Newspapers will no longer carry legal notices in
New Jersey.
Gov. Phil Murphy (D) has signed a bipartisan bill that would require local governments and agencies to publish such notices on their official sites rather than in
print newspapers. It takes effect on March 1, 2026.
The bill states that “whenever a public entity is required by law or by order or rule of any court to publish or advertise a
legal notice, the public entity shall publish or advertise the legal notice on the public entity’s official Internet website. The public entity’s official Internet website shall
be accessible and available to the public free of charge.”
In addition, the state will establish “an Internet webpage on which shall be included hyperlinks to the legal
notices webpage of each public entity.” This page would be “accessible and available to the public free of charge and shall be accessible by direct hyperlink conspicuously placed on
the Secretary of State’s Internet homepage,” the bill adds.
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This bill reflects the closure of the print editions of the The Star-Ledger and other periodicals. It
would remove a revenue stream for those that survive.
However, governments may also “publish or advertise a legal notice separately on an eligible online news
publication.”
A legal notice is defined as "any resolution, official proclamation, notice or advertisement of any sort, kind, or character, including proposals for bids on public
work and otherwise,” the bill states.