Wendell News Outlet

Date: March 9, 2009 Item #8
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Item Title:

Item to be discussed under “Other Business” – Resolution of Support for HB 193, a bill that would give local governments the opportunity to provide electronic notices of public hearings.


Specific Action Requested:

The Board of Commissioners is asked to approve the Resolution of Support for HB 193.


Item Summary:

In recent years, several local governments have been successful in getting local bills passed to allow them to advertise public hearings via their web sites instead of through advertisements in local newspapers. HB 193 would extend this opportunity state-wide to all municipal and county governments. The attached resolution, if approved by the Board of Commissioners, would support HB 193.

During the week of March 2nd, the bill to allow electronic notices for public hearings as a substitute for published notices received a favorable report from the House Local Government II Committee, despite opposition from the Press Association. HB 193 now moves to Judiciary I Committee.


Attachments:

Proposed resolution

Current language and history of House Bill 193

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WHEREAS, various sections of the North Carolina Statutes require publicized public hearings in some local government proceedings such as the adoption of the annual budget and various land use matters; and

WHEREAS, North Carolina General Statute 159-1(b) (5) requires these public hearings to be advertised in a local newspaper; and

WHEREAS, these advertisements of public hearings can be very detailed and lengthy and cost a great deal to print; and

WHEREAS, often, these public hearing advertisements must be printed, in many situations, multiple times; and

WHEREAS, the cost of such advertisements becomes burdensome to local governments; and

WHEREAS, newspaper circulation has declined annually at a rate of about 2% for a number of years and a rate of 5% annually since 2007; and

WHEREAS, newspaper circulation is at its lowest level since 1946, when daily sales averaged 50.9 million (according to statistics from the Newspaper Association of America); and

WHEREAS, 2003 data from the US Census Bureau shows that more 62 million households in the United States had an Internet-connected computer (over 55 percent of homes in 2003) with easy access to the internet, including e-mail and web resources; and

WHEREAS, most local governments in North Carolina now maintain an up-to-date web site and can “publish” public and legal notices electronically at little to no cost;

NOW THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the Town of Wendell Board of Commissioners that Town of Wendell supports North Carolina House Bill 193, which would allow local governments to “publish” public and legal notices electronically and eliminate the need to publish such notices in a local newspaper.

Adopted this the 9th day of March, 2009.
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J. Harold Broadwell, II, Mayor
Attest:

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Jonnie Driver, Town Clerk