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.


LRB103 36140 LNS 66231 b

 

 

A BILL FOR

 

HB4505LRB103 36140 LNS 66231 b

1    AN ACT concerning civil law.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 5. The Notice By Publication Act is amended by
5changing Sections 3.1 and 5 as follows:
 
6    (715 ILCS 5/3.1)  (from Ch. 100, par. 3.1)
7    Sec. 3.1. When any notice is required by law, or order of
8court, to be published in any newspaper, publication of such
9notice shall, except in the case of a digital publication,
10include the printing of such notice in the total circulation
11of each edition on the date of publication of the newspaper in
12which the notice is published; and the newspaper publishing
13the notice shall, at no additional cost to government, cause
14the notice to be placed on the statewide website established
15and maintained as a joint venture of the majority of Illinois
16newspapers as a repository for such notices. All notices
17required for publication by this Act shall remain legal and
18valid for all purposes when any error that occurs pursuant to
19the requirements of this Section for placement of the notice
20on the statewide website is the fault of the printer.
21(Source: P.A. 100-72, eff. 1-1-18.)
 
22    (715 ILCS 5/5)  (from Ch. 100, par. 5)

 

 

HB4505- 2 -LRB103 36140 LNS 66231 b

1    Sec. 5. When any notice is required by law or contract to
2be published in a newspaper (unless otherwise expressly
3provided in the contract), it shall be intended to be in a
4secular newspaper of general circulation, published in the
5city, town or county, or some newspaper specially authorized
6by law to publish legal notices, in the city, town, or county.
7If there is no newspaper published in the county in which the
8city or town is located, notice shall be given in a secular
9newspaper, as defined in this Act, that is published in an
10adjoining county having general circulation within the city or
11town.
12    Unless otherwise expressly provided in the contract, the
13term "newspaper" means a newspaper
14        (1) (a) which consists of not less than 4 pages of
15    printed matter and contains at least 100 square inches of
16    printed matter per page; and
17        (2) (b) which is printed through the use of one of the
18    conventional and generally recognized printing processes
19    such as letterpress, lithography or gravure; and
20        (3) (c) which annually averages at least 25% news
21    content per issue; or which annually averages at least
22    1,000 column inches of news content per issue, the term
23    "news content" meaning for the purposes of this Act any
24    printed matter other than advertising; and
25        (4) (d) which publishes miscellaneous reading matter,
26    legal or other announcements and notices, and news and

 

 

HB4505- 3 -LRB103 36140 LNS 66231 b

1    information concerning current happenings and passing
2    events of a political, social, religious, commercial,
3    financial or legal nature, and advertisements or
4    bulletins; and
5        (5) (e) which has been continuously published at
6    regular intervals of at least once each week with a
7    minimum of 50 issues per year, for at least one year prior
8    to the first publication of the notice; or which is a
9    successor to a newspaper as herein defined with no
10    interruption of publication of more than 30 days; or which
11    is a merged or consolidated newspaper formed by the merger
12    or consolidation of two or more newspapers, one of which
13    has been continuously published at regular intervals of at
14    least once each week with a minimum of 50 issues per year,
15    for at least one year prior to the first publication of the
16    notice. A newspaper shall be considered as continuously or
17    regularly published although its publication has been
18    suspended, where such suspension was caused by fire or an
19    Act of God or by a labor dispute or by its owner,
20    publisher, managing editor or other essential employee
21    entering the active military service of the United States,
22    if the newspaper was continuously or regularly published
23    for at least one year prior to its suspension and if its
24    publication is resumed at any time not later than 12
25    months after such fire or Act of God, or if its publication
26    is resumed at any time within 12 months after the

 

 

HB4505- 4 -LRB103 36140 LNS 66231 b

1    termination of the labor dispute, or if its publication is
2    resumed at any time within 12 months after the termination
3    of the war in connection with which such persons entered
4    such military service; and
5        (6) (f) which has the capability of placing notices
6    required pursuant to this Act on a daily or weekly basis on
7    the statewide website as required by Section 2.1.
8    "Newspaper" also includes any digital publication that:
9        (1) is posted on a public-facing website, web
10    application, or digital application, including, but not
11    limited to, a social network, ad network, or search
12    engine, that has 3,000 or more unique monthly United
13    States visitors or users with at least 50% of those
14    visitors from the geographic area for which the notice is
15    required to be published during the immediately preceding
16    12 months;
17        (2) regularly gathers, prepares, collects,
18    photographs, records, writes, edits, reports,
19    investigates, or publishes news or information that
20    concerns local, national, or international events or other
21    matter of public interest for dissemination to the public;
22    and
23        (3) is paid for by subscribers to the digital
24    publication.
25(Source: P.A. 96-59, eff. 7-23-09; 96-1144, eff. 12-31-12.)
 

