By George White

Gov. Chris Christie and the state Legislature have formed an unholy alliance to punish newspapers, and it's the public and the public purse that will also be the victims of a blatant, politically-motivated act of governmental spite -- spite not service.

It's an initiative that came from the governor, and the Legislature is playing ball with him all the way.

In a quick legislative maneuver meant to catch the state's newspapers by surprise, a bill to remove legal advertising from newspapers was introduced Monday, set for committee hearings in both the Assembly and Senate Thursday and a quick vote this Monday by both houses.

The bill would allow the state's 565 municipalities and many more public bodies to post legal notices on their web sites. At first glance it sounds like a great idea if you haven't done your homework, and, sadly in this case, in their haste to get even with the press, the Legislature hasn't.

There's no question, newspapers have a strong and vested interest in this bill. It would cost them revenue. It comes as no surprise that newspapers across the U.S. and in New Jersey are under significant financial strain. Removing public notices from newspapers will lead to layoffs at just about every paper in the state, some of them experiencing a substantial reduction in workforce.

Sadly, a good number of smaller newspapers, particularly weeklies, will have to close their doors. That will not only be a loss to their employees but to the towns they cover, places not covered by the internet. In a state without its own television station, less news is bad news.

Beyond saying this bill is bad for newspapers, what about the public interest and the public purse? That's what the public at large should be concerned about. Is the public going to be the innocent bystander who gets hurt because of a vindictive governor and a compliant Legislature?

No other state in the U.S. allows public bodies to fulfill public notification requirements by having sole control; without any independent, third-party verification. It's a bad practice and one that could be subject to abuse. Many have modernized their public notice laws for the digital age. None have removed the non-hackable newspaper print requirement.

As for the cost savings, public notices paid for by private individuals and businesses, which make up the vast majority of notices placed, will now go to towns for placement on their web sites. The bill says they will now be free. These notices are often numerous, long and highly detailed. The hours town clerks will have to spend inputting these notices and ensuring they run as scheduled has not been factored into the legislative thinking. Posting a legally sensitive document is not the same as posting to Facebook. The bill in question imposes new requirements on towns when they post a notice, requirements that will cost money and none of which benefit the public. When mayors and town clerks read this bill, they'll be in for an unhappy surprise.

Before burdening towns with these additional public notices, the Legislature apparently forgot ALL New Jersey public notices are already online at NJpublicnotices.com.

These notices are put there by New Jersey newspapers, which both publish the ads in print and upload them to the NJpublicnotices. These ads are categorized and searchable. Most importantly, these ads can be easily translated to Spanish, Hindi, Arabic, Chinese and a myriad of other languages. Will town-posted ads be archived? Searchable? Translatable? What will that cost?

Printing public notices in newspapers creates a printed document along with an online one. A hacker or other party looking to gain an advantage or commit a corrupt act can't change a printed document. Printed documents are proof a proper notice was given.

The governor's office hastily sent out unsourced numbers Tuesday to prove "everyone has internet access." Yet, in point of fact, the "Digital Divide" remains a real issue.

The U.S. Census for 2015 reported:

11.9 percent of all New Jersey households DO NOT have a computer.

18 percent of all New Jersey households DO NOT have an internet subscription.

24 percent of New Jersey households with income of $20,000 to $75,000 DO NOT have an internet subscription.

48 percent of New Jersey households with income under $20,000 (retirees, urban poor, etc.) DO NOT have an internet subscription

In a democracy, there's always tension between the press and government. It's the way it should be if the public is to benefit. Unfortunately in New Jersey, unlike other states, the government strikes back any way it can. Laws govern public notice advertising rates. Because it's had no other way to get back at the press, the New Jersey Legislature has refused to increase those rates every year for the past 33 years. Newspapers are now forced to charge 1983 rates. What cost you a dollar in 1983 costs you $2.43 today, a 143 percent inflation factor, meaning a public notice today costs the same as it did in 1983.

In the end, the New Jersey Legislature has an obligation to the public to be as transparent as possible. Ramming through this bill and pulling public notices from newspapers and their single web site, scattering them over hundreds of websites is being the height of opaque. It's a game of "Find me if you can." And, public notices for any given town or body amount to an infinitesimal portion of their budgets. Go to your town hall and ask them how much they spend on public notices, and you'll be surprised at how little it is.

If the Legislature had done its homework, it might be able to answer the questions a cub reporter might ask:

Why did this originate with the governor in secret? What deals were made?

Why was it kept quiet and rammed through on an accelerated schedule?

Why didn't the Legislature do its homework on this?

Why have NO other states allowed government bodies to publish their own public notices?

What will this really cost governmental bodies?

Why are the Democrats playing ball with the governor on a bill bad for both newspapers and the public?

George White is executive director of the NJ Press Association.

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