Arkansas and Utah have passed legislation to update their respective self-storage laws and provide more options for advertising lien sales. Industry operators in those states will now be able to promote their auctions in places other than a local newspaper.

In Arkansas, Gov. Asa Hutchinson signed House Bill 1027 (HB 1027) into law on March 15. The provision gives operators the option to advertise a lien sale in a newspaper of general circulation or another “commercially reasonable” outlet, meaning it must draw at least three independent bidders to participate in the auction. Alternate channels could include auction websites, Craigslist and Facebook Marketplace, according to a March 22 newsletter sent by the national Self Storage Association (SSA) to its members.

The bill was supported by the SSA and Arkansas Self Storage Association, which lobbied for its passage. First introduced in December, a final version of the measure passed the senate on March 2 and the house on March 11. It’ll go into effect 90 days after the conclusion of the current legislative session, which is scheduled to end on April 30.

In Utah, Gov. Spencer Cox signed Senate Bill 201 (SB 201), which modifies several state provisions related to public notices. Among them is an amendment similar to the one in Arkansas that updates the lien-sale advertising requirement. Operators no longer have to use a newspaper of general circulation as long as they can prove they sent direct notice to the tenant, either through email confirmation or Certified Mail. Having met that requirement, they can choose the advertising channel they believe will be most effective, SSA officials said. The law will go into effect on May 4.

The updates are part of an ongoing effort by the SSA and state associations to push for lien-law revisions. The SSA is also seeking to change or eliminate the newspaper-advertising requirement in Alabama, Florida, Illinois, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Missouri, North Dakota, Pennsylvania and Vermont.

The SSA represents about 22,000 U.S. and international member-affiliated self-storage facilities, according to its website. It’s allied with several state and international self-storage associations and has about 6,000 members.

Sources:
SSA Magazine Weekly 3/22/21, Arkansas and Utah Pass Important Industry Modernization Legislation
Arkansas State Legislature, House Bill 1027
Utah State Legislature, Senate Bill 201 Public Notice Amendments