Session of 2025
HOUSE BILL No. 2191
By Committee on Local Government
Requested by Representative Rahjes
1-31
AN ACT concerning legal publications; authorizing the use of internet
websites for publication of legal notices; amending K.S.A. 64-101 and
K.S.A. 2024 Supp. 10-120 and repealing the existing sections; also
repealing K.S.A. 12-1651.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Kansas:
New Section 1. (a) Any law that requires any person or entity to
publish a legal notice shall be deemed to be legally satisfied if a person or
entity publishes the required legal notice on a website designated as an
official legal notice website by a city or county pursuant to K.S.A. 64-101,
and amendments thereto. Such publication shall comply with the
requirements of this section.
(b) Any person or entity that publishes a legal notice on a website
pursuant to the authority granted by this section shall publish the legal
notice:
(1) In accordance with any time, date and recurrence requirements
that are statutorily imposed as though the publication is made in a
newspaper; and
(2) in each city, county or area that is required to be provided such
legal notice pursuant to law.
(c) This section shall not affect or modify any provision of law that
requires a person or entity to publish a legal notice both in a newspaper
and on a website. Publication of any legal notice subject to any such dual
publication requirement shall be made in accordance with the applicable
provision of law.
(d) As used in this section, "legal notice" means any legal notice,
advertisement or publication of any kind that is required or provided by
any of the laws of the state to be published in a newspaper.
Sec. 2. K.S.A. 2024 Supp. 10-120 is hereby amended to read as
follows: 10-120. (a) Whenever an election is required for the issuance of
bonds for any purpose by any municipality other than an irrigation district
or where a different procedure for giving notice of the election is
specifically provided by law, upon compliance with the legal requirements
necessary and precedent to the call for the election, the proper municipal
officers shall call an election. The election shall be held within 60 days
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after compliance with the necessary requirements, or within 90 days,
should the longer period include the date of a general election.
(b) Notice of the election shall be published in a newspaper of general
circulation in the municipality once each week for two consecutive weeks
or on the website of the county election office of any county where the
election is to be conducted. The first publication shall be not less than 21
days prior to the election. Notice of the election shall also be published on
the website of the county election office of any county where the election
is to be conducted. Such notice shall be published not less than 21 days
prior to the election and If published on the website of the county election
office, such publication shall remain on the website until the day after the
election. The notice shall set forth the time and place of holding the
election and the purpose for which the bonds are to be issued and shall be
signed by the county election officer. The election shall be held at the
usual place of holding elections and shall be conducted by the officers or
persons provided by law for holding elections in the municipality.
Sec. 3. K.S.A. 64-101 is hereby amended to read as follows: 64-101.
(a) (1) The governing body of each city of the first class shall designate by
resolution a newspaper or website to be the official city newspaper
publication source of the city. Once designated, the newspaper or website
shall be the official city newspaper publication source until such time as
the governing body designates a different newspaper or website as the
official publication source.
(2) No legal notice, advertisement or publication of any kind that is
required or provided by any of the laws of the state of Kansas, to be
published in a newspaper shall have any force or effect unless the same
such legal notice, advertisement or publication is published in a
newspaper which or on a website pursuant to section 1, and amendments
thereto.
(3) If a newspaper is selected as the official publication source for a
city, the newspaper shall:
(1)(A) IsBe published at least weekly 50 times a year and has have
been so published for at least one year prior to the publication of any
official city publication;
(2)(B) isbe entered at the post office as periodical class mail matter;
(3)(C) hashave general paid circulation on a daily, weekly, monthly or
yearly basis in the county in which where the city is located and is not be a
trade, religious or fraternal publication; and
(4)(D) isbe published in the county in which where the city
publishing the official publication is located. If there is no newspaper
published in the county, the newspaper shall be published in Kansas and
shall have general paid circulation in the county.
