04/13/1993 04:00 PM House RLS

  HB 236:  RELATING TO NEWSPAPER NOTICES                                       
                                                                               
  CHAIRMAN MOSES advised members that a proposed committee                     
  substitute was before them.                                                  
                                                                               
  REPRESENTATIVE BARNES moved to adopt the committee                           
  substitute for HB 236.  CSHB 236(RLS) was ADOPTED.                           
                                                                               
  REPRESENTATIVE ULMER asked for clarification on the 25%                      
  provision on page two.  He asked, Who decides if a newspaper                 
  has 25% readership?  Is the impact to expand the number of                   
  publications eligible to run foreclosure notices linked to                   
  the area where the foreclosure is taking place?                              
                                                                               
  BOB GOULD, PRINCIPLE OWNER, ALASKA JOURNAL OF COMMERCE,                      
  replied that the language comes from a compilation of                        
  similar statutory language in Lower 48 jurisdictions.  The                   
  goal is to define a newspaper for the purpose of noticing                    
  foreclosure default sale notices.  Title companies, who                      
  place such notices, often notice them in metropolitan                        
  daily's, such as the Anchorage Daily News, Juneau Empire,                    
  Nome Nugget and Fairbanks Daily News Miner, for each of the                  
  four judicial districts in Alaska.  In the Lower 48 states,                  
  legal, real estate and banking newspapers also apply.  The                   
  25% editorial content provision is meant to exclude such                     
  papers such as shoppers, whose readers are not interested in                 
  foreclosure notices.   The statute says that the notice is                   
  required to run in a paper nearest to the sale in the                        
  corresponding judicial district.                                             
                                                                               
  REPRESENTATIVE BARNES asked, if a Glenallen paper, for                       
  example, did not have more than 500 readers, then it would                   
  not qualify under HB 236?                                                    
                                                                               
  MR. GOULD stated that such a paper would not qualify.                        
                                                                               
  REPRESENTATIVE BARNES expressed that the provision was bad;                  
  little newspapers should be able to qualify.                                 
                                                                               
  MR. GOULD clarified that the topic of conversation was only                  
  for default notices, not public meetings, road closures,                     
  bids or proposals.  Default notices now only appear by                       
  request of the title companies in the four major newspapers                  
  in each judicial district.  The Aniak paper appears to be                    
  the only paper, as of 1990 figures, with less than 500                       
  readers.  Title 9 does not apply to other types of                           
  advertising done on a state level that would be affected by                  
  HB 236.  He said Title 9 applies only to real estate                         
  foreclosures.                                                                
                                                                               
  REPRESENTATIVE BARNES expressed a desire to expand                           
  circulation dollars at a state level down to the smallest of                 
  newspapers in a given area.                                                  
                                                                               
  CHAIRMAN MOSES stated that if the notice was given in an                     
  isolated community, the default would not get the exposure                   
  that would be good for the market.                                           
                                                                               
  REPRESENTATIVE G. PHILLIPS asked that the committee consider                 
  the general publication notice.                                              
                                                                               
  REPRESENTATIVE BARNES moved to pass the committee substitute                 
  for HB 236 with individual recommendations.                                  
                                                                               
  CSHB 236(RLS) was MOVED with INDIVIDUAL RECOMMENDATIONS.                     
                                                                               
  ADJOURNMENT                                                                  
                                                                               
  CHAIRMAN MOSES asked members and the audience if there were                  
  further comments.  Hearing none, he adjourned the meeting at                 
  4:24 p.m.