Senate File 2331 - Reprinted SENATE FILE 2331 BY COMMITTEE ON TECHNOLOGY (SUCCESSOR TO SSB 3107) (As Amended and Passed by the Senate February 21, 2024 ) A BILL FOR An Act relating to publication requirements for official 1 publications, and including effective date provisions. 2 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA: 3 SF 2331 (3) 90 ss/jh/mb
S.F. 2331 Section 1. Section 372.13, subsection 6, Code 2024, is 1 amended to read as follows: 2 6. Within fifteen days following a regular or special 3 meeting of the council, the clerk shall cause the minutes of 4 the proceedings of the council, including the total expenditure 5 from each city fund, to be published in delivered to a 6 newspaper of general circulation in the city for publication . 7 The publication shall include a list of all claims allowed and 8 a summary of all receipts and shall show the gross amount of 9 the claims. The list of claims allowed shall show the name 10 of the person or firm making the claim, the reason for the 11 claim, and the amount of the claim. If the reason for the 12 claims is the same, two or more claims made by the same vendor, 13 supplier, or claimant may be consolidated if the number of 14 claims consolidated and the total consolidated claim amount are 15 listed in the statement. However, the city shall provide at 16 its office upon request an unconsolidated list of all claims 17 allowed. Matters discussed in closed session pursuant to 18 section 21.3 shall not be published until entered on the public 19 minutes. However, in cities having more than one hundred fifty 20 thousand population, the council shall each month print in 21 pamphlet form a detailed itemized statement of all receipts and 22 disbursements of the city, and a summary of its proceedings 23 during the preceding month, and furnish copies to the city 24 library, the daily newspapers of the city, and to persons who 25 apply at the office of the city clerk, and the pamphlet shall 26 constitute publication as required. Failure by the clerk to 27 make publication is a simple misdemeanor. The provisions of 28 this subsection are applicable in cities in which a newspaper 29 is published, or in cities of two hundred population or over, 30 but in all other cities, posting the statement in three public 31 places in the city which have been permanently designated by 32 ordinance is sufficient compliance with this subsection . 33 Sec. 2. Section 618.3, Code 2024, is amended to read as 34 follows: 35 -1- SF 2331 (3) 90 ss/jh/mb 1/ 6
S.F. 2331 618.3 Requirements for newspaper for official publication. 1 For the purpose of establishing and giving assured 2 circulation to all notices and reports of proceedings required 3 by statute to be published within the state, if newspapers 4 are required to be used, only a newspaper which meets all of 5 the following requirements shall be designated for official 6 publication purposes: 7 1. Is a newspaper of general circulation that has been 8 published at least once a week for at least fifty weeks per 9 year within the area and regularly mailed through the post 10 office of entry for at least two years one year . 11 2. Has a list of subscribers who have paid, or promised to 12 pay, at more than a nominal rate, for copies to be received 13 during a stated period. 14 3. Devotes at least twenty-five percent of its total 15 column space in more than one-half of its issues during any 16 twelve-month period to information of a public character other 17 than advertising. 18 4. Is paid for by at least fifty percent of the persons or 19 subscribers to whom it is distributed. 20 5. If the newspaper operates an internet site, the newspaper 21 must do one of the following: 22 a. Provide free access on the homepage of the internet 23 site to all public notices posted on the internet site. The 24 link providing free access to public notices must be displayed 25 conspicuously. 26 b. Display a link conspicuously on the homepage of the 27 internet site of the newspaper to the statewide public notice 28 internet site established pursuant to section 618.3A if such 29 an internet site exists. 30 6. Publish the address of the statewide public notice 31 internet site established pursuant to section 618.3A, if such 32 an internet site exists, in each edition of the newspaper 33 in the section of the newspaper regularly designated for 34 the publication of public notices, and on the section of 35 -2- SF 2331 (3) 90 ss/jh/mb 2/ 6
S.F. 2331 the newspapers internet site regularly designated for the 1 publication of public notices, if the newspaper operates an 2 internet site. 3 7. Post all notices and reports of proceedings required by 4 statute to be published within the state by the newspaper to 5 the statewide public notice internet site established pursuant 6 to section 618.3A, if such an internet site exists, at no 7 additional cost, and within seventy-two hours of receipt of the 8 notice or report of proceedings. 9 Sec. 3. NEW SECTION . 618.3A Statewide public notice 10 internet site. 11 1. A statewide association representing a majority of 12 newspapers in the state shall operate and maintain a statewide 13 public notice internet site containing all notices and reports 14 of proceedings required by statute to be published within the 15 state by newspapers. 16 2. To qualify as a statewide public notice internet site, an 17 internet site must meet all of the following requirements: 18 a. Public notices and reports of proceedings shall be 19 available to the public at no cost. 20 b. The internet site must allow a person to search for a 21 notice by criteria contained in the public notice or report of 22 proceedings. 23 c. The internet site must provide access to all public 24 notices and reports of proceedings for at least one year after 25 initial publication. 26 d. The internet site must allow access through the use of 27 common internet browsers. 28 e. The internet site must provide a method to allow 29 members of the public to subscribe to alerts of public 30 notices and reports of proceedings by means of electronic mail 31 notifications. 32 Sec. 4. NEW SECTION . 618.3B No official newspaper in 33 county. 34 If no newspaper meeting the requirements of section 618.3 35 -3- SF 2331 (3) 90 ss/jh/mb 3/ 6
