ENROLLED
H. B. 2833
(By Delegates Kiss, Farris, Leach, Mezzatesta,
Browning and Miller)
[Passed March 11, 1995; in effect from passage.]
AN ACT to amend and reenact section three, article three, chapter
fifty-nine of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine
hundred thirty-one, as amended, relating to newspapers and
legal advertisements; rates which a qualified newspaper may
charge for legal advertising; establishing the amount of rate
increases allowed to be charged for legal advertising for the
years one thousand nine hundred ninety-five through one
thousand nine hundred ninety-six; requiring affidavits and
notice of legal advertising rates; and effective dates of
rates.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section three, article three, chapter fifty-nine of the
code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 3. NEWSPAPERS AND LEGAL ADVERTISEMENTS.
§59-3-3. Rates for legal advertisements; computation; filing
affidavits with secretary of state.
(a) The rates which a publisher or proprietor of a qualified
newspaper in West Virginia may charge and receive for a single or
first publication of any legal advertisement set solid shall depend
upon the bona fide circulation of such newspaper, as follows:
(1) Two cents per word if the qualified newspaper has a bona fide
circulation of less than one thousand, except as provided in
subdivision (1), subsection (a) of this section;
(2) Five cents per word if the qualified newspaper has a bona
fide circulation of one thousand to ten thousand;
(3) Six and one-fourth cents per word if the qualified newspaper
has a bona fide circulation of more than ten thousand but less than
forty thousand; or
(4) Seven and one-fourth cents per word if the qualified newspaper
has a bona fide circulation of forty thousand or more: Provided,
That on the first day of July in the year one thousand nine hundred
ninety-five and on the first day of July in the year one thousand
nine hundred ninety-six, the allowable rate per word in each of the
classifications of qualified newspapers with reference to circulation as set forth in this subsection shall, for each
classification, increase one cent per word over the prior year's
rate. It is the intent of the Legislature to reconsider the issue
of publication rates for legal advertisement in the year one
thousand nine hundred ninety-seven.
(b) In computing the number of words in a legal advertisement,
not set solid, the basis shall be upon the size of type in which
legal advertising is set by the qualified newspaper making the
publication, and shall be computed at the legal rate as though the
matter was solid type, that is to say, on the basis of eighty-four
words to the single column inch in six point type, and fifty-four
words to the single column inch in eight point type, and any other
size type in proportion.
(c) In determining the cost of a legal advertisement which is
to appear more than once in the same qualified newspaper, the cost
for the first publication shall be computed as specified in
subsections (a) and (b) of this section, and the cost of the second
and each subsequent publication shall be seventy-five percent of
the cost of the first publication computed as aforesaid.
(d) The average bona fide circulation stated by each qualified
newspaper in the statement filed by such newspaper with the United
States post office department in November, one thousand nine hundred ninety-four, shall control the rate of circulation
classification of such qualified newspaper for the period
commencing the first day of July, one thousand nine hundred ninety-
five, until the first day of July, one thousand nine hundred
ninety-six. On or before the first day of November, one thousand
nine hundred ninety-five, the publisher or proprietor of each
newspaper desiring to publish any legal advertisement during the
ensuing one year time period commencing the first day of July, one
thousand nine hundred ninety-six, shall file with the secretary of
state an affidavit stating the average bona fide circulation of
such newspaper during the preceding twelve month time period ending
the thirtieth day of June immediately preceding the November in
which the affidavit is filed, and sufficient facts shall be set
forth in the affidavit to show whether such newspaper is a
qualified newspaper. The average bona fide circulation stated in
such affidavit by each qualified newspaper shall control the rate
circulation classification for the ensuing twelve month period
commencing the first day of July, one thousand nine hundred ninety-
six. The publisher or proprietor of each newspaper desiring to
publish any legal advertisement during the ensuing twelve month
period commencing the first day of July, shall file an affidavit as
aforesaid on or before the first day of November of each succeeding year, and such affidavit shall control the rate circulation
classification of such newspaper, if it is a qualified newspaper,
for the ensuing twelve month period commencing the first day of
July. Any qualified newspaper for which the required affidavit is
not filed on or before the first day of March of any calendar year
after the year one thousand nine hundred ninety-six, shall be
conclusively presumed to have for the ensuing twelve month period
commencing the first day of July of such year, a bona fide
circulation of less than one thousand. At the time a publisher or
proprietor of a qualified newspaper files an affidavit with the
secretary of state, as aforesaid, such publisher or proprietor
shall notify the clerk of the county commission and the board of
education of the county in which such qualified newspaper is
published of the circulation classification of such qualified
newspaper and of the applicable rate for publishing legal
advertisements in such qualified newspaper during the ensuing
twelve month period commencing the first day of July. If the
qualified newspaper is published in a municipality, the publisher
or proprietor shall at the same time also furnish the same
notification to the clerk or recorder of such municipality.
(e) The rate charged for political advertising appearing in a
newspaper at any time or times during the time period commencing thirty days prior to any primary or general election and ending the
day following such election may not exceed one hundred five percent
of the lowest commercial rate charged by the newspaper in which
such political advertising appears.
(f) Nothing contained herein may prohibit qualified newspapers
from charging less than the specified rates for any legal
advertisement.