-facing website, web application, or digital application, including, but not limited to, a social network, ad network, or search engine, that has 3,000 or more unique monthly United States visitors or users with at least 50% of those visitors from the geographic area for which the notice is required to be published during the immediately preceding 12 months;

(2) regularly gathers, prepares, collects, photographs, records, writes, edits, reports, investigates, or publishes news or information that concerns local, national, or international events or other matter of public interest for dissemination to the public; and

(3) is paid for by subscribers to the digital publication.

(Source: P.A. 96-59, eff. 7-23-09; 96-1144, eff. 12-31-12.)

Section 10. The Newspaper Legal Notice Act is amended by adding Sections 1 and 2 as follows:

(715 ILCS 10/1) (from Ch. 100, par. 10)

Sec. 1. Whenever it is required by law that any legal notice or publication shall be published in a newspaper in this State, it shall be held to mean a newspaper

(1) (a) which consists of not less than 4 pages of printed matter and contains at least 100 square inches of printed matter per page; and

(2) (b) which is printed through the use of one of the conventional and generally recognized printing processes such as letterpress, lithography or gravure; and

(3) (c) which annually averages at least 25% news content per issue; or which annually averages at least 1,000 column inches of news content per issue, the term "news content" meaning for the purposes of this Act any printed matter other than advertising; and

(4) (d) which publishes miscellaneous reading matter, legal or other announcements and notices, and news and information concerning current happenings and passing events of a political, social, religious, commercial, financial or legal nature, and advertisements or bulletins; and

(5) (e) which has been continuously published at regular intervals of at least once each week with a minimum of 50 issues per year, for at least one year prior to the first publication of the notice; or which is a successor to a newspaper as herein defined with no interruption of publication of more than 30 days; or which is a merged or consolidated newspaper formed by the merger or consolidation of two or more newspapers, one of which has been continuously published at regular intervals of at least once each week with a minimum of 50 issues per year for at least one year prior to the first publication of the notice. A newspaper shall be considered as continuously or regularly published although its publication has been suspended, where such suspension was caused by fire or an Act of God or by a labor dispute or by its owner, publisher, managing editor or other essential employee entering the active military service of the United States, if the newspaper was continuously or regularly published for at least one year prior to its suspension and if its publication is resumed at any time not later than 12 months after such fire or Act of God, or if its publication is resumed at any time within 12 months after the termination of the labor dispute, or if its publication is resumed at any time within 12 months after the termination of the war in connection with which such persons entered such military service; and

(6) (f) which has the capability of placing, at no additional cost to government, notices required pursuant to this Act on a daily or weekly basis on the statewide website established and maintained as a joint venture by the majority of Illinois newspapers as a repository for such notices.

"Newspaper" also includes any digital publication that:

(1) is posted on a public-facing website, web application, or digital application, including, but not limited to, a social network, ad network, or search engine, that has 3,000 or more unique monthly United States visitors or users with at least 50% of those visitors from the geographic area for which the notice is required to be published during the immediately preceding 12 months;

(2) regularly gathers, prepares, collects, photographs, records, writes, edits, reports, investigates, or publishes news or information that concerns local, national, or international events or other matter of public interest for dissemination to the public; and

(3) is paid for by subscribers to the digital publication.

(Source: P.A. 96-59, eff. 7-23-09; 96-1144, eff. 12-31-12.)

(715 ILCS 10/2) (from Ch. 100, par. 10.1)

Sec. 2. When any legal notice is required by law to be published in any newspaper, such notice shall, except in the case of a digital publication, include the printing of such notice in the total circulation of each edition on the date of publication of the newspaper in which the notice is published; and the newspaper publishing the notice shall, at no additional cost to government, cause the notice to be placed on the statewide website established and maintained as a joint venture of the majority of Illinois newspapers as a repository for such notices. All notices required for publication by this Act shall remain legal and valid for all purposes when any error that occurs pursuant to the requirements of this Section in the requirement for placement of the notice on the statewide website is the fault of the printer.

(Source: P.A. 100-72, eff. 1-1-18.)