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Home My WebLink About2012-01-04 PACKET 04.C.REQUEST OF CITY COUNCIL ACTION COUNCIL AGENDA MEETING ITEM # DATE 1%4/2012 PREPARED BY City Clerk Caron Stransky ORIGINATING DEPARTMENT DEPARTMENT HEAD COUNCIL ACTION REQUEST Consider designating the South Washington County Bulletin as the City's Official Newspaper for legal publications. STAFF RECOMMENDATION Designate the South Washington County Bulletin as the City's Official Newspaper for legal publications. SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS ❑ MEMO /LETTER: Memo from Caron Stransky. ❑ RESOLUTION: ❑ ORDINANCE: ❑ ENGINEERING RECOMMENDATION: ❑ LEGAL RECOMMENDATION: ❑ OTHER: Info: 2011 City Council Item RE: Publications. ADMINISTRATORS COMMENTS COUNCIL ACTION TAKEN: ❑ APPROVED ❑ DENIED ❑ OTHER DocumenQ CITY OF MINNESOTA COTTAGE GROVE To: Honorable Mayor and City Council Members From: Caron Stransky, City Clerk Date: January 3, 2012 Subject: Designation of Official Newspaper At the first regular meeting of each year, Minnesota Statutes 331A.06, requires the City Council to designate a qualified newspaper of general circulation in the City as its 'official newspaper" for the publication of ordinances and legal notices. To be qualified, a newspaper must: 1. Be printed in English, in a newspaper format, and in a column and sheet form equivalent in printed space to at least 1,000 square inches. 2. If a daily paper, it must be distributed at least five days each week if it is a daily paper. But in any week in which there is a legal holiday, not more than four (4) issues of a daily paper are necessary. 3. If not a daily paper, it may be distributed twice a month with respect to the publishing of government public notices. 4. In at least half of the issues each year, it must have no more than 75 percent of its printed space comprised of advertising material and paid public notices. 5. In all of its issues each year, 25% (if published more often than weekly) or 50 percent (if published weekly) of its news columns must be devoted to news of local interest to the community it serves. 6. Not more than 25% of its total non - advertising column inches in any issue may wholly duplicate any other publication, unless the duplicated material is from general -news services. 7. It must be circulated in the local political subdivision which it purports to serve, and either have at least 400 copies regularly delivered to paying subscribers or have at least 400 copies regularly distributed without charge to local residents. 8. It must have its known office of issue established in either the county in which it lies (in whole or in part), in the city that the newspaper purports to serve, or in an adjoining county. 9. The newspaper must file a copy of each issue immediately with the state historical society. 10. It must be made available at single or subscription prices to any person or entity requesting the newspaper and making the applicable payment, or be distributed without charge to local residents. 11. It must have complied with all of the above requirements for at least one -year immediately preceding the date of the notice of publication. 12. It must publish a sworn U.S. Post Office periodicals -class statement of ownership and circulation. This must be done between September 1 and December 31 of each year. As an alternative, the newspaper may publish a statement of ownership and circulation verified by a recognized independent circulation auditing agency covering a period of not less than one year, ending no earlier than the June 30 preceding the publication deadline. 13. It must submit a filing to the secretary of state containing the newspaper's name, address of its known office of issue, telephone number, and a statement that the newspaper has complied with all of the above requirements. The filing must be made after the publication but before December 31. The filing must include a $25 filing fee. When a City designates an official newspaper, it must choose the newspaper in the following order. If there is one or more qualified newspaper with their offices of issue located in the City, one of these newspapers must be chosen. RiverTown Newspapers, publisher of the "South Washington County Bulletin," is located within the City of Cottage Grove at 7584 80 Street South. They have submitted a request that the City designate the "South Washington County Bulletin as its official newspaper for 2012 and are proposing to increase their rate from $12.75 per column inch in 2011 to $14.02 per column inch in 2012, a 10% increase. The maximum rate increase allowed under Minnesota Statutes is 10 %. Staff recommends Council designate the South Washington County Bulletin, 7584 80 Street South, as the City of Cottage Grove's official newspaper for 2012. /cs RiverTow z�C „„s,€r,. ReVI };t1t£:'t5 i " +)ifi Woodbury Bulletin 8420 City Centre Drive Woodbury, MN 55125 (651) 319 -4270 wwwwoodburybu11e tin. cone South Washington County Bulletin 7584 — 80” Sheet South Cottage Grove, MN 55016 (651) 319 -4280 wwe corn January 1, 2012 City of Cottage Grove 7516 80th Street South Cottage Grove, MN 55016 Dear Cottage Grove Mayor and City Council: We would like to take this opportunity to thank the City of Cottage Grove for designating the South Washington County Bulletin as the legal newspaper of the City of Cottage Grove for the past several years. Once again, we look forward to partnering with the City to bring Cottage Grove residents legal notices in the year to come. The following is the South Washington County's 2012 rate for publication of legal notices, effective with the January 4, 2012 edition: $14.02 per column inch The deadline for legal notices remains 4 p.m. the Wednesday prior to publication. We request legal notices be sent by e -mail to Iegals @swcbulletin.com. The request for publication should include the dates the notice should be published, and a contact name and number. Thank you for your consideration. If you have any further questions, please call me directly at (651) 319 -4490. Sincerely, Jean Hoeft Legal Coordinator Bulletin Newspapers Phil Frebault Director of Advertising The RiverTown Newspaper Group REQUEST OF CITY COUNCIL ACTION COUNCIL AGENDA MEETING