Bill Text: MI HB4428 | 2023-2024 | 102nd Legislature | Introduced
Bill Title: Local government: other; publication of legal notices; revise, and create the local government public notice act. Creates new act.
Spectrum: Strong Partisan Bill (Democrat 13-1)
Status: (Introduced) 2023-04-20 - Bill Electronically Reproduced 04/19/2023 [HB4428 Detail]
Download: Michigan-2023-HB4428-Introduced.html
HOUSE BILL NO. 4428
A bill to set forth the methods for local governments and other governmental entities to provide certain public notices; to prescribe the powers and duties of certain public entities; and to prescribe the duties of certain private entities.
the people of the state of michigan enact:
Sec. 1. This act may be cited as the "local government public notice act".
(a) "Internet" means that term as defined in 47 USC 230.
(b) "Local media outlet" means a television station or radio broadcast station, licensed by the Federal Communications Commission.
(c) "Required area" means the county, city, township, village, district, or other governmental entity where the notice is required to be posted.
(d) "Website" means a collection of pages of the internet, usually in HTML format, with clickable or hypertext links to enable navigation from 1 page or section to another, that often uses associated graphics files to provide illustration and may contain other clickable or hypertext links.
Sec. 3. Except as otherwise provided in section 4, as used in this act, "newspaper" means a print publication that is published for the dissemination of local news of a general character or for the dissemination of legal news and to which all of the following apply:
(a) The print publication is published and distributed in not less than weekly intervals.
(b) Not less than 50% of the words in the print publication are in the English language.
(c) The print publication has a bona fide list of subscribers in 1 or more counties in this state or is available to the public at newsstands or other retail locations in 1 or more counties in this state, or both.
(d) The print publication accepts and publishes official and other notices.
(e) The print publication regularly contains information of a public character or of interest or value to residents, property owners, or the general public.
(f) The print publication has been published or distributed for not less than 1 year.
Sec. 4. If there is no publication that meets the definition in section 3 in the required area, "newspaper" means a publication in an adjoining county, city, township, village, or district, as applicable, that otherwise meets the definition in section 3.
Sec. 5. (1) Beginning January 1, 2025, if a local government or other governmental entity has a website that has been active for 180 days or more and is permitted to provide public notice under this act, that local government or other governmental entity shall do 1 or both of the following:
(a) Post that public notice on the active notice portion of the website of the required area for the period of time as provided by law.
(b) Continue to provide that public notice as provided by law.
(2) Beginning January 1, 2025, if a local government or other governmental entity does not have a website, or has a website that has been active for less than 180 days, and is permitted to provide public notice under this act, that local government or other governmental entity shall continue to provide that notice as provided by law.
(3) If public notice is posted on the active notice portion of the website of the required area as provided in subsection (1)(a), a printed copy or, subject to this subsection, a digital display of the public notice posted under subsection (1)(a) must be made available for public inspection by the local government or other governmental entity for the period of time that the public notice is required by law to be posted. If a digital display of the public notice posted under subsection (1)(a) is made available for public inspection under this subsection, a printed copy of the public notice must, upon request, be made available for public inspection by the local government or other governmental entity for the period of time that the public notice is required by law to be posted.
(4) If public notice is posted on the active notice portion of the website of the required area as provided in subsection (1)(a), the local government or other governmental entity shall within 24 hours after the public notice is posted under this act notify by email each newspaper and local media outlet that serves the required area about the public notice.
Sec. 6. A website used for posting public notices under this act must meet both of the following requirements:
(a) The homepage of the website and the portion of the website containing active notices and archival notices must be publicly accessible and free of charge.
(b) The homepage of the website must include a prominently displayed link to the active notices and the archival notices.
Sec. 7. Beginning January 1, 2025, if a local government or other governmental entity posts a public notice on the website of that local government or other governmental entity, the local government or other governmental entity shall maintain an existing online archive or create an online archive for public notices. After the period of time the public notice is required to be posted on the website, the public notice must be maintained in the archival notice portion of the website in compliance with the records retention schedule for that local government or other governmental entity as provided in section 11 of the Michigan history center act, 2016 PA 470, MCL 399.811. In addition, the local government or other governmental entity shall maintain, in a format that includes the dates of posting, a printed or digital copy of each public notice provided for archival and verification purposes. If the copy of a public notice maintained for archival and verification purposes is a digital copy, that digital copy of the public notice must be maintained in a location different than the archival notice portion of the website as provided in this section.
Sec. 8. A person that operates a publication that qualifies as a newspaper under this act shall maintain a permanent and complete printed copy of each published edition for archival and verification purposes in the required area.
Sec. 9. (1) In addition to the requirements of this act, a local government or other governmental entity shall create and maintain an annual public notice list. Except for a newspaper or local media outlet described in section 5(4), an individual, organization, firm, or corporation may make a written request to be placed on an annual public notice list to receive by first-class mail or email any public notice posted on the active notice portion of the website of the required area under this act.
(2) Subject to subsection (4), if an individual, organization, firm, or corporation on an annual public notice list requests to receive public notices by first-class mail, upon the requesting party's payment of a yearly fee of not more than the estimated cost for printing and postage of the public notices, the local government or other governmental entity shall send to the individual, organization, firm, or corporation by first-class mail a copy of each public notice posted on the active notice portion of the website of the required area under this act.
(3) Subject to subsection (4), if an individual, organization, firm, or corporation on an annual public notice list requests to receive public notices by email, the local government or other governmental entity shall within 24 hours after each public notice is posted on the active notice portion of the website of the required area under this act transmit to the individual, organization, firm, or corporation an electronic copy of that public notice.
(4) In order to continue to receive public notices under this section, an individual, organization, firm, or corporation must annually request in writing to be placed on the annual public notice list of a local government or other governmental entity. A local government or other governmental entity may require that the request in writing under this subsection be made by first-class mail or in person.
Sec. 10. If a local government or other governmental entity is permitted to provide public notice under this act and the local government or other governmental entity changes the method by which public notice is provided as described in this act, the local government or other governmental entity shall provide public notice of that change by using the most recent method that the local government or other governmental entity uses for publishing or posting public notices.
