Editor’s note: The following is a thank you letter That the Hoosier State Press Association recently mailed to our state legislator who has worked with the HSPA on various legislative concerns impacting the news industry. The work of the HSPA with our legislators is on behalf of this publication.

Dear Rep. Dave Wolkins,

I hope this letter finds you and your family save and healthy. The historic times we’re living shut down the Hoosier State Press Association for a bit, which delayed my writing of thank you letters to legislators.

HSPA would like to thank you for listening to our concerns with H.B. 1310, authored by you. This bill, would have placed a $300 cap on what local government units could pay for the publication of a public notice. If a newspaper tried to charge more, the unit could replace the publication with posting on its website.

HSPA pointed out to you that the proposal did not take into account that public notices may be two or three inches in one column or may take up multiple pages of space in a newspaper.

After the discussion with HSPA, you said you would not fight a decision by the bill’s committee chair not to give it a hearing. Rep. Dennis Zent, R-Angola, who is chair of the House Local Committee did make that decision.

You said you filed the bill for Rep. Wendy McNamara, R-Evansville, who was the co-author of H.. 1130 during 2019. McNamara testified during the 2019 session that one of her goals was to eliminate all publication of public notices in Indiana Code.

I look forward to working ti the General Assembly during the 2021 session, which will surely be a busy one following this year’s events.

Take care,

Stephen Key,
Executive Director and General Counsel
Hoosier State Press Association