ASSEMBLY, No. 296
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative Counsel
PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 1996 SESSION
By Assemblyman ROONEY
An Act concerning qualifications of newspapers for legal publications and amending R.S.35:1-2.2.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. R.S.35:1-2.2 is amended to read as follows:
35:1-2.2 Whenever, by law, it is required that there be published by printing and publishing in a newspaper or newspapers, ordinances, resolutions or notices or advertisements of any sort, kind or character by any county, city or other municipality or municipal corporation, or by any municipal board or official board, or body, or office, or officials, or by any person or corporation, such newspaper or newspapers must, in addition to any other qualification now required by law, meet the following qualifications, namely: said newspaper or newspapers shall be entirely printed in the English language, shall be printed and published within the State of New Jersey, shall be a newspaper of general [paid] circulation possessing an average news content of not less than 35%, and shall have been published continuously in the municipality where its publication office is situate for not less than 2 years [and shall have been entered for 2 years as second-class mail matter under the postal laws and regulations of the United States]. In case a newspaper cannot meet these qualifications itself but has acquired another newspaper which meets these qualifications, the acquiring newspaper shall be deemed to meet these qualifications if it is published in the same municipality [and entered in the same post office] as was the acquired newspaper. Continuous publication within the meaning of this section shall not be deemed interrupted by any involuntary suspension of publication for a period not exceeding 6 months resulting from loss, destruction, mechanical or electrical failure of typesetting equipment or printing presses or the unavailability, due to conditions beyond the control or the publisher, of paper or other materials and supplies necessary for operation, or resulting from a labor dispute with a recognized labor union, and any newspaper so affected shall not be disqualified hereunder in the event that publication is resumed within said period of 6 months.
For the purposes of this section and for the purpose of qualifying for legal advertisements generally, any newspaper which for not less than 2 years shall have been continuously printed in a building located within two municipalities and which for not less than 2 years shall have continuously maintained its editorial and business offices in said building shall be deemed to have been published continuously in each of said municipalities during that period and its publication office shall be deemed to have been situate in each municipality during that period.
In the event any newspaper which shall have been qualified to publish legal advertisements shall move its publication office to any municipality in the same county or in an adjacent county in this State and which shall otherwise continue to meet the qualifications of this section, it shall be qualified to publish legal advertisements which it was qualified to publish prior to moving said publication office for a period of 2 years after the date of the moving of its publication office or such period as said newspaper shall have the highest [paid] circulation of any newspaper within the county or municipality which shall use said newspaper for legal advertisements.
(cf: P.L.1979, c.84, s.1)
2. This act shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
This bill eliminates the requirement that newspapers qualified for publication of ordinances, resolutions or notices or advertisements of any sort by any county, municipality or other local government entity or by any person or corporation be of paid circulation and possess a second-class mail permit. Currently, in addition to other qualifications required by law, newspapers qualified for legal advertisements must be of general paid circulation, have an average news content of not less than 35%, have been published in a locale continuously for two years, and be entered for two years as second-class mail matter.
Allows publication of legal advertisements in "free" newspapers.