 

 

HB4505- 5 -LRB103 36140 LNS 66231 b

1    Section 10. The Newspaper Legal Notice Act is amended by
2adding Sections 1 and 2 as follows:
 
3    (715 ILCS 10/1)  (from Ch. 100, par. 10)
4    Sec. 1. Whenever it is required by law that any legal
5notice or publication shall be published in a newspaper in
6this State, it shall be held to mean a newspaper
7        (1) (a) which consists of not less than 4 pages of
8    printed matter and contains at least 100 square inches of
9    printed matter per page; and
10        (2) (b) which is printed through the use of one of the
11    conventional and generally recognized printing processes
12    such as letterpress, lithography or gravure; and
13        (3) (c) which annually averages at least 25% news
14    content per issue; or which annually averages at least
15    1,000 column inches of news content per issue, the term
16    "news content" meaning for the purposes of this Act any
17    printed matter other than advertising; and
18        (4) (d) which publishes miscellaneous reading matter,
19    legal or other announcements and notices, and news and
20    information concerning current happenings and passing
21    events of a political, social, religious, commercial,
22    financial or legal nature, and advertisements or
23    bulletins; and
24        (5) (e) which has been continuously published at
25    regular intervals of at least once each week with a

 

 

HB4505- 6 -LRB103 36140 LNS 66231 b

1    minimum of 50 issues per year, for at least one year prior
2    to the first publication of the notice; or which is a
3    successor to a newspaper as herein defined with no
4    interruption of publication of more than 30 days; or which
5    is a merged or consolidated newspaper formed by the merger
6    or consolidation of two or more newspapers, one of which
7    has been continuously published at regular intervals of at
8    least once each week with a minimum of 50 issues per year
9    for at least one year prior to the first publication of the
10    notice. A newspaper shall be considered as continuously or
11    regularly published although its publication has been
12    suspended, where such suspension was caused by fire or an
13    Act of God or by a labor dispute or by its owner,
14    publisher, managing editor or other essential employee
15    entering the active military service of the United States,
16    if the newspaper was continuously or regularly published
17    for at least one year prior to its suspension and if its
18    publication is resumed at any time not later than 12
19    months after such fire or Act of God, or if its publication
20    is resumed at any time within 12 months after the
21    termination of the labor dispute, or if its publication is
22    resumed at any time within 12 months after the termination
23    of the war in connection with which such persons entered
24    such military service; and
25        (6) (f) which has the capability of placing, at no
26    additional cost to government, notices required pursuant

 

 

HB4505- 7 -LRB103 36140 LNS 66231 b

1    to this Act on a daily or weekly basis on the statewide
2    website established and maintained as a joint venture by
3    the majority of Illinois newspapers as a repository for
4    such notices.
5    "Newspaper" also includes any digital publication that:
6        (1) is posted on a public-facing website, web
7    application, or digital application, including, but not
8    limited to, a social network, ad network, or search
9    engine, that has 3,000 or more unique monthly United
10    States visitors or users with at least 50% of those
11    visitors from the geographic area for which the notice is
12    required to be published during the immediately preceding
13    12 months;
14        (2) regularly gathers, prepares, collects,
15    photographs, records, writes, edits, reports,
16    investigates, or publishes news or information that
17    concerns local, national, or international events or other
18    matter of public interest for dissemination to the public;
19    and
20        (3) is paid for by subscribers to the digital
21    publication.
22(Source: P.A. 96-59, eff. 7-23-09; 96-1144, eff. 12-31-12.)
 
23    (715 ILCS 10/2)  (from Ch. 100, par. 10.1)
24    Sec. 2. When any legal notice is required by law to be
25published in any newspaper, such notice shall, except in the

 

 

HB4505- 8 -LRB103 36140 LNS 66231 b

1case of a digital publication, include the printing of such
2notice in the total circulation of each edition on the date of
3publication of the newspaper in which the notice is published;
4and the newspaper publishing the notice shall, at no
5additional cost to government, cause the notice to be placed
6on the statewide website established and maintained as a joint
7venture of the majority of Illinois newspapers as a repository
8for such notices. All notices required for publication by this
9Act shall remain legal and valid for all purposes when any
10error that occurs pursuant to the requirements of this Section
11in the requirement for placement of the notice on the
12statewide website is the fault of the printer.
13(Source: P.A. 100-72, eff. 1-1-18.)