The Josephine County Commissioners are voting Jan. 18 on whether or not to make the Illinois Valley News the paper of record for Josephine County. Currently, we are the paper of record for the city of Cave Junction, Illinois Valley Fire District, Kerby Water District, Illinois Valley Soil and Water Conservation District and one of two papers for Three Rivers School District.
It’s not uncommon for a municipality to change or even alternate between papers. For example, Curry County has switched each year between the Curry Coastal Pilot in Brookings and the Curry County Reporter in Gold Beach.
You will notice a few letters to the editor this week from Grants Pass residents that are not happy with this potential change. As you can assume, the Courier is fighting it as well.
Unfortunately, in the letters they speak about us not being the best paper to post in and thus do not meet the requirements. Fortunately for us they are wrong.
193.01 Definitions for Oregon Revised Statutes 193.010 and 193.020. As used in this section and in ORS 193.020:
(2) “Newspaper” means a newspaper of general circulation, published in the English language for the dissemination of local or transmitted news or for the dissemination of legal news, made up of at least four pages of at least five columns each, with type matter of a depth of at least 14 inches, or, if smaller pages, then comprising an equivalent amount of type matter, which has bona fide subscribers representing more than half of the total distribution of copies circulated, or distribution verified by an independent circulation auditing firm, and which has been established and regularly and uninterruptedly published at least once a week during a period of at least 12 consecutive months immediately preceding the first publication of the public notice. Interrupted publication because of labor-management disputes, fire, flood or the elements for a period not to exceed 120 days, either before or after a newspaper is qualified for publication of public notices, shall not affect such qualification. [Amended by 1979 c.760 §1; subsection (1) renumbered 174.104 in 1999]
193.020 Newspaper in which public notice may be published. (1) Any public notice of any description, the publication of which is now or hereafter required by law, shall be published in any newspaper, as defined in ORS 193.010, which is published within the county, city of which any part lies within that county, city, district or other jurisdiction where the action, suit or other proceeding is pending, or is to be commenced or had, or in which the legal publication is required to be given.
(2) If publication in only one newspaper is required by law, and if more than one newspaper fulfills the requirements of subsection (1) of this section, the public notice shall be published in that newspaper which the moving party considers best suited to give actual notice. However, nothing in this subsection prohibits the publication in more than one newspaper if desired by the moving party.
(4) If more than one newspaper or publication fulfills the requirements of subsection (3) of this section, the public notice shall be published in that newspaper or publication which the moving party considers most effective for providing actual notice. [Amended by 1963 c.432 §1; 1979 c.760 §2; 1983 c.831 §1]
The key word in No. 2 and 4 is “moving party,” which happens to be the county.
The argument being made against the change is due to the disparity of readership between the I.V. News and the Courier. What they do not take into consideration is that readers are more than welcome to subscribe to the Illinois Valley News if they are concerned about county public notices.
Additionally, with our new website www.theivnews.com, public notices are in front of the paywall which gives readership ability to anyone with a phone, computer or access to a public library at no charge.
In the end, the Courier is picking up the business from the now defunct Mail Tribune and should be in good shape. For the Illinois Valley News, this is a huge shot in the arm ensuring the ability to stay in business.
In my opinion, if our friends on the other side of Hayes Hill start to read the Illinois Valley News and see articles covering our area from local reporters, their opinion of the Illinois Valley is likely to improve.
With my fingers crossed, thank you for picking up this week’s edition. ~ djm
