Clarification: Enterprise in compliance with public notice laws

CEO Richardson Media Group

There has been some confusion over the past few weeks over this newspaper’s compliance with certain regulatory requirements regarding the posting of public notices. The confusion began when an email from the owner of another publishing company sent emails to those responsible for placing public notices stating, “I want make you aware that legal notices published in the Dresden Enterprise are not meeting the legal criteria of TCA 1-3-120.”

Alarmed, some in receipt of the email contacted Dresden Enterprise staff about the claim. This prompted a closer look by Richardson Media Group, including consulting with Tennessee Press Association officials to ensure that the publication was in compliance with any and all laws regarding public notices.

TCA 1-3-120 was established in 2014 through efforts of the Tennessee Press Association and sponsor legislators. The law states that newspapers have the responsibility to place public notices online at no additional charge to the advertiser when public notice ads are placed in the newspaper.

The TPA created a statewide public notice website (tnpublicnotice.com) for the purpose of allowing newspapers to post the notices and for readers to access the notices at no cost. The law also required newspapers carrying public notices to have a button on the newspaper’s home page linking to the public notices.

The email to local attorneys stated that “The Dresden Enterprise has violated this law since at least 2020. A simple check of their home website will verify this. There is no record of any postings on the www.tnpublicnotice.com website, so anything they publish, legal wise, is in violation of this TCA and, if challenged, could be null and void and have to be republished in a newspaper that meets the criteria required by law.”

A third-party who was asked to review the newspapers compliance replied with this statement:

“I see approximately 160 notices in the past 12 months posted to tnpublicnotice.com for the Dresden Enterprise. Anyone who goes to the site and does the same search will find the same.” They went on to say “The dresedenenterprise.com website also has a public notices button that links over to tnpublicnotice.com and takes you right to recent notices posted for the paper.”

Dresden Enterprise publisher Daniel Richardson is available to answer any questions that readers or advertisers may have about public notices. He can be reached via email at daniel@richardsonmediagroup.net.