S.F. 2331 is published in a county, public notice requirements are 1 satisfied with respect to government bodies, as defined in 2 section 22.1, within that county and that county by causing a 3 notice or report of proceedings to be posted on the official 4 internet site of the county, the official internet site of the 5 government body required to publish the public notice, and the 6 statewide public notice internet site established pursuant to 7 section 618.3A if such an internet site exists. 8 Sec. 5. Section 618.8, Code 2024, is amended by striking the 9 section and inserting in lieu thereof the following: 10 618.8 Refusal to publish. 11 If a newspaper refuses to publish a statutorily required 12 public notice, a government body, as defined in section 22.1, 13 satisfies public notice requirements with respect to that 14 public notice by publishing the public notice on the official 15 internet site of the government body and forwarding the notice 16 to each county in which notice is required to be given to 17 any person and to the statewide public notice internet site 18 established pursuant to section 618.3A if such an internet 19 site exists. A county receiving a public notice pursuant to 20 this section shall publish the public notice on the countys 21 internet site within seventy-two hours of receipt. The 22 statewide public notice internet site shall publish a public 23 notice forwarded pursuant to this section within seventy-two 24 hours of receipt. 25 Sec. 6. Section 618.11, Code 2024, is amended to read as 26 follows: 27 618.11 Fees for publication and proof of publication . 28 1. The compensation, when not otherwise fixed, for the 29 publication in a newspaper of any notice, order, citation, or 30 other publication required or allowed by law shall be at a 31 rate of thirty-four cents for one insertion and twenty-three 32 cents for each subsequent insertion for each line of eight 33 point type two inches in length, or its equivalent. Beginning 34 June 1, 2001, and each June 1 thereafter, the director of 35 -4- SF 2331 (3) 90 ss/jh/mb 4/ 6
S.F. 2331 the department of administrative services shall calculate a 1 new rate for the following fiscal year as prescribed in this 2 section subsection , and shall publish this rate as a notice in 3 the Iowa administrative bulletin prior to the first day of the 4 following calendar month. The new rate shall be effective on 5 the first day of the calendar month following its publication. 6 The rate shall be calculated by applying the percentage change 7 in the consumer price index for all urban consumers for the 8 last available twelve-month period published in the federal 9 register by the federal department of labor, bureau of labor 10 statistics, to the existing rate as an increase or decrease 11 in the rate rounded to the nearest one-tenth of a cent. The 12 calculation and publication of the rate by the director of the 13 department of administrative services shall be exempt from the 14 provisions of chapters 17A and 25B . 15 2. A newspaper shall not charge a fee to a government body, 16 as defined in section 22.1, for proof of publication of a 17 public notice. 18 Sec. 7. Section 618.18, Code 2024, is amended by striking 19 the section and inserting in lieu thereof the following: 20 618.18 Timely publication required. 21 1. A newspaper shall publish all public notices and reports 22 of proceedings that are required by law to be published by a 23 certain date within seventy-two hours of receipt unless one of 24 the following applies: 25 a. The newspaper publishes less than daily, in which case 26 the newspaper shall publish the public notice or report of 27 proceedings within forty-eight hours of the next scheduled 28 publication of the newspaper. 29 b. The government body, as defined in section 22.1, did not 30 submit the public notice or report of proceedings in a typed 31 format. 32 2. A newspaper that receives payment to publish a 33 statutorily required public notice and fails to timely or 34 accurately publish the public notice as required by subsection 35 -5- SF 2331 (3) 90 ss/jh/mb 5/ 6
S.F. 2331 1 shall refund all moneys received to publish the notice to the 1 government body that paid to publish the notice. 2 3. A government body, as defined in section 22.1, satisfies 3 public notice requirements with respect to a statutorily 4 required public notice that was untimely or inaccurately 5 published by a newspaper if the government body timely and 6 accurately published the public notice on the official internet 7 site of the government body and all counties in which notice is 8 required to be given to any person. 9 Sec. 8. NEW SECTION . 618.19 Disputes resolution. 10 A dispute arising between a government body, as defined in 11 section 22.1, and a newspaper regarding the publication of a 12 notice or report of proceedings under this chapter shall be 13 heard by the Iowa public information board created pursuant 14 to section 23.3 as a contested case proceeding pursuant to 15 chapter 17A. The Iowa public information board shall award the 16 prevailing party reasonable costs and attorney fees. 17 Sec. 9. EFFECTIVE DATE. The following, being deemed of 18 immediate importance, take effect upon enactment: 19 1. The section of this Act amending section 372.13, 20 subsection 6. 21 2. The section of this Act amending section 618.8. 22 3. The section of this Act amending section 618.11. 23 4. The section of this Act amending section 618.18. 24 5. The section of this Act enacting section 618.3B. 25 Sec. 10. EFFECTIVE DATE. The following take effect July 1, 26 2025: 27 1. The section of this Act amending section 618.3. 28 2. The section of this Act enacting section 618.3A. 29 -6- SF 2331 (3) 90 ss/jh/mb 6/ 6