Publication of advertisements and public notices on a publicly accessible website and governmental access channels.

(1) For purposes of this chapter, the term “governmental agency” means a county, municipality, school board, or other unit of local government or political subdivision in this state.

(2) For purposes of notices and advertisements required under s. 50.011, the term “publicly accessible website” means a county’s official website or other private website designated by the county for the publication of legal notices and advertisements that is accessible via the Internet. For legal notices and advertisements regarding real property required under s. 50.011 by a clerk of the circuit court or county comptroller, the term “publicly accessible website” means such entity’s website, a private website designated by such entity, a county’s official website, or a private website designated by the county in which such entity is located. All advertisements and public notices published on a website as provided in this chapter must be in searchable form and indicate the date on which the advertisement or public notice was first published on the website.

(3) A governmental agency may use the publicly accessible website of the county in which it lies to publish legally required advertisements and public notices if the cost of publishing advertisements and public notices on such website is less than the cost of publishing advertisements and public notices in a newspaper.

(4) A governmental agency with at least 75 percent of its population located within a county with a population of fewer than 160,000 may use a publicly accessible website to publish legally required advertisements and public notices only if the governing body of the governmental agency, at a public hearing that has been noticed in a newspaper as provided in this chapter, determines that the residents of the governmental agency have sufficient access to the Internet by broadband service, as defined in s. 364.02, or by any other means, such that publishing advertisements and public notices on a publicly accessible website will not unreasonably restrict public access.

(5) A special district spanning the geographic boundaries of more than one county that satisfies the criteria for publishing and chooses to publish legally required advertisements and public notices on a publicly accessible website must publish such advertisements and public notices on the publicly accessible website of each county it spans. For purposes of this subsection, the term “special district” has the same meaning as in s. 189.012.

(6) A governmental agency that uses a publicly accessible website to publish legally required advertisements and public notices shall provide notice at least once per year in a newspaper of general circulation or another publication that is mailed or delivered to all residents and property owners throughout the government’s jurisdiction, indicating that property owners and residents may receive legally required advertisements and public notices from the governmental agency by first-class mail or e-mail upon registering their name and address or e-mail address with the governmental agency. The governmental agency shall maintain a registry of names, addresses, and e-mail addresses of property owners and residents who have requested in writing that they receive legally required advertisements and public notices from the governmental agency by first-class mail or e-mail.

(7) A link to advertisements and public notices published on a publicly accessible website shall be conspicuously placed:

(a) On the website’s homepage or on a page accessible through a direct link from the homepage.

(b) On the homepage of the website of each governmental agency publishing notices on the publicly accessible website or on a page accessible through a direct link from the homepage.

(8) A governmental agency that has a governmental access channel authorized under s. 610.109 may also include on its governmental access channel a summary of all advertisements and public notices that are published on a publicly accessible website.

(9) A public bid advertisement made by a governmental agency on a publicly accessible website must include a method to accept electronic bids.