SB189: SB189 Department of Community Affairs; to develop and maintain a publicly accessible data base of legal notices; provide

Georgia law currently requires many legal notices, such as foreclosure or public hearing announcements, to be published in a newspaper called a legal organ or another newspaper of general circulation. This bill would add a new requirement: the Department of Community Affairs would have to build and run a publicly accessible online database where these notices are also posted, in addition to newspaper publication, though the project only moves forward if the General Assembly actually funds it. The database would let people upload notices electronically, pay a fee capped at $25 per notice, search and view notices online including on mobile devices, and get certified copies. In most cases posting online would not replace newspaper publication, but there are exceptions: if a county's legal organ has no local office, if there is an error in a published notice, or for certain notice corrections, posting on the database can substitute for or fix the newspaper requirement. The department could also charge fees for notifications and archival searches and would be allowed to write rules for running the system.

• Requires the Department of Community Affairs to develop and operate a public online database of legal notices, but only if the General Assembly provides funding for it.
• Makes posting on the database mandatory in addition to existing newspaper publication requirements for legal notices, with limited exceptions.
• Sets technical requirements for the database, including 24 hour posting, mobile accessibility, searchable records, and certified copies of notices.
• Caps the online publication fee at $25 per notice and allows extra fees for notification alerts and for retrieving notices older than one year (called archival notices).
• Allows database posting to substitute for newspaper publication when a county's legal organ has no local office, or to correct errors in a previously published notice.
• Authorizes the department to adopt rules and regulations to run the database.

The Department of Community Affairs, which must build and operate the database; newspapers and legal organs that currently publish legal notices; county governments and any person or business legally required to publish notices, such as in foreclosure or public hearing cases; and members of the public who search for legal notices.

Georgians who rely on legal notices, such as homeowners facing foreclosure, bidders on public contracts, or residents tracking local government actions, would gain an easier, searchable online way to find them. Newspapers would keep their publication role in most cases, but counties without an active legal organ office would have a new compliant option.

• New Code Section 50-8-19(a) directs the department to build the database, but only subject to appropriation (funding) by the General Assembly.
• Subsection (b) makes database posting mandatory alongside existing publication rules, except it cannot substitute for notice required under O.C.G.A. § 28-1-14.
• Subsection (c) lists required features: electronic uploads, online fee payment capped at $25 per notice, posting within 24 hours, mobile-friendly search, optional paid notification accounts, and certified copies.
• Subsection (d) allows database posting to serve as lawful publication in place of a county's legal organ if that legal organ has no office in the county, as long as posting happens by the legal deadline.
• Subsection (e) allows a corrected notice posted on the database to satisfy legal notice requirements if the original published notice contained an error.
• Subsection (f) defines an 'archival notice' as one posted for more than a year and lets the department charge fees to search and retrieve those.
• Subsection (g) authorizes the department to adopt rules and regulations for the database.
• Section 2 repeals any conflicting laws.

1. 2025-02-19Senate Read and Referred (Senate)
2. 2025-02-18Senate Hopper (Senate)

• Ricky Williams (R, SD-025)Primary sponsor
• Lee Anderson (R, SD-024)
• Gail Davenport (D, SD-017)
• Michael Rhett (D, SD-033)
• Jason Esteves (D, SD-035)

• legal notices
• open government
• Department of Community Affairs
• local government transparency
• newspaper publication requirements