ITEM # Information DATE 05/18/201 PREPARED BY CITY CLERK CARON STRANSKY ORIGINATING DEPARTMENT STAFF AUTHOR COUNCIL ACTION REQUEST Receive information on official newspaper designation, publication requirements, and publication fees. STAFF RECOMMENDATION Receive information only. BUDGET IMPLICATION N/A ADVISORY COMMISSION ACTION: N/A SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS MEMO /LETTER: ❑ RESOLUTION: ❑ ORDINANCE: Memo from City Clerk ❑ ENGINEERING RECOMMENDATION: ❑ LEGAL RECOMMENDATION: ❑ OTHER: Publication from League of Minnesota Cities ADMINISTRATORS COMMENTS City Administrator Date COUNCIL ACTION TAKEN: ❑ APPROVED ❑ DENIED []OTHER G:tclerk \Templates\,Caron'Action Form.doc DATE REVIEWED APPROVED DENIED ❑ PLANNING ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ PUBLIC SAFETY ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ PUBLIC WORKS ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ PARKS AND RECREATION ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ HUMAN SERVICES /RIGHTS ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ECONOMIC DEV. AUTHORITY ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ _ -- - - - - -- ❑ ❑ ❑ SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS MEMO /LETTER: ❑ RESOLUTION: ❑ ORDINANCE: Memo from City Clerk ❑ ENGINEERING RECOMMENDATION: ❑ LEGAL RECOMMENDATION: ❑ OTHER: Publication from League of Minnesota Cities ADMINISTRATORS COMMENTS City Administrator Date COUNCIL ACTION TAKEN: ❑ APPROVED ❑ DENIED []OTHER G:tclerk \Templates\,Caron'Action Form.doc From: Caron M. Stransky, City Clerk Date: May 13, 2011 Subject: Official Newspaper Designations and Publications Statutory cities are required to designate an official newspaper at the first meeting each year. At the January 5, 2011 meeting, the Cottage Grove City Council designated the South Washington County Bulletin as official newspaper for the City of Cottage Grove for 2011. The official newspaper is used for the publication of ordinances, advertisement for bids, meeting and hearing notices, certain election notices, and various financial information. When a City designates an official newspaper, State law (Minnesota Statute 331A.04) requires that the City choose the newspaper in the following priority: Known office in locality If there are one (1) or more qualified newspaper(s), the known office of issue of which are located within the city, one of them shall be designated. "Known office of issue" means the newspaper's principal office devoted primarily to business related to the newspaper, whether or not printing or any other operations of the newspaper are conducted at or from the office. A newspaper may have only one known office of issue. 2. Secondary office in locality When no qualified newspaper has a known office of issue located in the city, but one or more qualified newspapers maintain a secondary office there, one of them shall be designated. "Secondary office" means an office established by a newspaper in a community other than that in which its known office of issue is located, in the same or an adjoining county, open on a regular basis to gather news and sell advertisements and subscriptions, whether or not printing or any other operations of the newspaper are conducted at or from the office. 3. General circulation in locality When no qualified newspaper has a known office of issue or a secondary office located within the city, then a qualified newspaper of general circulation there shall be designated. 4. Other situations If a city is without an official newspaper, or if the publisher refuses to publish a particular public notice, matters required to be published shall be published in a newspaper of general circulation designated as provided in subdivision 3. If the City has territory in two (2) or more counties, the City Council may, if deemed in the public interest, designate a separate qualified newspaper for each county. 5. Exceptions There is an exception to the designation priority. The City may designate any newspaper as its official newspaper if the following conditions are met; (a) The newspaper is a qualified newspaper. (b) The publisher of the newspaper furnishes a sworn statement, verified by a recognized independent circulation - auditing agency, covering a period of at least one (1) year ending no earlier than 00 days before designation for the newspaper, stating that the newspaper's circulation reaches not fewer than 75 percent of the households within the City. (c) The newspaper has provided regular coverage of the proceedings of the governing body of the City and will continue to do so. (d) The governing body votes unanimously to designate the newspaper. If the circulation of a newspaper fails below 75 percent of the households within the City at any time within the term of its designation as official newspaper, its qualification to publish notices for the City terminates. Publication Fees The maximum rate charged for publication of a public notice must not exceed the lowest classified rate paid by commercial users for comparable space in the newspaper in which the public notice appears. The rate must include all cash discounts. multiple insertion discounts, and similar benefits extended to the newspaper's regular customers. In addition, no newspaper may increase its rates for publishing public notices by more than 10 percent per year as compared to the maximum rate actually charged by the newspaper in the previous year for such notice. An annual rate increase is not required. The South Washington County Bulletin currently charges $12.75 per column inch. If the St. Paul Pioneer Press met the exceptions outlined above and the City Council unanimously voted to designate them as the City's official newspaper, the Director of Classified and the Pioneer Press have agreed to match the rate charged by the Bulletin. The Attorney General has said that a City cannot designate more than one (1) official newspaper, however, Minnesota Statutes 311A.05, Subd. 5, would permit the City to publish or disseminate a notice in another newspaper to better inform the public. Please present this information to the City Council for informational purposes only. No action is requested. /City Clerk Stransky Attachment