SR-092308-1N~_
~;~Yof City Council Report
- Santa Monica
City Council Meeting: September 23, 2008
Agenda Item: ~N
TO: Mayor and City Council
FROM: Marsha Jones Moutrie, City Attorney
SUBJECT: Awarding Bid to Publish City's Legal Notices
Recommended Action
Staff recommends that the City Council award a bid to the Santa Monica Daily Press to
publish the city's legal notices for fiscal year 2008-09, pursuant to the requirements of
Section-609 of the City Charter.
Executive Summary
State and local law require that legal notices, primarily relating to public bidding and
land use matters, be published in a newspaper of general circulation. Santa Monica
City Charter Section 609 sets forth the procedures .for annual selection of an official
newspaper for publication of legal notices. In accordance with Charter Section 609, the
city published a notice inviting- bids to publish the city's legal notices. One bid was
received and evaluated based on criteria outlined in the notice: The Santa Monica Daily
Press, with aMonday- Saturday circulation of 19,000 (daily readership 46,450) and a
$12:75 per column inch ad rate, is recommended for selection. During FY 07/08, the
city placed 5206.03 column inches and under an existing contract has been paying a
discounted rate of $11.75 per column inch. Designating the Santa Monica Daily Press
as the official newspaper will result in continued reliable coverage and advertising
flexibility for the city's legal notices.
Discussion
The Santa Monica Municipal Code and state law require that legal notices, primarily
relating to public bidding and land use matters, be published in a newspaper of general
circulation published in the city (SMMC Sec. 9.04.20.22.050) or, if there is none, in a
paper of general circulation published nearest to the city (Government Code Sec. 6042).
Under state law, a paper qualifies for city adjudication by either 1) being printed in the
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city for one year or 2) being published in the city for three years and having a principal
office of publication in the city. In either case, some distribution to paid subscribers is
also required.
The Santa Monica Daily Press, founded in 2001, was adjudicated as a newspaper of
general circulation for the City of Santa Monica on December 20, 2005 by Judge
Kenneth R. Freeman of the Los Angeles County Superior Court. While there are
numerous publications that serve the City of Santa Monica exclusively or as part of a
larger geographic area, most do not meet the requirements of the City Charter for legal
advertising. For example, the Los Angeles Times is not adjudicated in the city, nor is
the Santa Monica Mirror, one of the more popular local weekly publications (based on a
weekly circulation of 25,000).
Bid Selection Process
Although the City Charter (SMMC Sec. 609) gives the City Council the power to contract
with acity-adjudicated newspaper without advertising for bids if that paper is the only
qualified paper in the city, staff determined that the prudent and equitable approach was
to publish a notice inviting bids and to select an official newspaper based on the
following criteria:
• Proof of adjudication in the City of Santa Monica
• Amount of bid (ad rate, which cannot exceed customary rates)
• Circulation (including copies per issue, documented readership)
• Delivery methods (news racks, home delivery, on-line, other)
• Publication schedule (weekly, daily)
• Percentage of local news carried
• Fiscallntegrity
• Reputation of publication
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The notice seeking bids was published in the Santa Monica Daily Press three times
between July 1 and July 8; 2008, with bids due July 15, 2008. The city received one bid
for legal advertising services from the Santa Monica Daily Press.
The Santa Monica Daily Press is being recommended for selection based on the criteria
outlined in the notice inviting bids. A summary of the Daily Press' bid appears below:
Rate Circulation Delivery Methods Publication
Schedule % of Local
News
19,000 750+ box, rack and
Daily $12.75/col. (18,386 drop locations, online
"
Press inch (no min.) audited print &
substantial paid
" Daily, M-Sat 75%
&online) subscriptions
(1,120
paid)
Staff is recommending-the Santa Monica Daily Press for selection because it meets all
of the criteria outlined in the request for bids. The Santa Monica Daily Press offers a
daily audited circulation of 19,000 (114,000 weekly), giving the city excellent exposure
and flexibility in its legal advertising. On average, the Daily Press publishes over 45
original local news stories per week and devotes a minimum of 75% of the newspaper
to local news, opinion and other commentary. In addition, the Daily Press has a good
reputation as a paper of record. in the City of Santa Monica and has enjoyed an
excellent working relationship with city staff, offering a dedicated employee to service
the city's account. The $12.75 per column inch rate offered by the Santa Monica Daily
Press is approximately 36% lower than the Daily Press' open rate, is comparable to
other local papers and is far lower than the city's $44.95 per column inch rate in FY
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05/06, the last year the city designated the Los Angeles Times as the official
newspaper.
While the City Charter requires the selection of a single city-adjudicated newspaper for
the purpose of publishing legal notices, it should be noted that display advertising to
inform residents of city programs and services can and will continue to be placed in
other local newspapers, both print and on-line, within approved budget allocations.
Also, certain legal noticing, particularly Purchasing Officer bid notices that require
dissemination beyond Santa Monica's borders, will continue to be published in the Los
Angeles Times or other regional papers in addition to the Santa Monica Daily Press.
Finance/Budget Impact
The city spent $61,100 in FY 07/08 to publish legal notices in the Santa Monica Daily
Press. .Based on individual purchase of a similar number of column inches - 5206 -
the city expects to spend approximately $66,375 with the Santa Monica Daily Press in
FY 08/09. The Santa Monica Daily Press has offered a 15% discount if the city
purchases 5,000 column inches up front, which would reduce the overall financial
obligation to approximately $54,250. Additional inches maybe purchased at the $12.75
rate. Should any inches remain unused at the end of the contract period, the Santa
Monica Daily Press will maintain them in an account for future use.
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Legal advertising is budgeted in General Fund Account No. 01211.522520, Records &
Election Services.
Prepared by:
Joseph Lawrence, Assistant City Attorney
Approved: F
,~' _
M sf~a ~ es Moutri~, P
Ci Atto y C
Council:
;(mont Ewell
Manager
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