(4) If a website is selected as the official publication source for a city,
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the website shall:
(A) Be maintained by such city such that only content approved for
publication by such city shall be displayed on such website;
(B) be accessible to members of the general public and not password
protected;
(C) not charge any fees for members of the general public to access
the legal notices, advertisements or publications that are posted on such
website; and
(D) document and display the publication date of each legal notice,
advertisement or publication made on the website.
(b) (1) The board of county commissioners of each county shall
designate by resolution a newspaper or website to be the official county
newspaper publication source of the county. Once designated, the
newspaper or website shall be the official county newspaper publication
source until such time as the board designates a different newspaper. The
newspaper selected for the official publications of a county shall be a
newspaper which:
(2) If a newspaper is selected as the official publication source for a
county, the newspaper shall:
(1)(A) IsBe published at least weekly 50 times each year and has have
been so published for at least one year prior to the publication of any
official county publication;
(2)(B) isbe entered at the post office in the county of publication as
periodical class mail matter, which county shall be located in Kansas;
(3)(C) hashave general paid circulation on a daily, weekly, monthly or
yearly basis in the county and is not be a trade, religious or fraternal
publication; and
(4)(D) isbe published in the county publishing the official
publication. If there is no newspaper published in the county, the
newspaper shall be printed in Kansas and have general paid circulation in
the county.
(3) If a website is selected as the official publication source for a
county, the website shall:
(A) Be maintained by such county such that only content approved
for publication by such county shall be displayed on such website;
(B) be accessible to members of the general public and not password
protected;
(C) not charge any fees for members of the general public to access
the legal notices, advertisements or publications that are posted on such
website; and
(D) document and display the publication date for each legal notice,
advertisement or publication made on the website.
(c) (1) Whenever the board of education of a school district is
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required to publish a legal notice, advertisement or other publication in a
newspaper having general circulation in the school district, such
newspaper shall be one which:The board of education of each school
district shall designate by resolution a newspaper or website to be the
official publication source for the school district. Once designated, the
newspaper or website shall be the official publication source for the
school district until the board designates a different newspaper or website.
(2) If a newspaper is selected as the official publication source for a
school district, the newspaper shall:
(1)(A) IsBe published at least weekly 50 times each year and has have
been so published for at least one year prior to the publication of any
school district publication;
(2)(B) isbe entered at the post office in the school district of
publication as periodical class mail matter;
(3)(C) hashave general paid circulation on a daily, weekly, monthly or
yearly basis in the school district and is not be a trade, religious or
fraternal publication; and
(4)(D) isbe published in the school district publishing the official
publication. If there is no newspaper published in the school district, the
newspaper shall be published in Kansas and shall have general paid
circulation in the school district.
(3) If a website is selected as the official publication source for a
school district, the website shall:
(A) Be maintained by such school district such that only content
approved for publication by such school district shall be displayed on such
website;
(B) be accessible to members of the general public and not password
protected;
(C) not charge any fees for members of the general public to access
the legal notices, advertisements or publications that are posted on such
website; and
(D) document and display the publication date for each legal notice,
advertisement or publication made on the website.
(d) Nothing contained in this section shall invalidate the publication
in a newspaper which that has resumed publication after having suspended
publication all or part of the time that the United States has been engaged
in war with any foreign nation and six months next following the cessation
of hostilities if such newspaper resumes publication in good faith under the
same ownership as it had when it suspended publication. Nothing in this
section shall invalidate the publication in a newspaper which that has
simply changed its name or moved its place of publication from one part
of the county to another part, or suspended publication on account of fire,
flood, strikes, shortages of materials or other unavoidable accidents for not
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to exceed 10 weeks within the year last preceding the first publication of
the legal notice, advertisement or publication. All prior legal publications
heretofore made which that otherwise would be valid, and that have been
made in a newspaper which that, on account of flood, fire, strikes,
shortages of materials or other unavoidable accident, has suspended
publication for a period of not exceeding 10 weeks, are hereby legalized.
Sec. 4. K.S.A. 12-1651 and 64-101 and K.S.A. 2024 Supp. 10-120
are hereby repealed.
Sec. 5. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after its
publication in the statute book.
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