The Indiana Publisher

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Contact us at 910-323-0349 for more informa on on this money-making sales program! The following questions were submitted by The Press-Dispatch (Petersburg), The Herald-Times (Bloomington), The Brazil Times, North Vernon Plain Dealer and North Vernon Sun: The Gibson County Solid Waste Management District wants to run a public notice (legal) ad to sell surplus property. They want to include a photo of the vehicle. Can we run the ad as a display classified ad, charging the dis- play rate, or does it run at the state-set ad line rate, counting the photo space as lines? Sorry, but if it's the official notice, they're eligible for the public notice advertising rate, so you'd have to take the photo space and bill as equivalent lines. I do like the idea of including a photo – it will draw more attention to the public notice. Is the Indiana Finance Authority subject to public record requests? It's kind of a quasi-governmental entity, so I'm not sure. I believe it's a state-cre- ated entity and subject to the state's Access to Public Records Act. We have a doctor who is wanting to run an ad for "industrial hemp." I didn't see anything wrong with it, but I am not versed in this type of thing, so I thought I would ask the expert. I've gotten some informa- tion back concerning medi- cal marijuana and hemp. This comes from the Indiana Prosecuting Attorneys Council (IPAC). According to the prosecutor's group, there are two active ingredients in marijuana, which is related to hemp. They are THC and CBD. THC is what creates the high. CBD is what is being touted as a pain reliever. IPAC said if a product doesn't have any THC in it, it doesn't violate state law, but federal law would say a prod- uct with either THC or CBD in it is illegal. This is part of dilemma for states that have legalized marijuana, while state law may allow its posses- sion and sale, federal law still says it's a crime. If your doctor wants to continue to run an ad, he/she should know whether the product contains either active ingredient. Depending upon the answer, the product could either be legal, illegal by federal law, or illegal by federal and state law. While the newspaper may not have any criminal liability for allowing an ad for an illegal substance, you prob- ably have a policy that would prohibit you from accepting an ad for an illegal product. The policy is probably tied to old postal regulations that prohibit periodicals from promoting illegal activity (used to be gambling that was the issue). I can't say whether the postal service is monitoring medical marijuana advertising. Sorry for a less than simple answer, but that's the state of marijuana laws across the country – not simple. Our TIF board (North Vernon Redevelopment Commission) passed a resolution "to invite the North Vernon Common Council to hold a quarterly joint meeting during the next 12 months" to inform the Council of their activities. The resolution states: "The meeting shall be posted as a 'public listening meeting' with the discussions being between the NVRC and the NVCC (Council)." My questions are: Since when can the TIF board tell the Council what to do? Can you specifically exclude the public from asking a question about their report to the Council? Is there such a thing as a 'public listening meeting'? If so, wouldn't it be up to the Council to determine this? The TIF board can't tell the city council board what to do. "Invite" would indicate a request, not an order. Whichever governing body that is hosting this joint meeting, be it council or commission, would set the rules for the public's level of engagement. Open Door Law only gives public the right to observe and record, not speak. There is no statutory "public listening meeting." I think this is terminology to indicate an intent that the public will not be allowed to speak under this proposal. Again, what public speaking rights that will exist will be determined by who runs the joint meeting. A A Q Q HSPA Legal Hotline Q A Q A Mark your calendar! HSPA Annual Conference Sept. 21-22, 2017 Indianapolis News in brief CNHI advertising veteran promoted to Illinois Republican Editorial Association offers scholarship Mark Elliott has been promoted from advertising director of The Herald Bulletin to publisher of two Illinois newspapers, the Mount Vernon Register News and the McLeansboro Times-Leader. Elliott had been advertising direc- tor of The Herald Bulletin for the past two years and the Goshen News for two years before that. Community Newspaper Holdings Inc. is the parent company of both Indiana papers and both Illinois papers. "Mark's been a great part of our team; we'll miss him in Anderson," Herald Bulletin publisher Beverly Joyce said. "He's going to be a fan- tastic addition to the Illinois loca- tions." The Herald Bulletin is interview- ing applicants for the vacant advertising director position. Previously, Elliott had served in execu- tive advertising and marketing roles for newspapers in Arkansas, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Vermont and Connecticut "Mark's accomplishments over the years have groomed him to become the type of market-conscious publisher who will contribute to the progress of the Register News and the Times-Leader," said Robyn McCloskey, operations vice president for CNHI. – Herald Bulletin (Anderson) The Indiana Republican Editorial Association will award one $500 scholarship to an Indiana student. This one-year scholarship will go to an Indiana resident who is enrolled in an Indiana University or college and is majoring in the field of journalism. The fund was established on 1985 in behalf of the IREA, the oldest Republican editorial association in the nation. The Indiana Republican Editorial Association will make the selection and announce the winner after the June 30 deadline. Please email lchandler@rip- leynews.com to request an applica- tion form. Elliott

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